Sad news

Many of you will have heard of the sad death of Tony Ballard. Members of our diocesan youth council number among his friends and many other young people within the diocese may well have benefitted from knowing this young man whom Bishop John has described as "a generous hearted boy who loved life and lived it to the full".

If you feel you need help in supporting young people who are grieving or want to direct families to places of support, consider contacting either the Child Bereavement Charity (Formerly the Child Berevement Trust) who provide pages specifically desinged for families, children and young people with leaflets you can download for young people. The Noah's Ark Trust operates locally and can offer local support to teenagers and others.

Hope 09 in Malvern 2nd-5th July

Hope09 Fun day and work around the community at Duke's Meadow 2nd -5th July
There is a sign up meeting, complete parental consent forms, CRB disclosures, pick up HOPE T-shirts 7:30 pm Thurs 2nd at Malvern Evangelical Church
5 o'clock Friday 3rd July meet at MEC to walk over as a group to the Pickersleigh Centre
From 8 o'clock Saturday 4th at the Pickersleigh Centre, Sherrard's Green Road and Duke's Meadow in preparation for
12 o'clock start of Fun Day on Saturday on Dukes Meadow.
United Hope09 worship/celebration at 10:30 am on Sunday 5th on Dukes Meadow with balloon prayers(!)

Funding Opportunities

Check out the new site from WAVOCC for all kinds of funding opportunities in Worcestershire.

You may have seen in the news an article about young people having the chance to bid for a share of £30,000 for POSITIVE ACTIVITIES. Details are here.

ATC Chaplains

There are two vacancies for support to young people in the age range of 13 - 18 in a uniformed organisation. Generally the youngsters will not have a religious background. There is one vacancy in Worcester and one in Kidderminster.

The positions are unpaid but expenses can be recovered. The appointments are as Chaplains in Air Training Corps squadrons.

If anyone is interested please contact, in the first instance, Canon Eric Knowles, Wing Chaplain ~ West Mercian Wing, Air training Corps.

Tel: 01684-567439

E-mail: skypilot@homecall.co.uk

Fun in the Sun

This from Joel Thomas in Worcester:

What: Join us for 3 afternoons of Fun in the Sun! Go-karting, field games, BBQ and much more!



Who: If you're aged 11-17, then this is for you and your youth leader!



When: Wed 29th - Fri 31st July (1.30pm - 5.00pm, except Friday which will finish at 7.30pm)



Where: The Moat House, Cotheridge, Worcester, WR6 5LY



Cost: £3 for all 3 days!



More Info: Please feel free to contact Joel on 07856288978 for more information


I'm sure you'll agree, £3 for three afternoons of activities is very cheap! It would be great if you could join us for this event, please let me know ASAP if this is something you'd be interested in coming along to with some of your youth, so that I can send out the necessary information pack with the go-karting forms, and get a rough idea of the numbers coming (it is necessary for the youth leader to also come along with any of their youth).

Happiness Arts Project

There is an opportunity for your community group to explore 'Happiness' using art with artists from Multi Storey based in West Bromwich. This will form part of a Black Country wide project on the theme of 'Happiness'. The good news is that funding has already been found through the Black Country Arts Partnership so this opportunity is absolutely FREE!

The group can be of any age or background but needs to be one that meets regularly. Other participating groups in the Black Country are sheltered women, young Somali men, older people, deaf people, Yemeni women and South Asian women.

If your group is interested you need to be able to commit to the following;



* Providing an appropriate space or room for the group to meet and hold sessions.
* 10 hours of art workshops or 5 sessions of 2 hours or equivalent (e.g A weekend)


The sessions need to take place between the 28th June and August 14th.

If you are interested please contact one of the people below by Friday 26th June at 5pm;

Fred Richings Dudley Arts Officer 01384 815540 or fred.richings@dudley.gov.uk Or
Claire Carter Happiness Coordinator on 01694 731 759 or claire@creativityteam.co.uk

First Chance Harvey

The Damaris Trust has resources for taking groups to the cinema and then running a discussion soon afterward or later. Check out their invitations, a poster, discussion notes and film clips.

Put some bounce into summer

If you're thinking of adding some bounce to your summer events by hiring a bouncy castle this summer, but are worried about safety issues, check out this website called PIPA which helps you understand whether or not the company from whom you're hiring is a safe practitioner.

Raising Awareness

AWARENESS WORKSHOPS

Monday 22nd June 2009

at Christ Church, High Street, Lye

(ample free car parking available behind the church)

Free refreshments provided throughout the day, including buffet lunch

This is an opportunity to highlight and raise awareness of the needs and views of the young people you care about, and a chance to meet people from other voluntary youth organisations

MORNING SESSION ~ DRUG AWARENESS

AFTERNOON SESSION ~ ANGER MANAGEMENT & CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN YOUTH SETTINGS

9.30-12.30 ~ DRUG AWARENESS with NEALE PILKINGTON

Ø Up-to-date information about drugs in an easily understandable form.

Ø Aims : to give participants knowledge and awareness about drugs and drug issues to allow them to make informed judgements about situations in their communities.

Ø Objectives :

o Identify different types of drugs and what they do

o Gain knowledge of the Misuse of Drugs Act and other related legislation

o Explore why people take drugs

o Explore the language used around drugs through the media and other sources

o Consider concepts of addiction, dependency and peer pressure

o Consider the key signs and symptoms of drug use

o Look at the moral dilemmas around drug use

o Explore own attitudes towards drugs

Ø Target Audience -

o Staff in contact with the public

o Parents concerned about young people's drug use

o Community members concerned about drug use in their communities

This workshop is delivered in a way to encourage discussion and debate. It is structured in line with Government drugs strategy and is relevant to those wishing to gain DANOS accreditation.

