Business Hours The GATEWAY is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, and we can be reached by Email – vsg@vsgwl.org – Telephone (01506) 650111 – or Fax (01506) 650222.

Saltire Awards

On 29th February John Swinney MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth, announced that the Saltire Awards would be delivered throughout Scotland from 1st April 2012 and would replace the MV Awards as the Scottish Government’s national recognition programme for young volunteers.

Saltire Awards is a new recognition programme designed for young people, between 12 & 25, engaged in volunteering.  There are 4 sections to the Awards – Challenge, Approach, Ascent and Summit.  Young people can progress through the various stages but also have the option to enter and exit the programme at any level.  On completion of a level the young volunteer will be presented with a Saltire Award certificate.  This offers complete flexibility making it more accessible to young people regardless of ability, personal circumstances and lifestyles.

A new interactive website has been developed to support the involvement of young people, schools and voluntary organisations in the Saltire Awards www.saltireawards.org.uk.  This will give a direct specific online presence and support package for the Saltire Awards.

The Saltire Awards dovetail neatly into the 4 key objectives of Curriculum for Excellence as they will enable young people to develop their capacities through volunteering as successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors.  The 4 sections to the Awards are as follows:

• THE CHALLENGE
• THE APPROACH
• THE ASCENT
• THE SUMMIT

The age range for each section is flexible and dependent on individual circumstances but, for guidance and to facilitate delivering the Awards in schools and volunteer involving organisations, a suggested age range for each award is listed below:

AWARD	AGES	SUPPLEMENTARY
Challenge	12 – 25	This is designed as an introduction to volunteering and is undertaken as part of a team.  Summit Recipients & Ambassadors may participate as enablers.
Approach	12 – 15	Young people under 16 but not ready to make a sustained commitment to volunteering or requiring extra support may prefer to start with the Approach.
Ascent	14 – 25	For any young person ready to make a sustained commitment to volunteering.
Summit	12 – 25	Ideally recipients should have completed the 200 hour Ascent but this is at the discretion of the Summit Panel.

How does the Saltire Awards programme work?

 

Spring Forward Community Consultation

Voluntary Sector Gateway West Lothian are part way through conducting a community consultation called ‘Spring Forward’ with the people of West Lothian. This project has been funded by The Big Lottery ‘Investing in Ideas’ and West Lothian Council with the aim of consulting at least 1,000 local people regarding their well-being. The consultation team is made up from six local volunteers, four people on Community Jobs Scotland contracts, one Council employee and staff from VSGWL. The training in Participatory Appraisal methods started on the 9th of February and took six days over three weeks. 

The level one mapping, which asks people to identify issues with regard to their well-being, started on the 25th of February. To date the team has been out and about to: The Regal Theatre, Bathgate Academy (three times) Blackburn Swimming Club, Howden Park Centre, West Lothian College (twice), Acredale House, Strathbrock Partnership Centre (twice), Boghall drop-in centre, Asda Livingston (twice), Braid House and Bathgate Partnership Centre (twice). We have seen over 300 people to date. The data will be analysed and the second level of consultation designed at the next two training days on the 15th and 16th of March. 

The method monitors and records those who have taken part by age range, area and employment status as well as their comments and issue codes which will allow robust analysis once the data collection is completed. The project is going well and the method overview and findings will be presented on May the 31st at the Regal Theatre at 11 am (lunch will be provided).

 

Voluntary Sector Gateway West Lothian rewarded for Committing to Excellence

The Gateway is celebrating its recent achievement of “Committed to Excellence” status, having successfully participated in the Big Lottery funded Supporting Voluntary Action (SVA) Quality Matters project. This internationally recognised award, presented by Quality Scotland, marks The Gateway’s commitment to continuous improvement, which they demonstrated by carrying out an in-depth assessment of every aspect of their organisation and identifying and implementing key areas for improvement.

