5 July: Weekly Bulletin for the Voluntary and Community Sector in Milton Keynes

5 July 2019

MK Together publications

Over the past year MK Together Team have been working on new innovative partnership arrangements for safeguarding adults and children, enabling community safety and promoting health and wellbeing in Milton Keynes. MK Together is committed to being at the forefront of improvement, integration and partnership working. The good work that has already been done was highlighted in the joint local area SEND inspection carried out in October last year and in the recent peer inspection of the Council’s Adult Services.

MK Together have now published their new partnership plans which incorporate their multi-agency safeguarding arrangements. The plans for the MK Together partnership have been developed in collaboration with a wide range of local stakeholders. MK Together are now working towards implementing their new arrangements which will be in place by 1 September 2019. Please feel free to contact the MK Together Team if you have any queries on: MKTogether@milton-keynes.gov.uk.

MK Together Simple Story
MK Partnerships Handbook
MK Together Handbook Appendices
Publication letter June 2019

Vital Signs MK 2019

Vital Signs MK 2019 is the latest instalment of a project that the Milton Keynes Community Foundation has run since 2013. The reports bring together existing research and social data about Milton Keynes with an aim of highlighting the strengths, as well as identify areas for improvement for the local community to respond to, including the Voluntary, Community and Cultural Sector, as well as local businesses and individuals who want to help make a difference in the Milton Keynes community.

Please follow this link to find out more about the Vital Signs programme. Please follow this link to read the last year’s report.

Here at Community Action: MK we will be supporting this year’s Vital Signs community consultation programme by running two focus groups: on Friday 12th July: at 11am and 2pm. If you would like to participate in on of the focus groups and share your views towards this year’s Vital Signs report, please follow this link to express your interest. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided.
Once you have registered your interest, you will receive more information asap.

Lavendon Neighbourhood Plan

In June 2019, Lavendon Parish Council submitted the final version of its Neighbourhood Plan to Milton Keynes Council. The Plan is now being published in accordance with Regulation 16 of the Neighbourhood Plans (General) Regulations 2012. This is the final stage to make comments on the Plan.

Please follow this link to see the submitted Plan and its supporting documents.

Any comments on the Plan at this stage (including those from members of the public and other organisations) will be passed to an independent person (the Examiner) to consider when he or she is examining the Plan. The Examiner will consider whether the Plan:

Meets a number of basic conditions
Satisfies the legal requirements for neighbourhood plans, and
Identifies an appropriate area for the referendum

Comments should be sent to: neighbourhoodplanning@milton-keynes.gov.uk by 5pm on Monday 5^th August 2019.

Milton Keynes Council Open Consultations

See all MK Council consultations

Virtual Internship initiative from The Open University

As a world leader in distance learning, the OU is turning its attention to distance working. We’re delighted to announce our brand new Virtual Internship initiative, giving you the opportunity to hire your very own OU student in a completely different way. Carried out on a remote basis, and with a clear brief and regular telephone or online meetings, the intern can effectively complete a range of tasks outside of an office environment.

Work with our dedicated internship manager to design an internship that will meet your business needs, and draw from the vast talent pool of OU students with no geographic restrictions. We’ve already successfully piloted virtual internships, here’s what the business owner had to say:

“My company has thrived because of the interns, the flexibility of the virtual environment and the students’ willingness to do numerous roles at the same time has allowed us to expand and progress the company a lot further than we would have done without them” Director, Nubis Aviation Training

There are no costs associated with our Virtual Internships, besides paying your intern of course, and if your organisation is an SME or small charity there may be some funding available to help with that. If you’d like to find out more about this great opportunity please do get in touch, we’d be very happy to talk to you. Please follow this link to find out more. You can find more details about the some possible funding as part of the Santander Placement Scheme here.

Demolition of Milton Keynes housing estates ‘will not happen’– BBC News

Bradville and Serpentine Court — Serpentine Court (right) is still due to be demolished, but that is not the case for North Bradville (left)

Plans to demolish six estates as part of a £1bn housing makeover could be abandoned. Labour-run Milton Keynes Council said “the wholesale demolition will not happen” and it wants to “improve” some estates in the town instead. Plans to demolish and rebuild parts of Serpentine Court, on the Lakes estate, will go ahead, it said.
Read more from BBC News

Children’s books needed for Conniburrow Library

Childrens Books, Books, Reading, Cup, Drink, Education

Conniburrow’s Free Little Library is in need of books, particularly children’s books. Any donations will be gratefully accepted at BLC Hub, 34 Bramble Avenue, Conniburrow, MK14 7AP.

Whitehouse primary school’s Summer Fayre

On 27 June, Whitehouse primary school held their Summer Fayre. The day included games, tombola, face painting, a raffle with amazing prizes and refreshments.

The Friends of Whitehouse primary school raised an amazing £1,400!

B&MK Waterway to launch Community Boat on the Grand Union Canal at Milton Keynes in 2020

Following six very successful seasons with the John Bunyan Boat on the River Great Ouse at Bedford, Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway volunteers are planning to run a small passenger boat on the Grand Union Canal, based at the new Campbell Wharf Marina in the centre of Milton Keynes.

The Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trust’s community boat on the river in Bedford (www.johnbunyanboat.org) has been hugely successful for six seasons now, raising awareness about and funds for the new Waterway Park that is designed to link the Grand Union canal at Campbell Park with the River Great Ouse in Bedford.

