Training Courses
Please click on a course title for more information:
Training accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management:
Managing People-Advanced Skills
Community Volunteering Qualification
Training accredited by LASER (formerly Open College Network):
Introduction to Community Action
Community Action and Leadership
Equality and Diversity Training
Introduction to building a Wordpress website
Mental Health Awareness for Managers
Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers
Bespoke high-quality training for your oganisation
Accredited training courses
Training accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management
This training course is for all those in the voluntary sector who would like to get better at managing people and projects. This course is now full, but you can find more information on the training here. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
If you manage volunteers for your organisation, and you would like to get better at it, this course will help. For more information on the dates, cost and how to apply for this course, please click here.
Managing People-Advanced Skills
This course looks at some of the challenging aspects of managing people, such as managing performance, managing conflict, and the employment relationship. The course is aimed at those with experience of managing people, or those who have already undertaken introductory training in people management. For more information on the course, and for dates and cost please click here.
This course is a must in these challenging economic times. It is aimed at anyone who has responsibility for securing funding for their organisation or project, either as a manager or fundraiser. The course is accredited with the Institute of Leadership and Management, and gives you an opportunity to work towards a level 3 qualification in management. For more information on the course, and for dates and cost, please click here.
Community Volunteering Qualification
This course enables you to gain a formal qualification in volunteering with OCVA. It is designed to help volunteers develop confidence, learn how to work in a team, and gain some new transferable skills. If you are unemployed and currently volunteering for an organisation, this course is for you. For more information, please click here. You can also call Liz Pride on 01865 251946, or email her at liz.pride@ocva.org.uk to find out more.
Training accredited by LASER (formerly Open College Network)
Introduction to Community Action
This course is for you if you want to get more involved in your community. Learn how to have your say on local issues, and put a new idea for your community into action. If you are unsure how to go about it all, this course will teach you how to do it!
For more information, please click here.
Community Action and Leadership
This course is for you, if you have some experience of community action and want to build your skills further. It will help you learn how to take on a leadership role in your community. You will be able to build your skills and confidence to make a more effective difference in your community, and to take a lead in local projects.
For more information, please contact Catrina Pickering on catrina.pickering@ocva.org.uk or call on 01865 251946.
Non-accredited training
This one day training course is a great introduction to mentoring. If you are interested in, or are already providing, goal-based support to someone, for example young people, volunteers, vulnerable people, this course is for you.
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
Describe what characteristics and behaviour an effective mentor should have
Explain the importance of respect in a mentoring relationship
Explain the importance of agreeing learning outcomes
Recognise and handle barriers to effective mentoring
Explain the importance of effective listening and questioning skills
For dates and cost of this course, please click here.
Equality and Diversity Training
This comprehensive one-day training course will help you to understand what is meant by the terms 'equality' and 'diversity'. It will enable you to understand what barriers there are to equality and discrimination, and how to overcome these. Our trainer, Deb Puleston, has recently worked with the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Who's it aimed at: Volunteers, Managers of volunteers, HR departments of not-for-profit organisations, and the statutory sector.
By the end of the course, you will understand:
- What is meant by the terms equality and diversity
- Some of the barriers to equality and diversity
- Which groups in society are most vulnerable to stereotyping and how this can lead to prejudice and discrimination
- The basis of current legislation
- The impact of discrimination on an individual and an organisation
- How to apply your learning to increase awareness and knowledge of good practice within your organisation
This course took place in May 2012. If you would like to be kept informed of when we run this course next, please sign up for our Training updates here.
Fundraising Online
This course is essential for all fundraisers. If you would like to learn how to use the internet to fundraise for your organisation and are unsure how to go about it, this is the course for you!
This course will look at how to fundraise online, what the best methods are, how to integrate offline and online fundraising, and how to develop an effective strategy for online fundraising.
By the end of this course you will know how to:
- Raise money for your organisation by fundraising online
- Develop an online fundraising strategy
- Make your online fundraising activities effective so you can bring in more money
- Integrate your online fundraising into your current fundraising strategy
- Use online fundraising to enhance your other fundraising activities
- Use online tools and social networks to drive new support to your organisation
- Build stronger relationships with your existing supporters
- Use a range of online tools for fundraisers
- Harness the power of social media to get extend the reach of your fundraising
- Track and measure your success
Please note: this course took place in February 2012. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
This full day’s training is geared towards helping voluntary and community groups market themselves on a tight budget, using social media. If you are a novice to social media, this course is for you. The training is interactive, involves group work and case studies to help bring to life tangible ways to market your group. At the end of the day you will be able to implement some marketing plans for your organisation.
