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Welcome to our Volunteer Centre newsletter. The Big Help Out weekend will be happening again this year between 7th June and 9th June 2024. The Big Help Out brings millions of people from across the UK to join the biggest mass volunteering event of the year. The campaign empowers organisations…

Communities 1st is supporting "National Stress Awareness Month" over April, and its aim of raise awareness of the negative impact of stress. While not all stress is bad, long-term stress can have harmful impacts on physical and mental health. If you want some ideas on how you can relieve stress…

We hope you are all enjoying the brighter and longer days that have come along as we step into the month of April.  If you would like to spend more time outside enjoying the sunshine and fresh air, then why not consider becoming a volunteer gardener? You can find out more about how you can take…

Welcome to the latest edition of Communities 1st newsletter. The clocks have gone forward, the evenings are brighter and it finally feels as if spring has arrived! Many organisations will already be thinking ahead to summer events and Communities 1st are no exception. Our Annual Conference for…

Spring is fully here and we hope not to have to wait too long for some warmth and nice weather! April is Stress Awareness Month. The most common explanation of stress is a "physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension". While not all stress is bad, long-term stress can have harmful impacts…

We hope you all got some opportunity to enjoy the Easter bank holiday, relax, spend time with friends and family and to reflect.  April is a month full of really meaningful awareness health campaigns and opportunities of growth for our community.   "World Autism Awareness Day" marks the…

Welcome to the latest edition of Communities 1st Voluntary Sector Briefing. Now that spring is here, the evenings are a little brighter and the new financial year is in sight! As it approaches, please take a moment to read about the changes to employment law that will come into place from the…

The weather is getting better, and spring has finally sprung! Celebrate the upcoming Community garden week from 1st -7th Apr by enjoying your time outdoors or volunteer at a community garden near you. This week the training team is at Letchworth delivering a Help your Child love Numbers course…

We're approaching the end of a meaningful month and are excited about all the opportunities that the awareness campaigns will carry along in April.    World Bipolar Day is celebrated each year on 30 March, the birthday of Vincent Van Gogh, who was diagnosed with bipolar after he died. The…

Communities 1st is delighted to announce that a photograph of our canine volunteer Beau has been shortlisted for the British Photography Awards' Mobile Photography Awards 2024! This snap was captured by Lucy from the Communications team to be used in promotional materials to advertise our Shopper…

We are slowly approaching the nice weather and getting closer to the Easter festivities.  As usual, in this week's newsletter you can find references to some awareness weeks and days that aim to draw attention to important health campaigns through fun and interesting events.    Sign Language…

We want to start by wishing everyone an early Happy St Patricks Day, we hope that you have a great day and wear your best green clothes to celebrate!  With the longer brighter days, you may be looking for some more volunteering activities to fill the evenings with. Please take a look on our …

We have exciting news to share. New month, new courses, and lots of learning! We have additional dates on our ever so popular Air frying sessions. Learn to cook with one, add new recipes and learn about cost savings. It will also give you chance to taste some of the recipes. Join in on our fun…

The Spring Budget and Its Significance for the local VCSE sector The Spring Budget presents both challenges and opportunities. It's an invitation to reflect on our priorities, advocate for inclusive policies, and work towards a future where every individual and community has the opportunity to…

As we mentioned last week, March is a month dedicated to many campaigns aimed at increasing awareness and making life easier for people who live with various forms of cancer.   In this week's newsletter we are highlighting "Brain Tumour Awareness Month", which focuses on how this condition…

Welcome to our Volunteer Centre newsletter. We are pleased announce that the next Broxbourne Volunteer Fair has been confirmed in collaboration with Broxbourne Alliance PCN. This event will take place on the 9th of May in Cheshunt at the Laura Trott Leisure Centre. This event will be the…

A huge welcome to our very first newsletter from Para Dance UK and Communities 1st  Since we announced to you all that Para Dance UK would be merging with Communities 1st we have all been busy working behind the scenes to formulate a strategy to continue to support individuals and…

There are so many key dates in March that make it a special month. March is dedicated to many awareness campaigns that share the common aim of increasing the awareness around cancer.   "Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month" aims to raise awareness by ensuring women know the signs and symptoms of…

Welcome to the latest Voluntary Sector Briefing from Communities 1st. This newsletter contains lots of information to support the work you do over the coming months, including the return of our fantastic training course Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers, which takes place on Wednesday 20…

It’s a leap year and we have a bonus day! What are you going to do with the extra day? Will it be starting something new or strengthening a skill or simply taking a restful break! Whatever you chose to do, take care of yourselves and if you chose to learn something new, why not attend our…