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Restoring the Balance – the effect of arts
participation on wellbeing and health
Our publication on arts and wellbeing is now
available.
In addition to a foreword from Culture Minister
Margaret Hodge, Restoring the Balance: the effect of arts participation on
wellbeing and health includes contributions from Lord Howarth (former Minster
for the Arts), Kevin Brennan (Minister for Further Education, Skills,
Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs), and Professor Louis Appleby (the
Department of Health’s joint lead on arts and health).
In addition, people from a wide range of backgrounds
explain how their wellbeing, their health and, in some cases, their lives have
been transformed as a direct result of arts participation.
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New briefings from Voluntary Arts
Two new VAN briefings have just been published. VAN
Briefings provide advice and guidance on best practice, procedures and current
legislation, for voluntary arts groups and umbrella bodies. They are written in
plain English and have been well-received throughout the voluntary arts sector
for over ten years.
Briefing 109 (published in September 2007) described
the measures introduced in England and Wales between 2004 and 2007 to help
protect children. This briefing brings that information up-to-date as of March
2010, providing details of the newly established Independent Safeguarding
Authority and the steps you need to take under the new Vetting and Barring
Scheme for the protection of both children and vulnerable adults. This briefing
should be read in conjunction with briefings 82, 83 and 109.
This briefing lists ten cost-effective ways to help you
increase the impact and reach of your group’s public profile. It will be
especially useful to small volunteer-led arts and crafts groups that don’t have
paid staff, official premises or even a marketing budget. However, the
principles will apply to arts organisations of all sizes.
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NEWS
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DanceVote 2010
With the General Election on the horizon – presenting a
potential change of Government and with the economic situation posing a very
real threat to arts and dance funding – Dance UK has launched DanceVote 2010,
the national advocacy campaign to put dance on the agenda of local political
candidates.
DanceVote 2010 is a call to action to raise the profile
of dance with MPs and new potential candidates in the run up to the
election. Getting involved is easy, click here:
http://www.dancevote2010.com/contact/get-involved
to send a personalised email to the political candidates standing to be elected
as your local MP explaining why you are passionate about dance, and asking them
to pledge their support for dance and the arts.
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Full guidance on the Vetting and Barring Scheme
The Home Office has now put online full guidance to
help employers and voluntary groups implement the Vetting and Barring Scheme. It
covers every aspect from who is covered to how the process works and the
implementation timetable.
Hard copies of the guidance for those who do not have
internet access are available via the VBS helpline on 0300 123 1111.
source: Volresource
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Campaign Pack for Community Organisations
A Campaign Pack for Community Organisations is now
available from Community Matters, the national federation of community
organisations. If your organisation has a particular problem it needs to resolve
or you want to campaign for a better deal, this pack is full of practical tools
and all the legal advice you will need to get started. It also has useful advice
on charities and elections and holding political events at your premises.
www.communitymatters.org.uk/Resources/Community%20Matters/Publications/Local_Election_Campaign_Pack.pdf
which signposts (with a v.annoying end-row hyphen in the URL
'com-mission'!) to
CC9 - Speaking Out - Guidance on Campaigning and Political
Activity by Charities
Folk Against
Fascism is making a good splash everywhere in the run-up to St. George's and May
Day ... but Reg. Charities must be very careful how they promote and support
this as FAF literature mentions BMP by name. Several times.!
1d