This NEW course is a step by step guide to starting up or developing your idea for social change whether you want to start a charity or social business. Each session can be attended as a stand-alone or booked in a discounted block of 3 or 6 sessions building to a full course. The Learning and Development Team at Voscur will bring their range of expertise and experience to various aspects of this course.

Price: £40 per session, if you book three sessions the cost is discounted to £90 (£30 each), and if you book all six sessions the price is discounted to £150 (£25 each). Those who attend all 6 sessions are offered the fantastic opportunity of free Action Learning Set sessions, run by Jess Woodsford from Inclusive Futures and SEER, to enable you to consolidate and extend your learning following the course. 

What is this course about?

Starting Out will provide you with the knowledge to set up your charity or social business. There are 6 parts to the course:

Part 1: Your Idea into Action - Wednesday 18 November 6pm - 8.30pm

Part 2: Making an Impact - Wednesday 2 December 6pm - 8.30pm

Part 3: Business Planning - Wednesday 16 December 6pm - 8.30pm

Part 4: Engaging your Customers - Wednesday 6 January 6pm - 8.30pm

Part 5: Balancing the Books - Wednesday 20 January 6pm - 8.30pm

Part 6: Working with Others - Wednesday 3 February 6pm - 8.30pm

What will you learn?

This course will enable you to:

• Clarify your aims and purpose
• Identify the right governance structure for your idea
• Prepare to start trading or applying for funding
• Develop a business plan
• Make the right connections with customers, partners and allies
• Build evidence to support your case and to market your service effectively.

Who is this course for?

This course is for people who have identified the change they want to make and may have started working on it but aren’t sure how to move to the next stage.

What else do you need to know?

Please bring your idea and/or a new business or community group project.

To take part you will need a laptop with a camera, microphone, and Wi-Fi. You will not require any additional software. You will be emailed an invitation with a link to join the online training prior to the course.

Voscur is running all our training online due to the ongoing public health situation with coronavirus (or COVID-19). This decision was taken in line with local and national health advice, and to safeguard the health of our attendees and staff. We are aware that many VCSE organisations in the city are focusing their efforts on providing and changing their services to respond to communities. For more information about coronavirus, see https://www.voscur.org/content/covid19-service-users.

Level: Basic

Voscur theme: This course covers all 6 of our Voscur training themes.

Cancellations:

For paid courses if you cancel your place on a training course you will need to give at least two weeks' notice. Less than two weeks' notice will result in the full cost of the course being invoiced (If you are unable to send someone in your place). If you have been offered a free place, or the training you have booked is a free session, and you don’t cancel as above, an admin fee of £25 will be charged.

Voscur reserves the right to withdraw a course at any time. In these circumstances, participants will be offered a full refund or an alternative course or date, if applicable.