The Community Foundation provides high quality philanthropic services (grant making) to a wide range of public, corporate and individual donors.  It has built its long term funds to over £12.5m and distributes in excess of £2.1m pa to local community groups and individuals.   After a review of the Foundation’s development activities new ambitious targets have been set to significantly increase long term funds.  This post has been created to support this work.

Title: Executive Assistant – Development
Reporting to: The Chief Executive
Terms: 37.5 hours/week
Salary: £20,000 – £22,000 per annum   

Overall Job Purpose

This role underpins the work of the Development team, undertaking research, managing data, providing information and providing practical support to staff and trustees.  They will work with and support the Chief Executive and Business Development Manager plus a core group of trustees.
The Executive Assistant (Development) will become fully familiar with the people and organisations that the Foundation is building relationships with and contribute to the planning and coordination of Development activities.

 Information Systems and Research

• Manage the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) aspects of the D2 (Salesforce) database, working with colleagues to ensure it provides timely and accurate information in support of Development.
• Ensure CCF is fully compliant with Data Protection legislation.
• Research potential donors and produce briefing papers as required.
• Research and analyse donor’s interests and giving trends and generate information to inform Development activities.
• Analyse development performance and income streams providing information to inform the Development Plan.
• Develop the CRM database so that it can track all of our donors; i.e. fund holders, Winter Warmth, and event participants (e.g. Big Sleep and Rivers Ride).
• Work with the Marketing intern to collect and collate relevant community information from grant case studies, local and national media and relevant reports.

Events

• Manage and support the delivery of CCF development related events, such as the Annual General Meeting and dinner and fund holder receptions.

Project Support

• Support lead trustees on promoting the identification and transfer of small and dormant trusts.
• Provide key information on donor giving for the Winter Warmth Appeal and ensure the Foundation has up to date information on issues relating to fuel poverty etc.   

Direct Support Responsibilities

Administrative support to the Chief Executive (CE) Business Development Manager (BDM) and trustees including:

• Preparation of papers and minute taking for Development Committee meetings.
• Maintain as appropriate trustee ‘action plans’.
• Drafting letters, arranging meetings and diary management for the Chief Executive and Business Development Manager.
• Preparation of presentations and written material in support of bids and proposals to potential donors.
• Ensure that key promotional material is accurate and up to date.
• Input to donation acknowledgement and feedback.

General Duties

• Develop and maintain effective communications with other members of staff and trustees.

• Keep abreast of developments across the charity sector by liaising with senior staff in other charities.  Where appropriate, attend external seminars and workshops on behalf of the Foundation.

• To work closely with the Administrators to provide cover and support during leave/absence or particularly busy periods

Applicants with Disabilities
The Foundation is an equal opportunities employer and encourages applications from people with disabilities. However candidates need to be aware that the office accommodation is situated on the first floor of an office building and therefore it is not possible for wheelchair users and people unable to climb stairs to work in our offices.

Closing date for applications: Friday 8 May 12 noon

The full job description for this role is available here.

Download the Application Form and return accompanied by a covering letter to the Chief Operating Officer, Cumbria Community Foundation, Dovenby Hall, Dovenby, Cockermouth, Cumbria, CA13 OPN or e-mail cath@cumbriafoundation.org. Please mark letters private and confidential.   

Cumbria Community Foundation is pleased to announce the launch of the Santander Social Enterprise Development Awards (SEDA) for 2015. The award is a national community investment programme, to help support growing social enterprises and enterprising charities working for the direct benefit of their community.

Launched on 2nd March 2015 the awards for the north of England are available through the Community Foundations for Lancashire and Merseyside and are open to Registered Charities and Constituted Community Groups who can demonstrate an enterprising element to their work and income.

Prizes of between £5,000 and £10,000 are available to help Registered Charities and Community Groups grow their enterprise activities and services under one of the following social outcomes: improving social inclusion, supporting disadvantaged people through skills, training and employment, or creating a greener environment.

In addition to the financial awards, the winners will also have access to a business support programme including; the opportunity to have a three month intern working in the organisation to help implement enterprising growth plans and specialist social enterprise consultancy support from Inspire2Enterprise.

