Voluntary Organisations Network North East

Voluntary Organisations Network North East
Name	Voluntary Organisations Network North East
Formation	1991
Type	Charity
Location	Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Region served	North East England
Leader title	Chief Executive

Voluntary Organisations Network North East is a regional infrastructure charity based in Newcastle upon Tyne that supports the third sector in North East England through capacity building, representation, and service development. It acts as a membership body linking charities, social enterprises, trusts, and community groups across Tyne and Wear, County Durham, Northumberland, and Teesside, engaging with public bodies, funders, and academic partners to influence regional policy and deliver sector support.

History

The organisation was founded in 1991 amid a landscape shaped by the aftermath of the Poll Tax controversy and the reform debates surrounding the Charities Act 1993, with early involvement from local players such as Newcastle upon Tyne City Council, Durham County Council, and voluntary groups concentrated around Sunderland. During the 1990s it worked alongside national bodies including NCVO and Community Foundation Network while responding to initiatives from the Home Office and programme funding streams from the National Lottery Community Fund and the European Social Fund. In the 2000s it navigated shifts occasioned by the Local Government Act 2000 and the policy environment set by the New Labour administration, collaborating with regional development agencies such as One North East and later interacting with the Tees Valley Combined Authority. Following austerity-era changes after the 2010 United Kingdom general election, the network intensified advocacy with elected officials in Parliament of the United Kingdom and agencies like Public Health England to protect community services. Its recent evolution reflects engagement with devolved structures exemplified by the Northern Powerhouse agenda and partnerships with universities including Newcastle University and Durham University for research on social value and civil society resilience.

Structure and Governance

The organisation is constituted as a membership charity governed by a board drawn from representatives of local charities, trustees with links to bodies such as Barnardo's, Citizen's Advice, and regional social enterprises, and a staff team led by a chief executive. Its governance arrangements follow guidance from the Charity Commission for England and Wales and reporting standards influenced by the Financial Reporting Council and Companies House where applicable. Regional engagement structures include thematic networks aligned to sectors represented in documents from the Cabinet Office and sector-specific regulators like Ofsted for services working with children. Stakeholder oversight has included chairs who previously held posts in organisations such as Age UK, Groundwork, and The Prince's Trust.

Functions and Activities

The network provides capacity building, volunteering support, policy representation, and service development. It operates volunteer brokerage similar to models used by Volunteer Now and runs training and governance support comparable to offers from NCVO and ACEVO, delivering workshops on compliance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Equality Act 2010. It hosts consortia for bidding to funders such as the Big Lottery Fund and provides infrastructure for social prescribing initiatives tied to NHS England and integrated care systems. The organisation also publishes guidance used by frontline providers akin to resources from Shelter and Mind and contributes evidence to consultations led by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Funding and Financial Model

Funding mixes membership subscriptions, grant funding from bodies like the National Lottery Community Fund, contracts with health commissioners including NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups, and project grants previously secured from the European Regional Development Fund. The organisation has pursued social investment models comparable to those promoted by Big Society Capital and maintains financial controls compliant with standards promoted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Annual budgeting is informed by commissioning cycles observed at the Cabinet Office and funding landscapes shaped by decisions in the United Kingdom Parliament.

Partnerships and Advocacy

Partnerships span local authorities such as Northumberland County Council and Gateshead Council, academic partners including Teesside University, and national networks like Locality and Co-operatives UK. The network has lobbied regional Members of Parliament during parliamentary inquiries and submitted evidence to select committees in the House of Commons on issues affecting voluntary provision, aligning advocacy with frameworks from the European Commission on state aid where relevant to funding. Collaborative work has included joint programmes with NHS bodies, police and crime commissioners, and combined authorities including the North of Tyne Combined Authority.

Impact and Evaluation

Evaluation practices draw on methodologies from New Philanthropy Capital and academic evaluation models used in studies published by The Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Sociology departments at regional universities. The network reports metrics on volunteer numbers, financial leverage, and service reach, and has been cited in impact assessments commissioned by local clinical commissioning groups and community foundations. Independent evaluations have referenced outcomes consonant with social value approaches advocated by practitioners associated with Social Value UK.

Notable Initiatives and Programmes

Notable programmes include volunteer brokerage schemes that mirror national campaigns such as the Big Help Out, consortium-led bids for community regeneration with partners like Groundwork and Regenda, training academies for trustees inspired by Clore Leadership Programme principles, and social prescribing pilots in partnership with NHS England and local sustainability and transformation partnerships. The network has coordinated emergency response collaboration during crises referenced in regional resilience frameworks used by Civil Contingencies Secretariat and has contributed to regional poverty alleviation initiatives aligned with research from Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Category:Charities based in Tyne and Wear