Exactly 50 people came to the NCIA Assembly on Friday 17th April at the London Welsh Centre and we had apologies from almost the same number again. People came from as far as Scotland and Wales, from Durham, Bristol, Manchester, the Midlands, London and the South East.

What happened?  We had lightening speakers including Armine Ishkanian, Penny Waterhouse, Andy Benson, and Kathy Evans. We had facilitated small group discussions and we had some dynamic Forum Theatre/ Theatre of the Oppressed led by special guest, Angela El-Zeind. There was a ‘Talking Wall’ covered with examples of NCIA’s work over nearly 10 years and a display of all your comments from the NCIA on-line discussion (further down on this tab).

Keep involved post-NCIA

Whatever happens next will happen because of your involvement! So there is still (just!) time to get involved and take forward the next stage for independent voluntary action and activism in a life after NCIA.

Top Ten actions for the post-NCIA future

Most important: by the end of the afternoon we had a Top Ten of ideas for what happens post NCIA. These are in addition to three legacy projects arising from work NCIA has been engaged in, or supported: Localism Watch, Keep Volunteering Voluntary (KVV) and a new journal: Critical Studies in Voluntary Action (see later in this post).

A quick summary of the Top 10 action points is below. Get involved and draw in new people to these initiatives (some are modest, some are ambitious). As a first step, If YOU wish to be on an email list (cc’d – so visible to others in the group) to develop these ideas and action and stay involved, simply email mike@independentaction.net and write ‘yes, share my email with this NCIA next step group‘ in the subject line. We will add you to the email list.

Don’t forget you can still post a comment on the Forum below (scroll down to the bottom) over the next month or two.

…and Roadshows on NCIA’s linking NCIA’s work to local voluntary action

NCIA, is now putting together three or four final ‘roadshows’ in conjunction with local groups in Durham, Sheffield, Brighton and another location in June and July. Watch for updates about the Roadshows on the NCIA website

Actions arising from the last NCIA ASSEMBLY on Friday 17th April:

Here are the top ten actions:

1. Develop an email distribution list for all NCIA supporters and those interested in sharing and keeping in touch about the issues NCIA on which NCIA has been active.

2. Develop a social media presence (e.g. new website/google group/Linkdin, Meet Up)

3. A re-union one year on for a party, convivial space, dance! April/May 2016.

4. Explore novel funding ideas and continuing to develop a successor organisation to NCIA – clarify aims and actions in the light of the (worsening) context for voluntary action and activism.

5. Explore and develop an inter-generational interchange to reach out and link constituencies together (in particular making links between young people and older people involved in voluntary action and activism). And generating specific ideas on thematic issues to collaborate/ undertake joint work (e.g. as with Keep Volunteering Voluntary)

6. Generating a list of speakers/facilitators with a critical perspective to provide a resource to groups involved with voluntary action and activism.

7. Developing a skills audit among us about the individual and collective expertise and resources within the supporters of current NCIA people.

8. Support and work as local hosts for ‘small’ NCIA groups in different towns who want to develop mutual support, share ideas and develop common independent voluntary action.

9. Work to organise/support Assemblies for Democracy (in different towns and villages in the UK).

10. Make links and support others working on, or interested in, civic activism.

The Top 10 ideas from the Assembly aim to be in addition to, and complement, three existing ‘legacy’ projects arising from, or supported by, NCIA:

Localism Watch:

This is aiming to do what the government can’t and won’t – reclaim localism for the people. Localism Watch is an online resource, owned and led by activists, helping local people make sense of the government’s localism agenda – and to challenge it. https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/collections/localismwatch/about 

Keep Volunteering Voluntary:

Keep Volunteering Voluntary (KVV) is a campaign, launched in April 2014, in response to the implementation of the government’s ‘Help to Work’ programme, which included mandatory six month placements in voluntary groups linked to benefit sanctions for non-compliance. The idea of KVV emerged at the Welfare Action Gathering in London in February 2014. The purpose is to end the use of workfare in the voluntary sector by encouraging as many organisations as possible to make a commitment not to participate in it, and to publicise that commitment.

http://www.keepvolunteeringvoluntary.net

Critical Studies in Voluntary Action: a new journal:

A group of academics and practitioners – and some who combine both roles – have decided to do something about their growing dissatisfaction with the current state of voluntary sector studies.  In the hope of developing ‘a different narrative of voluntary action’ they will in 2015 launch a new journal to be called Critical Studies in Voluntary Action. Contact the Editorial Board’s convenor, Colin Rochester for more information –  colin@practicalwisdomr2z.co.uk .