Richmond upon Thames

Council for Voluntary Service

Women in Governance

| Gold Star Award | | What is it? | What's in it for me? | Who? | How? | Where and When? | Contact us | Want to know more?

WinG gets Gold Star for good effort

It’s official – the WinG programme is a national success! We have just heard that we’ve been awarded a Gold Star Award from the Home Office.

Gold Star recognises WinG’s success – all that we’ve achieved since starting work in autumn 2003 - the women who have taken part, the WinG team, and the Richmond-Kingston-Merton partnership.

Paul Goggins, Home Office Minister, said that WinG and the other winners “represent some of the best work in volunteering…and … will change lives and strengthen the wider community.” GoldStar funding will allow WinG to “go on working hard to make active citizenship a reality for many more people.” He went on to say that WinG and other winners "will act as exemplars of good practice to the sector as a whole.".

WinG has already started working on two more programmes locally, which have developed from home grown ideas – the GoldStar funding will help us to carry on spreading our wings…congratulations to everyone!

Cllr Pat Parsons, Former Mayor of Richmond, celebrates with some of the Wing Women on their graduation day

What is it?

WinG is your opportunity to take a more active part in public life and become a local decision-maker. You can make sure that effective policies are maintained, and that less effective policies are replaced, or changed for the better.

WinG can help you to join the policy making bodies - Boards of charities and voluntary organisations, NHS Trusts, School and College Boards, your Council. Women are passionate about local issues, and these organisations make the decisions which have a direct impact on your life, your family's life and your local community.

WinG offers a freee, accredited traiining programme in governance, power and diversity, community representation and IT.

The WinG programme is running in Richmond, Kingston and Merton Boroughs until Spring 2007.

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What's in it for me?

By being a Trustee, a Governor, or a local Councillor, you can make sure your opinions are heard – because your opinions really matter. What matters most to you – your children’s education? The local health service? How the trains run? Facilities for people with physical disabilities? All these issues - and many others which affect your life, or your family’s or community’s lives – are influenced or controlled by Boards of Trustees, Governors, or the local Council. By joining them, you can start to influence how your local community is run.

You'll meet other, interesting women who also want to be more active in local democracy. You will gain new skills and new experience, and you will be supported and advised by women already working in governance.

When you become part of WinG, you will automatically be a member of WinG's Women's Citizenship Forum. Here you can share your experiences, news and views, and network with other women from the course, your course tutors, and mentors, in a supportive and informal atmosphere.

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Who?

You are eligible if you are a woman living, studying or working in Richmond, Kingston or Merton Boroughs. We particularly welcome women living in areas affected by social exclusion and poverty, or from ethnic communities or minority groups. You might be working as a volunteer with an organisation and want to contribute more; you might be a professional working in the voluntary sector, you might be considering doing voluntary work for the first time. All women are eligible and welcome to apply.

How?

WinG is running a series of ten to twelve week free training courses across the Boroughs. We want to work together to build on your life skills and your own interests by giving you training, new experiences, and specific skills. This will prepare you to be a member of governing bodies of Schools, Health Care Trusts, charities and voluntary organisations.

The course will cover, among other things:

• What is Governance
• How local authorities, health, charitable and other public bodies work, and their role in our lives.
• ICT - various courses
• What it means to be a community representative, the different roles, and working on or with a Committee
• Social and assertiveness skills

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Women from Richmond, Kingston and Merton Boroughs have completed training programmes and have this to say:

"We enjoyed the chance to meet interesting people and to exchange views!"

"Participation in new topics and the discussions afterwards helped us feel more powerful."

"I enjoyed meeting women locally."

And the tutors (Jane and Philippa) had rave reviews -

"very, very enthusiastic", "kind and considerate", "dynamic".

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Where and When?

Training is during school term-time, one day a week for ten to twelve weeks, in your Borough. Each training day starts at 10 am and ends at 2.30 pm including a free lunch’. Free childcare may also be arranged.

To make sure you get the most out of the course, you will also be asked to do some home study. You don't need any academic qualifications, your personal qualities and skills - and your enthusiasm - are all you need.

Training programmes are scheduled for

Kingston : May 2006

Merton: September 2006

Richmond : January 2007

How to contact us:

phone :

Call either Jane Booth on 020 8255 8162 or Philippa Leary on 020 8255 8502

email:

janeb@richmondcvs.org.uk

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Want to know more?

Please fill in the form below. Choose one of the three boxes to tell us what you are interested in. Then fill in the contact details - give us your name, email, home address or phone number, and use the "submit" button at the end to send it to us. One of the team will get back to you!

WinG Project funded by the Association of London Government

Wing Gold Star project funded by the Active Communities

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