The Associate Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Hon Hekia Parata, has released Employer Supported Volunteering: A Guide for the New Zealand Public Service. The Guide, developed by the OCVS, provides advice about ten steps to setting up and running a successful employer supported volunteering programme.

In relation to the Guide, Hilary Reynolds, former Deputy Chief Executive at the Ministry of Social Development, helped to implement a highly successful employer supported volunteering programme at the Department of Work and Pensions in the United Kingdom.

»Watch a Video of Hilary Reynolds explaining the programme’s implementation

Kia Tūtahi Standing Together Relationship Accord

Charities Commission functions to move to Internal Affairs

The Government has approved the Department of Internal Affairs’ proposal to remove the prohibition in gambling regulations on multi-year grants. New regulations came into effect on 15 September 2011, which include requirements to ensure that multi-year grant arrangements comply with the Gambling Act 2003, and help mitigate associated risks.

The regulations are available on the Department of Internal Affairs' website. Societies and grant applicants should read the regulations in full and obtain independent, professional legal and financial advice before committing to multi-year grants.

In recent months, MasterCard and Visa have worked with banks to significantly reduce the Interchange Reimbursement Fee (IRF) paid by registered charities when a benefactor uses a credit card to make a donation. As a result, MasterCard no longer charges IRF to charities (0 per cent Interchange); while Visa has reduced the maximum IRF that banks can charge down to 0.39 per cent of the transaction amount.

»Read the Charities Commission article ‘A very handy tip to reduce or avoid credit card fees on donations’

On 27 July, Minister of Social Development, Hon Paula Bennett, released the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children. This paper was developed in response to the Government’s concern about the significant number of children whose childhoods make it difficult for them to reach their full potential.

As a cross-government initiative, the Government is encouraging as many New Zealanders as possible to provide feedback on the paper before any decisions are made. For more information and to download the Green Paper, visit the Green Paper for Vulnerable Children website.

Student Volunteer Army founder, Sam Johnson, presented at the Good Practice in Action Conference on 17 June in Wellington. He explained how social media was used to mobilise Canterbury’s young people to help clean up after the earthquakes. An edited video of Sam’s presentation can be seen on the OCVS website.

Commerce Minister, Hon Simon Power, has announced proposals to simplify the financial reporting framework for small and medium-sized businesses and registered charities. Following this announcement, the External Reporting Board (XRB) has released a Position Paper and two Consultation Papers outlining proposals for a new Accounting Standards Framework for for-profit and public benefit entities. The closing date for submissions on the Consultation Papers is 16 December 2011. Submissions should be emailed to submissions@xrb.govt.nz.

» Press release announcing the new Accounting Standards Framework

» Read more information and download the Position and Consultation Papers

The XRB plans to run seminars in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch in early November 2011 to outline its proposals and discuss them with interested parties from all sectors. Arrangements for these seminars will be posted on the XRB website in due course.

The NZ Federation of Voluntary Welfare Organisations has a new trading name: “Social Development Partners”. Social Development Partners is an active national network of community organisations in New Zealand that works to strengthen the capacity and influence of the community sector.

The University of Western Sydney is running a Dialogue, Deliberation and Public Engagement Programme for people in Australasia from 30 January until 29 May 2012. New Zealanders have participated in this programme before and found it very beneficial. Early bird registration closes on 15 December 2011. For more information and to register and pay online, visit the University of Western Sydney website.

Massey University is hosting interactive seminars that will introduce board members to the key aspects of effective governance practice, processes and behaviours. The Palmerston North session is on 26 September, the Wellington session is on 26 October and the Auckland session is on 2 November 2011.

An in depth three-day workshop entitled “Creating your pathway to boardroom effectiveness” will be held in Auckland from 5-7 December 2011. For more details on the seminars and workshops, and to register, visit the Massey University website.

The New Zealand Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research Centre (SIERC) is hosting the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Conference, which will be held at the Massey University Albany Campus in Auckland from 1-3 December 2011.

The Conference theme is “Extending Theory, Integrating Practice”. The Conference will include a special panel discussion on the critical issue of measurement of social value and impact. Visit the SIERC website for further details.

Six new and emerging researchers will present their community research on 17 November 2011 at Unitec Marae, Mount Albert, Auckland. They will discuss the processes, values and kaupapa of good community research. Go to the Community Research website for more information or the Eventbrite website to buy tickets.

Victoria University is running a short course, Using Social Media for Effective Public Engagement, which will explore how social media can be used by public sector agencies to achieve public engagement. The course will be held in Wellington from 3-4 November and in Auckland from 10-11 November 2011.

A comprehensive one day conference entitled Organisational Effectiveness in Times of Seismic Risk asks “Is your organisation prepared for a major seismic event?” The conference, on 18 October 2011, will be presented by the Wellington Rotary Club in partnership with the venue for the event, the Victoria University of Wellington.

Expressions of interest are now being accepted for the 2011/2012 Young Core Leaders of Civil Society Groups’ Development Programme. Applicants must be between 23 and 40 years old and have a minimum of three years work experience in the areas of older people, youth or disability. This is the last time that New Zealand will participate in this programme. Applications close at 5pm on 30 September 2011.

• For more information about this programme and for application forms please email Judy Small or japan5@eoj.org.nz.

Volunteering Canterbury is accepting nominations until 21 October 2011 for the 2011 Volunteer Recognition Awards and Youth Volunteer Awards. The annual Volunteer Recognition Awards were postponed in June and have been amalgamated with the Youth Volunteer Awards, to be presented on 5 December 2011, International Volunteer Day. A nomination form can be downloaded from the Volunteering Canterbury website.

Updated employment resource for sector organisations

People matters: comings and goings