12.30-1.30 ~ Free buffet lunch provided

1.30-4.30 ~ ANGER MANAGEMENT & CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN YOUTH SETTINGS with MARTIN HOGG

Martin Hogg is an Anger Coach and experienced counsellor working in the West Midlands providing specialist Anger Management to young people and adults in groups and one to one. His company, Citizen Coaching, is a not-for-personal profit social enterprise providing personal development training across Birmingham and The Black country, working with a diverse client base including three councils, The Youth Service and the private sector.

In this workshop Martin will talk on:

Ø Anger Management and Young People ~ How anyone can learn the three key skills to support young people who needs help with their anger.

Ø Top tips to resolve conflict in youth settings.

Ø Towards challenging behaviour ~ a blueprint for improving challenging behaviour.

This will be an interactive session with ample opportunity to debate anger issues in young people.

Seasonal Thoughts

Paul Bayes has flagged up an initiative for Advent/Christmas this year. I know this may seem a long way off but if you fancy getting your church involved in setting up a nativity scene in your local shopping centre, have a look at what it's all about here.

Job Opportunities

West Bromwich & District YMCA, a thriving Christian charity, is looking to recruit two key individuals: a Head of Family Support & Childcare Services and a Young Person & Residents Participation Worker to develop and deliver its expanding services.



1. Head of Family Support and Childcare Services



a. Purpose: To provide strategic leadership and empowering management for a fast-growing department of c.65 staff delivering a range of children’s and family services (e.g. nurseries, extended school facilities, Children’s Centres) in partnership with statutory, voluntary, and church partners across Sandwell Metropolitan Borough.

Responsible for: c.65 staff, inc 4 managers

Responsible to: Chief Executive

Keywords: Leader; Strategic; Networker; Visionary; Enabler;
Performance; Manager, Christian.

Remuneration: £34-38K + benefits, inc free gym membership

Location: Sandwell Boroughs

To start: ASAP

Hours: 37.5 hours a week



CRB clearance is a requirement. Also, because this a Senior Management Team position with the YMCA, which operates from a clear and inclusive Christian ethos, in accordance with the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003, there is a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) for the Head of Family Support and Childcare Services to be an active Christian.



2. Young Person & Resident Participation Worker



a. Purpose: To support young people and residents to participate in decision-making within the life and mission of the YMCA at local and national level, as well as within the local community, and to communicate the Christian ethos of the YMCA movement:

Responsible for: 0 staff

Responsible to: Personal Development & Learning Co-ordinator

Keywords: Relational; Community; Empowering; Participation;
Communication; Youth Work; Christian.

Remuneration: £19-22K + benefits

Location: West Bromwich

To start: July 2009

Hours: 37.5 hours a week



CRB clearance is a requirement. Also, because the post-holder is required to actively demonstrate and communicate the YMCA’s clear and inclusive Christian ethos, in accordance with the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003, there is a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) for the Young Person & Resident Participation Worker to be an active Christian.





West Bromwich & District YMCA is a thriving and well-respected Christian charity that delivers a range of community services across Sandwell Borough, including:

* Childcare – Children’s Centre (across 4 sites); two major nurseries (130+ spaces); two Out of School Clubs (100 spaces); Teenage Pregnancy Project;
* Supported housing – supported housing (82 residents); supported lodging scheme
* Healthy living and fitness centre – gym; sports hall; dance studio; café
* Community Learning Services

Incentive plus

If you're looking for some targetted resources for working with young people in relation to specific social, emotional or behavioural skills then check out Incentive plus who have just recently published their latest catalogue.

Resources include Pip Wilson's Blob feeling ball and many other great ideas!

Autism Awareness Training

WCVYS are offering a free training day on the topic of Autism on Tuesday 30th June at the Girlguiding Worcestershire meeting room (Acre Lane, Droitwich). If you're interested contact Jo Chester.

Mini Mediabox

Media Box have started a new strand of funding for young people producing their own creative media projects. This one is for smaller organizations (turnover under £100k) and grants can be anything from £500-£5,000. Check it out. This means they now have funding streams for small medium and large so whatever your organization size, if you are young people or are working with young people in a creative project, you can look at some funding.

Secret Millionaire Fund

If you've seen the show the Secret Millionaire, you'll be familiar with the way that people have offered money to community groups within particular localities. The Big lottery Fund and Channel 4 have now launched a new joint fund called the Secret Millionaire fund:

"The Big Lottery Fund and The Secret Millionaire have teamed up to give viewers of the programme a chance to act on the charitable inspiration fuelled by the show. Lottery funding worth £1 million has been lined up for people to apply for, or nominate projects to apply for grants of between £300 and £10,000 from the Secret Millionaire Fund.

From here you can nominate or apply for The Secret Millionaire Fund.

• nominate a community project.
  
  You can propose a community project or organisation you think would benefit from BIG funding. BIG will then contact the organisation to see if it is eligible to apply for this small grants scheme and send out the relevant information.
• apply directly.
  
  If you have an idea for a project that can bring real improvements to the lives of communities, and can pass a simple eligibility test (see information below), you can apply to Secret Millionaire Fund.

In both cases Lottery grants are awarded following an application and asseesment process which takes up to 8 weeks. For more information see the link to the right.

If your application to The Secret Millionaire Fund is successful Channel 4 (or RDF Media the production company who make the programme) might choose you for filming that will appear on the Secret Millionaire website and possibly in future editions of The Secret Millionaire. You will be asked to opt in to this at the point of application. Accepting or declining will not affect the outcome of your application."