The Charity Commission (the regulator for charities in England and Wales) has launched a set of simple, easy-to-follow ‘five-minute guides’ to help trustees understand their legal duties and manage their charities effectively.
These quick-read guides cover the five key areas of charity governance that every trustee should know — a kind of core syllabus for good charity management.
The guides explain the basics of:
This new ‘gateway’ level guidance is designed to make it quicker and easier for trustees to understand what’s expected of them — and to find more detailed information when needed.
The guides have been shaped through research and user testing with trustees to ensure they’re practical, relevant, and user-friendly.
While the content is simple and straightforward, the Charity Commission emphasises that these guides are useful for all trustees — not just those new to the role. Even the most experienced trustees can face tricky questions or challenges, and these guides are a helpful resource to turn to when they do.
We tend to use our constitutions like a faithful old piece of furniture – well used but rarely closely examined. We assume it’s in good shape and run a duster over it occasionally but never check the fundamental structure for weaknesses or worn out parts.
It’s good practice to cast a careful eye over your constitution every few years to ensure that it still reflects what your group actually does, and how you operate. If you find you need to update it you can call our development staff for support. If you do make changes to it, be sure to:
It’s a good idea to review your policies annually, shortly before an AGM as that will give you the opportunity to have updated versions adopted in a vote of members during the AGM. However, legislative changes will need to be incorporated into your policies as the relevant act comes into force.
Again, if you require support to ensure your policies are up to date, our development staff can help with this.
Are you setting up a new Community Interest Company? You can now use an online incorporation process. This new digital registration option will offer:
For further information on the new online process, take a look at this webinar which provides an overview of the online system.
Third Sector Support Wales provides information and learning resources for the voluntary sector in Wales on Knowledge Hub.
Knowledge Hub is a helping hand with running your organisation, finding funding, recruiting and managing volunteers and more. The pages will guide you through some of the most important topics and things to consider to help all organisations better run themselves.
As well as a selection of information sheets and online courses, Knowledge Hub also gives you the opportunity to network with peers and have discussions on topics that are important to you. It is completely free to use for anyone working or volunteering in the voluntary sector in Wales, or for those wanting to get involved in the third sector for the first time.
To take advantage of the Knowledge Hub, register at knowledgehub.cymru
The SUN Network supports the full and effective participation of individuals within mental health services. Comprising of service users from various mental health services within Bridgend County Borough, the network provides peer support and training to its members.
Network aims:
These aims are worked on through:
Participation
Information
Meetings are open to all who access mental health services in Bridgend County Borough.
Please check back for more updates soon.
📅 Date: TBC
⏰ Time: TBC
📍 Location: TBC
For further details call BAVO 01656 810400
BAVO supports the CTM (Cwm Taf Morgannwg) Third Sector Mental Health Forum with Voluntary Action Merthyr Tydfil (VAMT) and Interlink RCT (Rhondda Cynon Taf). The chair is Janet Whiteman, CEO of New Horizons.
Together we:
The Forum brings the voluntary sector together. It draws upon the skills, resources, capacity and strengths of its members to develop and support partnership working, improve mental health service provision and share good practice. We strive to ensure services meet the needs of the people who need support and help people to access the right service at the right time. This includes people that stigma or circumstance hide from plain view.
Next meeting has currently been postponed. Please check back here for more updates soon.
📅 Date: TBC
⏰ Time: TBC
📍 Location: TBC
If you would like more information please contact Lucy Williams at BAVO on lucywilliams@bavo.org.uk or call us on 01656 810400.
The Cwm Taf Morgannwg (CTM) regional mental health network ‘Together for Mental Health’ brings together the voluntary and community sector from across Bridgend, Merthy Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf county boroughs and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board.
The aim is to guide, monitor and facilitate the coordinated approach required to deliver the national Together for Mental Health Strategy and has the following core aims:
Date: TBC
Time: TBC
Location: TBC
For further details, contact BAVO, T: 01656 810 400, E: lucywilliams@bavo.org.uk or call 07850 700 377
Who Can Make a Referral?
Anyone who supports someone in need of a little extra companionship can refer to our service. This includes health professionals such as GPs, occupational therapists, social workers, and district nurses, as well as housing associations, voluntary organisations, family members, and friends. Self-referrals are also welcome.
Who Can Be Referred?