For further information, detailed guidelines and to enter please visit www.Cfmerseyside.org.uk or www.santanderseda.co.uk

Click here to read the criteria before completing an application form. The deadline for entries is 10th April 2015.

On Saturday night more than 200 eager fundraisers braced the cold and spent a night under the stars in conditions which plummeted to -6 degrees during the night in aid of Cumbria Community Foundation’s Winter Warmth Appeal.

The Big Sleep is an annual event organised by Cumbria Community Foundation to raise money for their Winter Warmth Fund. The fund grants money to older people within Cumbria who need support paying for their heating and fuel bills in the winter months.

Andrew Beeforth, Chief Executive of Cumbria Community Foundation said: “We couldn’t be happier with the number of people that turned out to support the Big Sleep. Everyone enjoyed the evening and embraced the cold weather but importantly we’ll be able to help lots of older, cold people as a result of the fundraising. Thank you to everyone who took part or supported the participants.”

“We had a heating honesty box, to have the heater on in the marquee to keep people warm people would donate money. Some people were very generous paying for hours of heating time.”

71-year-old Jim Corrigan from Wigton, entered the Big Sleep with his daughter Paula and his grandchildren Jodie and Jessica but unlike his family members, Jim had never camped out before.

“I’ve never camped in my life,” He said, “But I thought why not give it a go and do it for a good cause, to help older people and I am old.”

Evie Smith, daughter of Ian Smith, Head Teacher at St Benedict’s school, celebrated her 13^th birthday at The Big Sleep and her generous act has helped her raise more than £500 via her Just Giving page. She said: “I saw this event was for charity and I thought if I went somewhere else for my birthday I’d regret it because I wanted to do something good.”

The 1^st Workington St Johns Scouts and Beavers pitched their tent and made the most of the dry night playing games and cosing up in the Big Sleep Bed. They were kept warm in the evening with a cowboy stew courtesy of English Lakes Hotels, hot chocolates from Carvetii Coffee and bacon and egg buns in the morning.

Workers from Balfour Beatty, Jacobs and Amec Foster Wheeler, the three companies on the Box Encapsulation Project at Sellafield joined the Foundation on Saturday.

 Rachel Beech, the team organiser and Head of Supply Chain at Balfour Beatty said: “With energy prices still high, elderly people face a real problem in keeping warm during the harsh winter months. We’ll do anything for a good cause.”

Also braving the cold at the event was Helen Fisher Head of Socio-economics at Sellafield Ltd and her colleagues Dave McGrath and Alan Dunne.

The Bay Radio broadcast live from the Big Sleep site, with DJ Danny Matthews interviewing Big Sleepers throughout the night. The Bay team even slept in their broadcast gazebo and made it back to their studio in time to be on air the next morning.

Cumbria Community Foundation fund holders, Westmorland Limited, also took part in the mass charity camp out raising money for the Winter Warmth Appeal.

 You can still donate towards the Winter Warmth Appeal; phone Cumbria Community Foundation on 01900 825760 or visit our JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/WinterWarmth2014.

You can also simply send a text message to 70070 including our code WINT37. You can donate £2, £5 or £10. e.g. WINT37 £5 to 70070.

 Or you can send a cheque to: ‘Cumbria Community Foundation’ and write ‘Winter Warmth’ on the back. Send it to: Cumbria Community Foundation, Dovenby Hall, Dovenby, Cockermouth, Cumbria, CA13 0PN.

£60,000 has been donated Cumbria Community Foundation’s Winter Warmth Appeal since it launched in October.

The money provides financial support to older people across Cumbria to help with their fuel bills over the winter months. However, all the available funds have been awarded and the number of people needing the grant is increasing.

The Met Office has issued a level 3 cold weather alert in the North West of England. Because of the warnings Public Health England is reminding people to look out for each other and to keep warm indoors.

Dr Angie Bone of the Extreme Events team at Public Health England said: “Cold does kill, even in places where the temperatures aren’t at their lowest. “Our advice is that when indoors, have plenty of warm food and drinks to stay warm and try to maintain indoor temperatures to at least 18C, particularly if you are not mobile, have long term illness or are 65 or over.”

