ICT Resources
Finding Help
ICT Service Providers Directory for the North East
This is a directory, with contact details, of the ICT support network across the North East, including IT technical support providers, ICT advice, and training venues. It's now completely on-line and regionally searcheable.
ICT Service Providers Directory
Costing your technology usage - Full Cost Recovery etc.
ICT Strategy Toolkit
The Community IT Academy (CITA) in Newcastle upon Tyne have worked with us to upgrade our ICT Strategy Toolkit. We have built in additional features responding to your needs and requests and I'm really pleased with the result.
Even though every organisation in our sector is different, we all need to develop an ICT strategy. An ICT strategy helps focus our use of technology and communications tools and ensures this is securely linked to our objectives, missions and general reason for being. An ICT strategy helps us plan, resource and make the best use of ICT resources now and into the future.
This free to use toolkit can not only produce a general ICT strategy for your organisation, but also allows the production of up to 5 'tailored' multi-budget strategies which you may need for specific projects, collaborations or funding bids etc.
The enhanced features include an ICT training needs analysis for your staff and volunteers, an asset inventory and an associated annual ICT budget projector which is generated from details of the equipment you currently have and will need to maintain and/or replace.
All of the documents that this toolkit produces can be downloaded and saved onto your own computer to allow modifications (e.g. adding of logo's) and future updating.
Click here to start using the toolkit
The intellectual property rights of this toolkit remain with VONNE and will be used to develop future toolkits for the sector. Whilst VONNE own the rights to this toolkit, you may consider it freely available to the sector at all times. This toolkit was made possible via funding through Capacitybuilders.
Research
Tees Valley ICT Survey 2009
A valuable piece of research was conducted by the Tees Valley ICT Champion, Maurice Olum of Solumac Ltd.
Maurice tasked himself with analysing and providing feedback on unmet needs in ICT support service provision and on training and information requirements of Third Sector organisations in the Tees Valley area.
Receiving 191 respondents from the region, I'm informed by Maurice that this success rate was down to excellent support from the numerous Tees Valley CVS offices as well as a number of key partners who include; Stockton Residents & Community Groups Association, Catalyst Stockton-on-Tees, Middlesbrough Voluntary Development Agency, Hartlepool Voluntary Development Agency, Redcar & Cleveland Voluntary Development Agency and eVOLution in Darlington.
As you would imagine, there's some interesting reading in the report. Whilst the feedback shows that 168 out of 191 organisations do not know of any Infrastructure Organisation offering ICT support, two thirds of them recognised the importance of ICT in their organisations with over a quarter rating it with the highest score of 'Very Important'.
The three major ICT challenges highlighted are: lack of skills, lack of budget and lack of impartial advice/support. So the work goes on...
Full Report - Tees Valley ICT Survey 2009
In search of Cost-Effective ICT Services for the Third Sector - Is Social Enterprise the solution?
Published in April 2008, this report was commissioned to answer a number of questions around our sectors unique position of having countless organisations operating with little or no ICT support or planning.
It asked;
- Should the sector try and deliver ICT support services from within, or should it rely on services from the private sector?
- If from within, what sort of services should be provided for the sector?
- How have current social enterprises emerged? What problems have they encountered in their birth and growth? How can these be avoided?
- Are they robust enough and if not, how can this be improved?
The report was researched and written by four of my fellow Regional ICT Champions from around the country; Julie Harris, Colin Harrison, Paul Ruskin and Mark Walker. It looked in detail at the Social Enterprise model of delivery and was able to draw on the knowledge of those with experience of it to critically ask; if it is the best solution, what services could be provided, what are the associated pitfalls and benefits of this method of service delivery.
On-Line Fraud
The North East Fraud Forum (NEFF) is a not for profit innovative public-private sector partnership set up during 2003 to promote fraud awareness and fraud prevention among North East institutions. The NEFF has subsequently grown to over 200 organisational members including the three regional police forces, local Universities and leading law, accountancy, retail and software companies.
The NEFF web site was created to allow access to anyone wishing to be appraised of current fraud trends and other invaluable information. Check out their useful Fraud Prevention section on the website.
The Government has estimated that the cost and impact of fraud to the economy of the United Kingdom is in the vicinity of £14 -£16 billion. It is against this background and ever increasing cyber crime fraud that the NEFF's agenda aims to raise awareness of fraud methods and reduce opportunities for criminal activity.
Alan Curry of NEFF has stated; "Working with VONNE we hope to raise the issues and awareness of individuals and organisations within the Third Sector. Our experience in this area has shown that fraudulent activity continues to rise within all areas of organisational activity. Sadly, interest in prevention only becomes more prevalent after becoming a victim. We hope that by raising the profile of the various methods of fraudulent activity that VONNE members can reduce their vulnerability".
