Blume is offering each charity up to 16 hours – or two days – of free support.
West London Business has launched a dedicated business support helpline to field queries from local businesses that are struggling to navigate support from government and banks, as well as siginificant business change.
Our evolving resources at coronavirus.westlondon.com, in tandem with the knowledge from a team of skilled and experienced home-based volunteers, are supporting business in the sub-region like never before.
We’re still recruiting volunteeers looking to make a real difference in supporting your local business community and provide business leaders with the information they need to make informed decisions at this testing time. If you have experience suitable for any of the roles below and have time to help from home, please contact us today.
Business Support Volunteer (front-line)
Are you an experienced business professional who can help answer business owners/ managers queries over the phone? Find out more
**NEW** Business Support Volunteer (second-line)
If your talents are better suited to aiding follow-up queries and support, we’re looking to bridge the gap between the Information & Research Volunteer team and the Front Line support volunteers. Find out more
Volunteer Information & Research Officers (Limited vacancies remain)
Are you able to help us identify and interpret the details of the latest government support in this fast-moving crisis? Find out more
Spectroomz is a platform for you to benefit from the employment of exceptional, highly motivated, autistic freelancers. It also enables autistic people to work from home and avoid the stress associated with the traditional workplace, with COVID-19 a further reason to promote remote employment.
The Ubele Initiative highlights to government urgent concern that BAME communities who are both on the frontline dealing with outbreak and are set to face disproportionate impacts, are not being adequately included and considered in decisions being made by government and civil society leadership. Find out more.
DSC say they are dissapointed with the government’s support package for charities, but still pushing desperately for the help we all need. They’re wrestling with the implications of what’s been announced and looking at the gaps that leaves, and will be back arguing the case for more help after the Easter weekend.
In the meantime, they’re relaunching our #EverybodyBenefits campaign. There’s no better time to show government, journalists, and everybody else that the work charities do is critical to society. It’s not an add-on or something we can do without, everything we do is connected to making the world a better place – and #EverybodyBenefits from that!
UK Fundraising has pulled together a range of fantastic tech resources to help fundraisers. Find out more.
Is the UK charity connecting manufacturers and retailers of goods like household essentials to charitable organisations (not just registered charities). Organisations can register for free, and access huge savings on the In Kind Direct online catalogue. This includes toilet roll, hand wash, cleaning and laundry supplies, period products, mother & baby supplies, indoor activities and toiletries. You can give products to the people you support or use them to keep running your services. Find out more here, or email Charlotte, Head of Charity Partnerships
This could be a pivotal week in the #EveryDayCounts campaign efforts to get a swift, substantial and simple emergency government funding package for charities and voluntary organisations.
We’re still pushing government for a Resilience Fund to get charities through the next few months.
There was some excellent media coverage over the weekend, with the Telegraph and the Independent newspapers talking about the importance of charitable services in these difficult times and the need for Treasury support.
We may be getting closer to a deal but it’s a difficult process and there’s nothing concrete on the table yet – so please keep writing to your MPs and publicising your story!
You can also tell Parliament’s DCMS Select Committee what’s happening to you and the people you serve – they’re asking for evidence about the impact of COVID19 on charities until 16 April.
Since the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic, WLB has been regularly convening a range of experts to address the various issues confronting business in West London. ‘Talk at Ten’ webcasts bring WLB CEO Andrew Dakers and guests together in our virtual studio to tackle the toughest topics of our time.
By popular demand, we’re now opening up our archive of the first five episodes ‘Talk at Ten’ for FREE viewing.
EPISODE 1: HR & People
Hear from HR professionals, as well as businesses in the manufacturing and events sectors, on the challenges of managing significant business change. Play >>
EPISODE 2: Public Sector Emergency Response
We discuss the Local authority, parliamentary, NHS and Police response to coronavirus in West London. Play >>
EPISODE 3: Finance
The third West London Business ‘Talk at Ten’ looks at financing your business through Coronavirus. Play >>
EPISODE 4: Leading & Coaching Virtual Teams
We look at the challenges and opportunities of home-working through the Coronvirus pandemic. Play >>
EPISODE 5: The Food Industry Response
We explore how food businesses – including those based in and around Park Royal – are adapting to the latest challenges. Play >>
Tuesday 7 April, 10am: West London Webcast ‘Talk at Ten’: Coronavirus – How your business can support the West London community
In this programme we will be looking at the various actions taken by businesses in West London and beyond – and how you can get involved. Register for the webcast: just £9 for WLB members* and £14 for non-members. BOOK NOW
Following the Government’s announcement on Friday 20 March all libraries in the borough have closed until further notice. We have also cancelled all library events and activities and extended due dates for all borrowed items, so you will not be charged overdue fees.
We look forward to welcoming you back to the library in due course but in the meantime, we have a fantastic online library to offer you – newspapers, journals, comics, books, audiobooks, language-learning platform and dictionaries, reference materials for students and much more – all available to you remotely, from home, with just your library card.
Don’t have a library card? Don’t worry – you can join online and use the resources straight away with the registration number you get when you fill the form.
For some of them you need to download an app, while others are available by simply entering your library membership number – just click through the links provided in this newsletter and you will be guided to whatever is of interest.
If you run into difficulties, email libraries@rbkc.gov.uk and we’ll do our best to help.
sobus
20 Dawes Road, London, SW6 7EN
Telephone 020 7952 1230
Email info@sobus.org.uk
Registered Charity No.1071089
and Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England No.03471416
Sobus is a new Community Development Agency for Hammersmith & Fulham. It has been created through the merger of the Community and Voluntary Sector Association Hammersmith & Fulham (CaVSA) and the Fulham Community Partnership Trust (FCPT). Building on the strengths of both organisations, sobus aims to provide a wider range of support services for local charities, community groups, social enterprises and start up businesses.