Lancashire Association of CVS
Lancashire Association of Councils for Voluntary Service (LACVS) is a partnership of independent, not for profit infrastructure service providers, formed in 2007 to foster collaboration between its membership. Infrastructure services involve a range of services that support the vital work of the Lancashire 14 voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector. LACVS believes that the work of its members is strengthened by sharing resources and knowledge and supporting the VCFSE sector’s voice and influence across the sub-region. LACVS’s members, listed below, work from a network of offices across the Lancashire 14 sub-region. They have a long track record of providing infrastructure services that offer support to VCFSE sector organisations and help people to volunteer in their communities. Each member delivers their own infrastructure services as well as working collaboratively within LACVS.
In 2020 LACVS commissioned Voluntary Sector North West (VSNW) to start a conversation with colleagues in the sector. They felt there was a need for a shared vision for Lancashire 14 and wanted to understand exactly what is important to the 10,000+ groups in the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector in every part of Lancashire 14 and how we can collectively envisage change and push for this at local, sub regional and national levels.
In August 2020 – July 2021 Voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) groups and leaders from across Lancashire, Blackpool, and Blackburn with Darwen, came together through workshops, online forums, webinars, and events to produce the VCFSE Sector Manifesto for Lancashire 14. NB: the larger geographical area is referred to as Lancashire 14.
In 2022 The VCFSE Sector Manifesto for Lancashire 14 was produced and developed collaboratively by the sector. The engagement process, facilitated by VSNW (Voluntary Sector North West), highlighted 9 priorities for collective consideration and action.
However without further collective action, this manifesto would remain just words. So in 2023, the Locally Organised Communities Across Lancashire 14 project (LOCAL) was developed to deliver the VCFSE Manifesto, looking at the challenges we as a sector face, and helping the sector to tackle the issues our communities face.
The LOCAL project team are working across Lancashire 14 to identify potential collaborations and partnerships, gathering sector intelligence and engaging with funders to positively promote and encourage investment in the area. We are working together with the sector to make a long term difference to the future of Lancashire 14.