Please check out their web site for up to date issues and forthcoming NEFF activities. http://www.northeastfraudforum.co.uk/
Recycling ICT Equipment
This is not as straightforward as you may have imagined I'm afraid, not least in these days of increasing environmental awareness. Recycling of computers is not actually done by many people, mainly because a proper plant to do the job costs millions of pounds. So here's a document with my best current advice.
ICT Training Issues
One of the Regional ICT Champions projects run in 2008 served to address a concern that ICT training is a problem area in the voluntary and community sector.
The following were quotes made to the Regional ICT Champion by a number of IT professionals working in the VCS:
"free training was made available but the take-up was very poor"
"we had to cancel the free workshops due to lack of interest"
"the needs and provision don't match"
"often organisations simply don't realise how much the training could help them"
"Ironically, it seems that those who could benefit most from technology through improved access to information and services are also those least likely to have access to it or be comfortable using it"
So it was decided to commission research to address these concerns. We wanted to look into the disparity highlighted above, so the research endeavoured to consult VCO's across the region, find out what ICT training needs our VCO's really have and make recommendations for a realistic and viable way forward in helping them to take full advantage of available ICT training and so continue to enhance and strengthen our sector.
Initially, Ribble Consultants carried out a period of research involving one to one consultations with both training providers and VCO's.
Following this and to enlarge on the earlier findings, voluntaryskills.com were commissioned to conduct an on-line survey and data analysis which was very encouragingly participated in.
Both sets of research are available below:
Ribble Consultants Final Report:
Cross Sector A - Final Report PDF (101Kb)
Voluntary Skills Final Report:
North East Third Sector ICT Survey 2008 - Full Report PDF (242Kb)
Website Stuff
Understanding the web and making it work for your organisation
At the end of 2007 Flatline Design, on behalf of VONNE, ran a series of free workshops to help de-mystify the web. The sessions were aimed at any third sector organisation which was either considering developing a website or, which already had one but wanted to make it more effective. The sessions covered everything from choosing a web designer to understanding accessibility and search engines. They were presented in clear, simple english and included support materials which are freely available below. As well as the PDF manuals there are also podcasts of the workshops available too.
Many thanks to Roger from Flatline Design for this useful piece of work.
www.flatlinedesign.co.uk flatline.design@mac.com
Planning & Managing a Successful Website (PDF 364 Kb)
Making Your Website More Effective (PDF 195 Kb)
Website Planning Guidelines - Ascertain what you need.
This is another look at the issues that should be covered, useful because it always helps to have a couple of perspectives. It's a 'no nonsense' checklist to complete which helps you determine exactly what you want for your organisation, what your websites functions should be and how it should look.
Website Planning Guidelines (88kb)
Website Accessibility Study
The Community IT Academy (CITA) have published a report to explore the options around website accessibility for Open Source Content Managed website systems such as Joomla, WordPress and Drupal.
There is a legal (and moral) obligation to make websites work fully, to allow anyone (and everyone) to use them using any platform, software and/or peripheral hardware. There is also some confusion as to what measures you must take, what is good practice and what the industry standards are.
The full report is available here to view or download: Website Accessibility
Further useful sources of information...
Strategic Planning Guidelines - Write your own ICT strategy.
There are always alternatives out there to help you focus and detail your needs from the technologies available. Here's a couple more examples in the form of publications which can be sourced...
A step-by-step guide (with examples) of how to write a simple and effective ICT strategy for your organisation. This strategy will prove invaluable in helping you win funding bids, and to raise the level of ICT awareness within your organisation in general.
ICT Strategic Planning Guidelines (96kb)
How to Cost and Fund ICT
This booklet will help you identify and budget for total cost of ownership of ICT, an invaluable resource when funding your ICT. This guide has been sponsored by Datek Solutions www.dateksolutions.com.
Download:How to Cost and Fund ICT PDF 1.24Mb
ICT Budget Calculator.
This is a simple spreadsheet where you simply need to enter the number of staff you have that use or need to use a pc and the calculator will estimate costs for hardware, software, training and technical support - a useful tool when putting in funding bids for IT support and systems and also by way of planning. Developed by LASA and available to all at the link below. The costings worked o
ut 'in the background' may be a bit low of late though, so you would be best advised to find a little more time to take advantage of the more detailed tools further below.
VONNE also maintain a Venue Guide, to enable you to search for a suitable venue to hold your event or meeting across the North East. Also, our magazine 'The Vine', is available online as well as being sent out in print to all our members.
Publications
A selection of useful and informative publications on ICT for voluntary and community organisations.
If you wish to view these documents as PDFs you may need to download the free Adobe Acrobat reader.