Paul White, Director of Networks at SCVO and Chair of the SVA Management Group commented: This award represents a clear commitment from Voluntary Sector Gateway West Lothian to strive for excellence and improve the services they provide to front-line voluntary organisations. The commitment made by the staff and management boards of The Gateway should not be underestimated and they should be justly proud of what they have achieved.

 

West Lothian Volunteer Awards 2011

The Annual West Lothian Volunteer Awards Ceremony took place on Wednesday 23 November 2011 at the Hilcroft Hotel, Whitburn. This year we had a record number of entries for the variety of categories. 200 guests attended the event, this included finalists, friends and family, local councillors, MSPs and leading officers from West Lothian Council. The judges had a very hard task in selecting the eventual winners. To view all finalists click here Award Winners 2011.

 

The Community Toolkit

This resource has been developed for and with the help of community groups to help improve skills and knowledge and bring benefits to local communities. There are guidelines on a range of topics, including setting up and running a community group, legal requirements and good practice, planning and fundraising for a particular project and where to obtain useful statistical data on the local area. To access the Toolkit click here

 

New Service for Members

We can now offer members free professional advice from a specialist HR and Training Consultant. Cameron Riddell will hold a weekly surgery at the Gateway each Monday morning between 9am and 1pm. Linda Riddell can offer confidential advice and guidance on people management and HR issues. In addition, she can provide a range of templates, guidelines and training in employment related issues, basic Health and Safety or charity law, and policies and procedures. It may be possible to see Linda on an ad hoc basis if you drop in to the Gateway but it is recommended that you make an appointment: telephone 01506-650111, speak to James Penman, and quote your membership number.  (Unfortunately, this service has been suspended for a short time but do not hesitate to contact the Gateway for advice)

 

First Annual Review

Click the cover for full report ->

 

West Lothian Council Life Stages

The Life Stages Outcome Planning Programme is a substantial, strategic programme of change led by West Lothian Council working across the Community Planning Partnership (CPP). The overall aim of the programme is to enable the CPP to plan and deliver more effective interventions to tackle social inequalities and build successful communities across West Lothian using a Life Stage approach targeting deprived geographical areas. The Programme recognises that those who are most at risk (and generate the greatest expense in terms of demands on services) often lead complex lives, and hence focuses on redesigning services around the needs of the target group using a partnership approach. Life Stages is about being clear when people most need our support, why they most need our support,which people have the greatest need for our support, and what support they most need from us. There is a toolkit available to assist planning and delivering services that meet the Life Stages outcomes - The making changes happen support guide to implementing Life Stages from the Community Planning web page.

life stages charts final versions,

 

Training and Meeting Rooms for Hire

For more information download our leaflet or contact vsg@vsgwl.org (preferred rates for members).

One of our meeting rooms

 

Outreach Volunteer Service (Previously Library Outreach Service)

We require volunteers to deliver books to the homebound,if you have spare time during the week maybe you could help ?

Go to the link Outreach Volunteer Service for more information.

 

PVG Scheme

In February 2011, the Scottish Government introduced the new PVG membership scheme which replaced and improved upon the prior disclosure arrangements for people who work with vulnerable groups. This mean new application forms, new certificates, new guidance and new criteria against which posts and positions must be assessed before an application can be processed.

Click here for detailed information on the scheme

Click here for further information relating to the implementation of the scheme

 

Schools Mentor Training

Voluntary Sector Gateway West Lothian, in partnership with West Lothian Council’s “More Choices, More Chances” team, is running a year long pilot project for 14 to 19 year olds who are recognised as under-achieving at school or, in the case of the 16 to 19 age group, unsuccessful in finding employment. The focus of the pilot will be to provide trained Volunteer Mentors to work with individuals for at least two hours per week. As a Volunteer Mentor you will be trained and supported throughout the pilot year. Training will take place at the Voluntary Sector Gateway in Bathgate from 6pm to 9pm over two evenings. Soon after you complete your training you will be matched to a young person who will have read your profile and asked to meet with you. All the young people, like you, will have volunteered to participate in the Mentoring Programme. Please note no further training at the moment.