Andy Beeforth, Chief Executive of Cumbria Community Foundation said: “There are a lot of older people in our communities that can’t sustain their energy bills in the winter. Often poor health means they need to stay warm more often, thus using more of their fuel quicker. The grants we give out give these people security and reassurance that they can afford to have their radiators on at night. But there are still a lot of people who need this support.”

Cumbria Community Foundation works with Age UK’s Carlisle and Eden, West Cumbria and South Lakeland as well as The Oaklea Trust to distribute the grants to people in their area.

Mrs Smith is a Winter Warmth Grant recipient, 71. In 2012 she was widowed and has struggled to pay full rent and council tax on her own. She said: “I spend the nights worrying about how I can pay the rent – so paying to put the boiler on is out of the question sometimes.” “My family help me, they know I struggle moving around as I get older but I like to be independent.”

“The grant was reassuring as I was able to have a nice warm house over Christmas and have a little less to worry about. It’s very reassuring to know there are people in the community helping older people financially.”

It’s very simple to donate to the Winter Warmth Appeal: Just phone Cumbria Community Foundation on 01900 825760 or visit our JustGiving page: https://www.justgiving.com/WinterWarmth2014.

You can also simply send a text message to 70070 including our code WINT37. You can donate £2, £5 or £10. e.g. WINT37 £5 to 70070.

Or you can send a cheque to: ‘Cumbria Community Foundation’ and write ‘Winter Warmth’ on the back. Send it to: Cumbria Community Foundation, Dovenby Hall, Dovenby, Cockermouth, Cumbria, CA13 0PN.

All the money raised from Cumbria Community Foundation’s Big Sleep, taking place on Saturday 7th February at The Low Wood Bay Hotel, Windermere also goes toward the Winter Warmth Appeal.

Last year the event raised £23,000 for the cause and The Foundation hopes fundraisers will raise more this year. There are already over 120 people signed up to take part on the evening and through JustGiving alone have raised more than £3,500. To register to take part in The Big Sleep click here.  or call 01900 825760 for more information.

Cumbria Community Foundation is urging more community groups to apply for funding through the Joyce Wilkinson Trust Fund.

The funding is available to community groups in the former county of Cumberland, especially those in the Rosley and Westward parishes.

Grants are distributed from the fund twice a year and the Foundation is looking for more applications for the next panel in June.

Ellen Clements, Senior Grants and Donor Services Officer at Cumbria Community Foundation said: “We are enormously proud to have been able to carry on Joyce Wilkinson’s legacy since 2008. Many local projects have benefitted from her fund and there is still money to be distributed before the next panel meeting in June.”

The criteria of the fund encourages groups supporting older people and children and young people to apply and those operating or providing services in or close to the parishes of Rosley and Westward.

Last month £9,480 was awarded to six different community organisations including Wigton Cricket Club, Fell View After School Club, Northern Fells Pre-School Nursery Group and the Ireby Festival.

Charles Devlin, Treasurer of the Ireby Festival said: “The Festival is a not for profit community organisation and the Joyce Wilkinson Trust awarded £1,500 to help offset some of the costs associated with the hire of professional lighting and stage structures, essentials for making the festival professional and enjoyable for the community.

Applying to the Foundation for a grant is straight forward and staff are always looking to help organisations with their applications.

The deadline for applications to the Joyce Wilkinson Charitable Fund is Wednesday 27th May. For more information about how to apply contact Ellen Clements by phone 01900 825760 or by email ellen@cumbriafoundation.org

Northern Rock Foundation has announced four special awards totalling £1.5 million as part of its final programme of work in 2015.

Northern Rock Foundation has awarded £1.5 million in grants of £375,000 each to the region’s four community foundations in the North East and Cumbria. These awards mean that communities across the region will continue to benefit from the Foundation’s funds in the future.