To be eligible for our face-to-face befriending service, individuals must:
Feel lonely or isolated with little or no family support
Live in Bridgend County Borough
Reside in their own home, sheltered housing, rented accommodation, or housing association property
Be experiencing grief or adjusting after a bereavement
Want to make new friends or join community activities but lack the confidence to go alone
How to Refer Someone:
Speak with the person first—they must be aware of and agree to the referral
Contact BAVO’s Project Officer on 01656 810400 or email bavo@bavo.org.uk
Complete our referral form [link or instructions here if applicable]
What Happens Next?
We’ll arrange an initial home visit to discuss the individual’s needs
A trained and DBS-checked volunteer will be carefully matched to them
A member of our team will accompany the volunteer on their first visit
We’ll keep you informed once befriending support has started
For more details, please download our Referral Guide for Bridgend County Borough here.
The Good Gardeners International Charity is based in Bridgend County with a demonstration farm in Pontypridd.
They are the pioneers and originators of the No Dig Gardening and Farming system in the UK and demonstrate the transformation of all forms of organic wastes including sanitation wastes into a world class optimum fertiliser in 90 days.
They are still the only organisation who can commercially stop all Slugs, Snails and Caterpillars without the use of any chemicals whatsoever.
Based in Bridgend, Project Seagrass are a marine conservation organisation working to save the world’s seagrass.
Seagrass meadows are havens of biodiversity, providing habitat, food, and shelter to thousands of species of fish, invertebrates, mammals, reptiles, and birds. Seagrass helps to stabilise our coastlines, they can improve water quality, and support food security by providing a habitat for fish species that we eat.
Yet we have lost up to 92% of UK seagrass in the last 100 years and our remaining meadows face a range of human induced threats including poor water quality, coastal development, and damage from anchoring and mooring.
To find out more about our work and how you can support Project Seagrass, visit: https://www.projectseagrass.org/
If your group is involved in “green/blue” issues such as climate change, sustainability, nature, growing projects and more – contact Alexbowen@bavo.org.uk to find out more about BAVO’s Green Network
InclusAbility are excited to launch their new gardening project at Bronfair Allotment Community Garden. This initiative offers children and adults with disabilities the opportunity to engage in hands-on learning experiences in a safe, supportive environment.
Participants, accompanied by a parent or carer, can enjoy growing fruits, vegetables, and flowers, while also taking part in eco-friendly crafts and activities. Their project promotes wellbeing, creativity, and connection with nature for all abilities.
To find out more about their projects visit: https://inclusability.org/about-us
If your group is involved in “green/blue” issues such as climate change, sustainability, nature, growing projects and more – contact Alexbowen@bavo.org.uk to find out more about BAVO’s Green Network
Baobab Bach Working With Young People and Communities to Grow Green!
Baobab Bach is a social enterprise that is working to provide affordable food for all in communities. There is no means testing – absolutely anyone can use one of their Community Pantries, where they focus on distributing surplus foods that would otherwise have gone to landfill.
In order to supplement the surplus food supplies and ensure that everyone gets a good bag full of food, they are growing their own produce in several locations, one of which is at Bronfair Allotments and Community Gardens in Garth, Maesteg. Baobab Bach is always keen to welcome volunteers on board and works in partnership with a number of organisations, such as Itec, whose young people have successfully worked on this growing project with them, building and installing raised beds on the site.
This helps not only to reduce ‘food miles’ by growing food locally, but it increases carbon fixation in the soil. By working with their small team of growers, they have been able to generate local interest in growing food. In this way, Baobab Bach assists people of all ages to gain the skills needed to produce food and learn how to grow their own.
Baobab Bach uses as much natural pest control as possible, facilitating the propagation of useful insect species and wildlife such as hedgehogs. There is also a pond at the project, to which we hope to attract newts and dragonflies, known to frequent other areas of the allotments. This assists in supporting development of biodiversity, as well as assisting with the growth of crops.
They plan to continue to work with agencies such as Itec and with local volunteers to teach new skills around growing food as well as promote a healthier diet by introducing local communities to the joy of growing and eating your own delicious produce.
If your group is involved in “green/blue” issues such as climate change, sustainability, nature, growing projects and more – contact Alexbowen@bavo.org.uk to find out more about BAVO’s Green Network
