Next week is National Volunteers’ Week, a time when volunteer contributions to society are recognised and celebrated. With the amazing feats, you have helped us achieve over the past year, including over 100,000 hours supporting vaccination centres and countless more helping the community response effort, it has never been more important to celebrate the true value of what volunteers give to our community.

This July our annual conference is taking place, a time when we reflect on the challenges of the last year, and examine what we would like to do differently in the future. We want to explore how the past year has impacted the VCFSE sector, and how we might use our collective experience to help build a strong, sustainable future for community and voluntary organisations.

This year's theme is 'Safety, Strength and Kindness Through the Pandemic and Beyond'. Three two hour sessions will be spread across the conference, from Tuesday 6th July - Thursday 8th July. 

With the Paralympic Games only a few months away, a new digital, illustrated jigsaw has been released in celebration of the sports and organisations who promote the heritage of disability sport.

The ‘Animal Para Games’ is a beautifully illustrated artwork created by Jessica Hartshorn, transformed into a digital jigsaw. The image shows a range of animals taking part in Para sports for families to enjoy with an adjustable difficulty setting ranging the number of pieces from 20 to 300, and nine yellow trophies to spot within the design.

This week is Mental Health Awareness week. For many, the gradual easing of lockdown will bring opportunities to reconnect with family and friends, do things we enjoy like playing sports, and return to work that we value. For others, the prospect of a lockdown ending will bring difficult emotions and anxiety. It could take some time to navigate our way back to 'normal.

This week is mental health awareness week, so remember to do something good for your mind. Whether it’s talking to a friend, going for a walk or just taking a few deep breaths, a few small actions can make a big difference. If you think someone you know might be struggling with their mental health, send them a message to check in.

This week we’ve welcomed some new Kickstart employees into our team. The government’s Kickstart scheme aims to help young people at risk of long term unemployment to find work. Earlier this year Communities 1st became a Kickstart gateway.

Written by one of our volunteers:

Throughout the long winter months of lockdown, local Hertfordshire resident Lesley tried to keep herself busy. She bought herself , planned new home projects, and invested in some tapestry making kits and piano music. Although the lockdown was a wonderful opportunity for her to focus on self-development and fulfilling hobbies, she increasingly began to miss her friends and family, and felt an empty space where they should be.

Written by one of our volunteers:

At the beginning of lockdown in March 2020, Alison found herself unexpectedly living on her own. The Nursery where she worked had closed and her Mum was self-isolating elsewhere. She felt a little lonely and wanted to find something to do to keep busy, as well as helping others in a similar situation. Volunteering was the answer. So began (in Alison’s words) the “warm fuzzies” experience with Communities 1st.

As things start to re-open and we return to some normality, we must ensure we don't brush over the deep-rooted, systemic inequalities in our society that the pandemic has exposed.

Thanks to the government’s #CultureRecoveryFund we can continue to be #HereForCulture. Para Dance UK are thrilled to be launching a new programme, especially designed for social dancers, on getting back into inclusive dance. Tour Of The Floor will let you explore different dance genres from all over the world and will help get you dancing again in a fun and safe way.

Thanks to the government’s #CultureRecoveryFund we can continue to be #HereForCulture. Para Dance UK are thrilled to be launching a new programme, especially designed for social dancers, on getting back into inclusive dance. Tour Of The Floor will let you explore different dance genres from all over the world and will help get you dancing again in a fun and safe way.