Cumbria Community Foundation will use the funding to create a new fund within their endowed fund which will then provide annual grants in perpetuity for disadvantaged people.  Andy Beeforth, Chief Executive of Cumbria Community Foundation said: “For many organisations in Cumbria, funding from the Northern Rock Foundation was a significant part of their income. We hope to continue supporting charitable groups like these, which operate in some of the most disadvantaged communities in Cumbria. The money will be endowed into the Foundation Grants fund, which addresses poverty and disadvantage, and will become a lasting legacy for the county.”

Alastair Balls, Chairman of Northern Rock Foundation said “Community Foundations are connected to a wide range of voluntary and community organisations which meet the needs of people throughout the region. These grants are part of the Foundation’s legacy programme and ensure that the last of the Foundation’s funding provides long term benefit for current and future generations across the North East and Cumbria. “

In the North East Tees Valley and County Durham Community Foundations will also use the funding to create a new fund within each of their endowed funds. The Community Foundation serving Tyne and Wear and Northumberland has used the grant in kind towards purchasing the Old Chapel in Gosforth from Northern Rock Foundation, alongside a gift from a private donor, which will become the Community Foundation’s new offices in 2015.

Early in 2014 three former founding members of Chapter Five came together with other top ranking local musicians to form a new 9 piece Soul band, “Soul Survivors” exactly 50 years after forming “Chapter Five”

The guys were brought together by their love of Sixties Soul music, and a close friendship with each other going back decades.

The former Chapter Five members are Frank Hayes Bass Guitar, Allan Davies Lead Guitar and Dave McGerty Keyboards. They were joined by Danny Smyth on vocals, Mike Kidson Drums, Julie Rogerson Sax, Kim Anderson Trumpet, with Dave’s Daughter Tania McGerty on backing vocals and Sarah Carrick (Daughter of Chapter Five’s Drummer Tony Flanagan) also on backing vocals. Both girls also take the lead vocals on female vocal tracks.

Danny Smyth was well known as half of Soul Duo “The Smyth Brothers” and topped the bill all over the North of England backed by local bands “Index Trend” and the great “Patents Pending”.

Dave, Frank, and Mike, have also played together over the years in other local bands such as “Small World” and “Breaker” and “Danny Patterson & The Flamingoes”.

Mike is known as a “Drummers Drummer”, and is probably the most well respected percussionist to ever come out of Barrow.

Saxophonist Julie Rogerson is a well respected local player and one of the very best Sax players ever to come from the local area. Trumpet player Kim Anderson is the youngster in the band, but is very experienced, being both a conductor of several local Brass Bands and a professional Brass teacher, she is also a published Poet under the pen name of Kim Moore.

Sarah is well known for starring in many local musical productions over the years, her most recent appearance being in the Chorus for “Evita” at The Forum.

Tania was a member of Cabaret and Dinner Dance band “Forever” along with Dad Dave some years ago.

Altogether a very experienced outfit who just love to play and entertain the crowd.

The public’s interest in, and love of, Sixties Soul Music never seems to diminish, and Dave has just recently been informed that the “Chapter Five” single he wrote (You Can’t Mean It) is to be re-released early in the New Year for the 4th time!!! The band obviously include this, and other Chapter Five numbers, in their set list.

Barrow Community Trust is delighted that Soul Survivors have agreed to perform their first major gig to raise funds for the Trust at the Soccer Bar on Friday 30 January 2015 with doors opening at 8pm.  Admission will be by ticket only with tickets, costing £10 each, being available for cash purchase only from R & T Music, 8 Dalkeith Street, Barrow-in-Furness.

Rob Cairns, Chairman of Barrow Community Trust, said: “It is wonderful that Soul Survivors are doing their first full gig to help us with our fundraising.  We all very much appreciate this tremendous gesture.  Every penny raised will be used to help worthwhile causes within the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness.  We are certain that this gig will quickly sell out and I therefore urge any Chapter Five followers or soul music fans to get their tickets quickly.  Personally, I cannot wait to hear them.”

Cumbria Community Foundation has launched this year’s Big Sleep from a bed floating on lake Windermere.

The stunt is to encourage people to sign up for The Big Sleep and enjoy a night under the stars on Saturday 7 February 2015 to raise money for the Winter Warmth Appeal.

