Welcome to Community Barnet’s first blog.  In this blog we hope to give voice to local voluntary and community groups and share the stories of the individuals and organisations that work tirelessly to improve the lives of Barnet residents.  So who are we? What do we do?  And why is what we do important?

 

Who we are

We are the umbrella organisation for the local voluntary and community sector (VCS). We are a membership organisation and we support and represent voluntary and community groups, charities and faith groups, across Barnet.  We have been established for over 35 years and our mission is to help ensure Barnet has a thriving, sustainable and vibrant third sector.

 

What we do

We empower our members by promoting their services, providing crucial ongoing support, information, advice, guidance and training. We also represent our members to the local authority and public sector agencies to allow their collective voice to be heard by those with the purse strings.  

 

Why what we do is important

Our members help some of the most vulnerable adults, children, young people and families in our community.  Many of the charities we support are small and have limited resources. These organisations are heavily supported by volunteers, but they cannot and do not run on volunteers alone.  Charities do not have the flexibility of income or access to private finance available to private businesses, but they have to behave like businesses and ensure that they are sustainable.  During economic downturns they often see an increase in demand for their services, but unlike businesses, growth in demand does not signify growth in income - it merely stretches us all further.

As the public purse continues to shrink and with it public services, residents’ need for additional VCS services will grow, so the infrastructure support that we supply is even more crucial to enable the smaller organisations to exist, thrive and continue to support our most vulnerable residents. 

So despite these challenging times, Community Barnet continues to strive to attract crucial support and funding so that we can continue to offer this lifeline to the VCS in Barnet, and they in turn can support residents.  Please visit our website at www.communitybarnet.org.uk for more information on our services.

We hope you enjoy our blog, and maybe even share your own story.

Community Barnet