At the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Develop a simple but focused marketing strategy
- Identify how best to use online marketing for your organisation
- What tools to choose for your target audience
- How to be effective and efficient with your time in using social media
- How to use Twitter as a tool to build followers around your organisation
- How to use Facebook to harness sharing
- How to use a blog to build your audience
- How to use video to market your charity
- How to pull it together and measure success
Please note: this course took place in November 2011. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
Introduction to building a Wordpress website
Does your organisation need a website? Your website is a critical tool in the effective marketing of your organisation. Find out how to build, structure and style a new website on this course.
This course will teach you how to:
- Understand the basics of a website
- Overview of the Wordpress platform
- Set your objectives
- Structure a website
- Use themes
- Get the basics right
- Use plug-ins
- Understand website styles
- Get your Search Engine Optimisation right
- Add in social media
- Publish your site
Please note: this course took place in February 2012. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
Safeguarding Children
This full day course covers definitions of child abuse and neglect, signs and indicators of abuse and neglect. You will learn how to maintain a child-focus, what to do in response to concerns, and what safeguarding roles and responsibilities an organisation has.
The course will cover essential information for staff who are the lead for child protection within their organisations. It includes what to do with the information you have gathered on children, where to go, processes to follow, what is expected from your role, and the responsibilities that go with it. Section 47 processes will also be covered, including child protection conferences.
Please note: this course took place in March 2012. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
Mental Health Awareness for Managers
This course is a must for all managers of staff and volunteers. Would you know what to do if a member of staff or volunteer began to manifest signs of stress, or a mental health condition? This one day course will tell you what your legal and HR obligations are in such a situation.
This course will enable you to:
• Recognise and address early signs of stress, distress and mental health conditions at work
• Develop practical strategies to support staff through effective sickness absence management and return to work
• Develop practical strategies to help employees retain their employment and carry out their role effectively
• Develop practices that support good mental health in the workplace for staff and volunteers
Please note: this course took place in April 2012. If you would like to be kept informed about when we run this course again, please sign up for our training courses update. You can do this by clicking here.
Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers
Many voluntary organisations rely on volunteers to run projects and serve on committees.But where can we find them? How can we keep them on board? What do we need to do to get the best from them, and keep them happy and committed? This tried and tested workshop takes a very practical approach to helping you to work out how to recruit and manage your volunteers more effectively. For more information, please contact Lindsay Watts, our Volunteer Centre Manager on lindsay.watts@ocva.org.uk or call her on 01865 258913.
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Bespoke high-quality training for your organisation
We can offer training that is specially customised for your organisation. Please get in touch to discuss your training needs. Contact our in-house Training Officer, Liz Pride at liz.pride@ocva.org.uk or call 01865 251946.
Legal Issues for Trustees
This is a bespoke training session delivered to your trustees, management committee or Board of Directors.
It looks at the importance of your governing document and sets out clearly the legal responsibilities set out in the Charity Act. If your organisation is incorporated, it also looks at the Companies Act and the duties of a Director. If your organisation is unincorporated, the training will help you understand the implications of your legal status. The session looks at best practice and enables participants to draw up an action list to improve governance within the organisation.
Effective Fundraising
We deliver a number of different workshops which together provide a comprehensive guide to effective fundraising. We look at:
- the importance of a range of funding sources
- writing a plan
- outcomes and how to measure them
- where and how to find sources of funding
- eligibility credibility
- evidence of need
- structuring an application
- thinking like a funder
In addition to the training listed above, we can also offer training in the following areas:
Fundraising
Writing funding applications
Fundraising from the general public
Fundraising online
Tax efficient giving
Trustees and Management Committees
How to set up a community group
Legal issues for trustees
Creating your constitution
Note: these topics are also available as a bespoke workshop for your committee to fit in with one of your regular meetings.
Volunteer Management
Recruiting and retaining volunteers
Volunteers and the law
Working with volunteers with support needs
Organisational Management and HR
Writing business plans
Working as a team
Dealing with difficult people
Demonstrating your impact
Managing change
Building partnerships and networks
Effective awaydays Project management
Mental health awareness for managers
Publicity and Promotion
Using social media effectively
Building a website
Writing compelling press releases
Promoting your organisation
Creating better newsletters
Improving your reports
Personal Development
Presenting skills
Mentoring skills
Introduction to training skills
IT Skills
Introduction to Publisher, Powerpoint, Excel and Word
Intermediate level Word
Sector Specific Skills
Skills for telephone helpline staff
Safeguarding children