[Watch the ITV Border news report here]

The Big Sleep is an organised mass sleep out in a field behind the Low Wood Hotel where participants are sponsored to camp out on a cold winter’s night. In return, the charity provides food and a film to keep them going.

Andy Beeforth explains why Cumbria Community Foundation raises money for the elderly:
“Every year 300 elderly people in Cumbria die because they can’t afford to heat their homes throughout the winter and that is why appeals like the Winter Warmth are so important. The Big Sleep is a fun way for people to raise money and help reduce this number. If we can manage to sleep on Lake Windermere and not fall out, it will be easy to sleep out one night on the Low Wood’s fell side. Thank you to English Lakes Hotels for allowing the event to happen, it’s important to get the community involved because the cold weather can effect anyone in your own town or village.”

Keeping Andy company on the floating bed is Gary McKeating, Head of Socioeconomics at Nuclear Management Partners, he said: “This is the second year that Andy Beeforth and I have publicised the Big Sleep. Although the stunt is a light-hearted way to bring attention to February’s event, the issue that we’re raising money for can be a matter of life and death for some people. I’m very conscious of how lucky me and my family are to go home to a warm house. I would urge anybody that is in such a fortunate position to join us at the Big Sleep on February 7th and help those, that due to many different circumstances, have to go without heating their home, which should be considered a necessity not a luxury.”

Staging the Big Sleep is only possible thanks to the warm generosity of English Lakes Hotels, Resorts and Venues, who allow a field close to the Low Wood Hotel to be used for the event in February, Executive Ben Berry said: “We’re a business that’s always looking for ways we can benefit our local community. And whilst we are used to hundreds of people staying in our bedrooms, it is absolutely fantastic to have hundreds sleeping on our fell side, having fun and raising money for a much needed cause.”

During the winter of 2013/14, Cumbria Community Foundation’s Winter Warmth Appeal raised £105,000. Of that, £23,000 was raised in one night by 170 people taking part in the inaugural Big Sleep.

So far this winter, the charity has raised £37,334 for its 2014/15 Winter Warmth Appeal.

The number of people over the age of 60 who are living in fuel poverty has gone up from 1.11 million to 1.14 million in the past year according to estimates by the Energy Bill Revolution. The north west region had the second highest increase of excess winter deaths (13.2 per cent)

How to join the Big Sleep
To take part in the Big Sleep 2015 visit https://www.cumbriafoundation.org/bigsleep/ or call CCF on 01900 825760.

The Big Sleep at Home
This year we are offering people the opportunity to take part in the Big Sleep at Home, so if they can’t make it to the event at Windermere they can set up their own Big Sleep.
There is a lower entry fee of £20 for people wanting to join the Big Sleep at Home. Visit: https://www.cumbriafoundation.org/bigsleep/about/big-sleep-at-home/

Join in the Big Sleep action at facebook.com/cumbriabigsleep and via our twitter @cumbriafoundation #BigSleep2015

Looking for local funding?

Local groups and organisations with great ideas to make their communities even better places to live are now invited to apply for funding to turn their ideas into reality.

Using money raised by society lotteries through The Health Lottery, People’s Health Trust has opened Active Communities in HealthAble – Cumbria and Northumberland.

Active Communities is a funding programme for community groups and not-for-profit organisations, with an income of less than £350,000 a year, that are seeking investment of between £5,000 and £50,000 for projects lasting up to two years. The projects should take place within a small area for a small group of people such as 20 or 30 streets or a couple of villages.

They are looking for projects which are designed and run by local people, create stronger connections between people and help people to make their community or neighbourhood even better. Project must last for between 9 months and 2 years and be operating in the top 35% most deprived wards in Cumbria and Northumberland – click here to see if you’re eligible.

Applying couldn’t be easier. It’s an online process with a step by step guide from start to finish.

The deadline for applications is 1pm on Wednesday 21 January 2015.

Contact Annalee Holliday, Grants & Donor Services Officer at Cumbria Community Foundation on 01900 825760 for further information.

People’s Health Trust is an independent charity investing in local communities to help create a society without health inequalities.