Supporting Voluntary and Community Action
Voscur is working hard to identify those groups excluded from access to electronic services, and develop this support and service for those groups. If you've found this website, you are some of the way there, but check out some of the sections below to see what we can help you with.
Email – many organisations still use undistinguishable mail addresses provided by their Internet Service Provider (ISP) and don't realise or don't know how to brand their organisation's email with their own domain name belonging to their organisation (and maybe not sure what a domain is!). For instance, seank@voscur.org is a lot more useful in identifying a voluntary sector worker than sean@btconnect.com or sean@blueyonder.co.uk. For the cost of less than £5 and a short introductory session you can set up a whole range of addresses (support@myorgansation.org.uk, director@..., sarah.smith@ ... etc) and give your email a higher profile and professionalism when working with clients, funders, supporters and everybody else.
Website – setting up a website is far less complex than it sounds. If you've registered an email address (see above) you already have a domain, and most ISPs provide free space with your account plus the tools for setting up your account. Voscur has helped several organisations use the free service freecharity.org.uk to set up websites over which they can have full control (no-more phoning the tech support to change a comma on the website). We have lots of experience of negotiating on behalf of members with web design companies to get them what they want within budget, and helping them to project manage the whole process. A website is becoming an essential tool in raising your profile, communicating with your audience and even fund-raising.
Computers – Many small organisations get by with slow, faulty computers, fearing the day that they will turn them on and they will no longer work. The expense of getting them fixed, plus the issue of knowing where to go can be a minefield. Voscur's ICT directory and supported signposting service, coupled with our recent recycling and refurbishing projects means we have the experience and know-how to advise you independently on good practice and emergency IT support, where to go, who to speak to, and what to ask them to do.
Voscur Services - If all that is too much for you, it doesn't mean you have to be cut off from the web. You can promote your activities for free on the Voscur Diary, advertise services on our noticeboard and advertise for Volunteers on our very popular Jobs page, also free. If you're not sure how to do any of that you can contact Voscur direct for help and support. Or you can also go to the new Voscur forums and ask a question (http://lists.voscur.org/forums ) not just about IT but anything to do with your organisation and anything to do with ANY Voscur service
For more information Contact Sean on Tuesdays or Thursdays at the Voscur Office on 0117 9099949 or use our contact form