Corporate Product Needs of the Sector
This authoritative independent research document was commissioned by the ICT Hub to study software options for the sector. It is aimed at informing the small to medium sized Voluntary and Community Organisation (VCO) about what software is available. It addresses issues such as the availability, likely cost, usability and ease of set up.
Download: Full Report PDF 1.8 Mb
From Nightmare to Nirvana - an ICT Survival Guide for Trustees
What has ICT got to do with Governance? Why should trustees be interested in ICT? This guide is not to improve your technical understanding; but will help your trustees understand the role of ICT and the importance of strategic planning to reduce the cost and risk implications, and to make a difference to your organisational effectiveness and your impact on beneficiaries.
Download: ICT Survival Guide for Trustees PDF 399 Kb
ICT Foresight: Charitable Giving and Fundraising in a Digital World
Alongside exploring the tools available for electronic giving, such as websites and mobile phones; this report looks at the impact of technology on traditional marketing methods; and how to adapt to a cultural change in managing donors to ensure these tools are used effectively.
Download: Charitable Giving and Fundraising in a Digital World PDF 670 Kb
Consultation and Campaigning in the Age of Participatory Media
This report, based on a survey of almost 300 senior managers in the voluntary and community sector; maps out emerging trends in relation to the critical 'voice' and representation roles of the sector.
Download: Consultation and Campaigining... PDF 581kb
How Online Communities can make the Net Work for the Voluntary & Community Sector
This report examines the impact of the internet on the growing trend for individuals and organisations to come together through online social networking, forums, blogs, wikis and other new technology.
Download: How Online Communities can make the Net Work for the VCS PDF 1.3Mb
A Guide to Managing ICT in the Voluntary and Community Sector
This in-depth guide covers all aspects of managing information and communications technology. It contains over 100 pages of accessible information that is useful for anyone whatever your level of technical knowledge. This publication has been supported by ESiT.
Download: A Guide to Managing ICT PDF 1.55Mb
New Media Case Studies
The Media Trust have produced a booklet highlighting 10 VCOs of all shapes and sizes who have used new media to communicate with their audience.
Download: New Media Case Studies PDF 701Kb
Easy Free and Quick ICT Accessibility Pack
This booklet and CD explains why accessibility is vital to your work, clarifies your legal obligation, and tells you how easy it is to make simple practical improvements to your accessibility. The CD helps you put into practice simple improvements and has a wealth of case studies. Most of the ideas in this booklet are free or cost less than £100.
Download: ICT Accessibility Booklet PDF 492Kb
Web Accessibility Pack for Voluntary and Community Organisations (booklet and CD)
This booklet and CD is a practical introduction to web accessibility. It will give you the knowledge to make your site accessible at no or little additional cost. The pack explains what web accessibility is, the benefits and what the law says, as well as giving guidance for web managers/ commissioners, editors, designers and developers.
Download: Web Accessibility Pack PDF 1.69Mb
ICT Tools to Support Collaborative Working
ICT has great potential for enabling collaboration, especially for projects which involve multiple partners over large geographical distances. This information identifies what works and what doesn't, and is illustrated with case studies.
Download: ICT Tools to Support Collaborative Working PDF 274Kb
Collaborative Working to Make More Effective Use of ICT
It can be a challenge to identify and realise the potential of ICT because of the difficulty in resourcing and finding the support needed. This information explores how you could collaborate with others to support your ICT.
Download: Collaborative Working PDF 170Kb
ICT Signposting Guide for Small Voluntary and Community Organisations
This is a signposting guide for small voluntary and community to help get better use out of their ICT and to support its effective management.
Download: ICT Signposting Guide for Small VCOs PDF 43Kb
Making More Impact With Your Funds, briefing for funders booklet
This briefing for funders booklet is designed to inform funders about both the importance of ICT and funding the total cost of ownership.
Download: Briefing for Funders PDF 250Kb
Circuit Rider 2.0 Guide
The circuit rider guide aims to answer all of your circuit rider questions such as:
What is a circuit rider?What do circuit riders do? How do circuit rider projects work? How do circuit riders benefit the voluntary and community sector?
Download: Circuit Rider 2.0 Guide PDF 184Kb
How will we use new technologies in five years' time?
New from the Performance Hub, this guide looks at how ICT is impacting on the voluntary and community sector and suggests ways for your organisation to make strategic choices and plan ahead.
Download: Future Focus 3 PDF 184Kb
Assistive Technologies - What there is, their uses and where to find them.
A clear explanation of what technologies are available, what they can do to assist, who they are for, how much they cost, and where you can get them.
Assistive Technologies (244kb)
Andrew Samuel (Sam)