The trading arm of the Trust, BMKWEL, now plans to repeat that success in Milton Keynes, with a boat designed for the very different waters of the Grand Union. The boat will be a 12-seater, full-accessible, hybrid narrowboat that will work well for all sorts of trips throughout the year: short rides in summer, one-way taxi for walkers, Santa Specials in December, and of course our ever-popular catered charter trips for families, community and business groups, and ‘public specials’ – afternoon cream teas on board, bubbles ‘n’ bites, fish & chip suppers, etc. We hope to launch in April 2020.

BMKWEL is delighted to be working in partnership at Campbell Wharf with Crest Nicholson, who have a commitment to community-building in their new developments, and with the Parks Trust, who are keen to ensure that residents and visitors alike can see and use as much of the Milton Keynes’ wonderful parkland as possible.

We are holding two public meetings this summer to test support for the Community Boat project, to uncover issues or concerns, and to start to build a new group of local volunteers who are capable of taking this project forward on a short timescale. Please come and find out more, tell us your views, and offer us some help if you can!

The first meeting is on Monday 22 July at 7-9pm at the Parks Trust HQ* and is open to anyone interested. RSVP: jane.wolfson@mkcommunityboat.org

*The Pavilion, 1300 Silbury Blvd, Milton Keynes MK9 4AD, UKFor queries, or to tell us that you can’t come to the meeting but would like to be kept informed, please contact us at jane.wolfson@mkcommunityboat.org

New briefing from The Health Foundation

From 1st July, all patients in England will be covered by a primary care network (PCN): the most significant reform to general practice in a generation. PCNs are intended to stabilise general practice in the face of workforce shortages and rising demand, and to help deliver many of the commitments made in The NHS Long Term Plan.
Please follow this link to find out more.

Independent Age and Cosy Club partner to ‘end loneliness’

Independent Age and Cosy Club partner to âend lonelinessâ

Restaurant and bar chain Cosy Club, which operates 25 sites across the UK, has announced a national partnership with Independent Age to help the fight to end loneliness.

Free Teas For Those In Need will be taking place at 10-11am each Wednesday across all sites and will aim to support those who face loneliness and isolation and provide them with the opportunity to engage with others and connect with the community. Read more

York House

Ever considered putting on a show? Music? Drama? Spoken word? Fund-raiser for your favourite charity? We can help you to make it a success. Our Main Hall accommodates 80 to 90 people; the Beechey Room 40 to 50; we have other rooms and outdoor performance spaces; and we have audio visual equipment.
Find out more

Volunteering opportunity of the week: Alzheimers Society Side by Side Volunteer

Margaret, who lives with dementia, and Side by Side volunteer Alistair

As a Side by Side volunteer you will enable someone with dementia to be able to keep doing the things they love, to stay connected to their local community and to build the confidence to stay active and engaged in social and recreational activities.

You will visit someone with dementia on a weekly or fortnightly basis and take part in activities you share an interest with them to help them to keep doing the things they love – or pick up new ones!
Find out more here or call Jane on 01296 331 722.

Intu Green Gym: Volunteers wanted for gardening, tree-planting and more!

Sid’s Story: A Volunteer Case Study

Sid Burgess is avidly involved in Big Local Conniburrow (BLC), volunteering most of his time to organising events for the residents of Conniburrow to bring the people together and promote the feel of community. We wanted to help him share his story with you.

Sid Burgess is now the Chair of the Social and Involvement Task Group for the BLC through his time volunteering with them.

MacIntyre: Support workers

MacIntyre have vacancies for support workers in various areas of Milton Keynes area:

Support Worker – part-time, 15hrs per week
Milton Keynes
£8.55 an hour
We are looking for part-time Support Workers, (weekends only) to join the teams within our Milton Keynes area – where we support adults who have a learning disability.
Find out more

Support Worker – Full or Part time
Milton Keynes (Emerson Valley)
£8.55
We are seeking experienced and non experienced Support Workers (full or part time) for our supported living service in Milton Keynes.
Find out more

Support Worker Part Time (FEMALE ONLY)
Milton Keynes – Bradville
£8.55 an hour
We have vacancies for a part-time Support Worker at one of our Supported Living services in the Bradville area of Milton Keynes. This position is for 23 hours per week.
Find out more

Co-op Foundation – Space to Connect Fund

Space to Connect is a partnership between the Co-op Foundation and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DMCS). It builds on the commitment to unlock the potential of community spaces as part of the Government’s loneliness strategy. It also extends the Co-op Foundation’s existing support for organisations who are working to make community spaces sustainable.

There are two strands of funding:
Enhance – grants for organisations that are already using a community space in an innovative and creative way, and that want to expand activities and embed sustainable ways of working to build a more secure future.
Explore – grants for organisations that want to start exploring ways that local challenges could be addressed through better use of space, and/or identify potential spaces that could be opened up to community use.
Find out more

MK Community Foundation Community Grants

Community Grants up to £5,000
Deadline 2 August 2019

MK Community Foundation award a range of grants to charities and community groups that help to make a positive impact in Milton Keynes and benefit local people.
Find out more

Cinema at the Sky Room: This Week

MK Gallery is partnering with Curzon Cinemas to bring audiences in Milton Keynes the very best independent film programme, from art house films to classic movies.
Find out more and book here