NCVO: Smaller charities invited to apply for party conference bursary scheme

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Wednesday, 26, Mar 2008 12:00

Following on from the success of last year, NCVO is once again inviting smaller charities (with incomes of less than £500,000) to submit applications to attend one of the three main Political Party Conferences in 2008 as part of the Party Conference Bursary Scheme.

Party Conferences can be tremendously useful forums for bringing together charities with relevant peer groups and politicians, however, the cost can often prohibit smaller charities from attending. Last year, for the first time, NCVO offered fifteen charities the chance to attend the Conferences. This opportunity ensured that the views and interests of smaller organisations with limited income were represented at the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat conferences, despite not having access to sizeable budgets.

Jim Vaughan from the British Federation of Youth Marching Band Organisations was one of the organisations that attended the Liberal Democrat conference in 2007, he comments:

“For a totally voluntary youth group such as ours to access a political conference was a valuable experience. Speaking at the fringe event meeting gave me the opportunity to raise issues that effect wider voluntary youth provision. It enabled me to raise concerns about formulation and implementation of policy with an audience that were subsequently involved in wider discussion on relevant party policy.”

Organisations from within community and voluntary sector interested in applying for a week’s pass to the Labour, Conservative or Liberal Democrat party conferences plus two nights accommodation and travel, should contact NCVO’s Parliamentary Campaigns Officer on 020 7520 2505 / partyconference@ncvo-vol.org.uk or download an application form at www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/partyconferencebursary and submit it by 5pm on Friday 30 May. The bursary scheme is open to NCVO and non-NCVO members alike.

Applications must state information about your organisation including its aims and issues, what you hope to achieve from attending the conference and what you would ask the Minister or Opposition spokesperson for the Third Sector if you were in a meeting with them.

For more media information, please contact Pete Moorey in the NCVO Media Office on 020 7520 2468 or at pete.moorey@ncvo-vol.org.uk

Notes to Editors

2008 Party Conference dates:

Ø Liberal Democrats, Bournemouth: Saturday 13-Wed 17 September

Ø Labour, Manchester: Saturday 20– Wed 24 September

Ø Conservatives, Birmingham: Sunday 28-Wed 1 October

· The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) www.ncvo-vol.org.uk is the umbrella body for the voluntary sector in England, with sister councils in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. NCVO has over 5,700 members, ranging from large national bodies to community groups, volunteer centres, and development agencies working at a local level. With over 280,000 staff and over 13 million volunteers working for our members, we represent and support almost half the voluntary sector workforce.