E-newsletter from the Office for the Community & Voluntary Sector
++Issue 8 Contents.
Section 1: OCVS News & Events.
01: Busy year ahead for OCVS.
02: Collaboration highlighted in international conference paper.
03: Study of the New Zealand Non-Profit Sector continues.
Section 2: Sector & Government News & Events.
04: Start the year off with a little expert help and guidance.
05: Charities register opens.
06: Census data on unpaid work released.
07: E-initiatives wiki gives overview of government ICT projects.
08: Nominations open for media awards.
09: Collecting fuel discount vouchers faster than you can use them?
10: Get your community group on national television.
11: 1st New Zealand Hindu Conference.
12: Report on Capacity Development for Policy Advocacy.
13: New research study into altruism.
14: Building a Common Outcome Framework To Measure Non-Profit Performance.
[Contents ends].
Section 1: OCVS News & Events.
+01: Busy year ahead for OCVS.
Mihi atu kia koutou mo te tau hau. Greetings for the New Year.
The OCVS has another busy year planned and we’ll be keeping you informed as projects
progress.
Some of the activities we’ll be telling you more about during the first half of the year include:
March
- OCVS Senior Policy Analyst Joyce Anne Raihania will be presenting at the Philanthropy
Matters conference.
- A Regional Funders Forum in Canterbury is being organised by OCVS in conjunction with
Philanthropy NZ & Dept of Internal Affairs.
April
- A new publication entitled Mahi Aroha: Maori Perspectives on Volunteering and Cultural
Obligations will be launched. It is based on findings from a series of interviews and hui with
Maori.
- OCVS Senior Policy Analyst Hugh Lawrence and Policy Analyst Ann Walker will present a
paper entitled Investing in Communities of Interest at the Social Policy, Research and
Evaluation (SPRE) Conference 2007. Policy practitioners, non-government organisations,
researchers, evaluators, and the wider community will come together at the conference to
discuss and debate the landscape of social policy in New Zealand.
May
- Further Regional Funders Forums will be held in various locations around the country.
June
- Volunteer Awareness Week (17-23 June) will be celebrated around New Zealand.
During this week, a cross-sectoral forum to explore new ways for the government and
community sectors to work together will be held. This forum on 20-21 June will be an
opportunity for both sectors to discuss common issues, and work towards putting in place a
lasting mechanism for engaging with each other. More details on this exciting initiative are to
come.
Plus, we intend to continue our successful series of Good Practice in Action seminars for
state servants, publish research on Pacific peoples cultural obligations, and progress our
work on the Study of the NZ Non-Profit Sector.
I wish you all the very best for a productive and successful year.
Brenda Ratcliff
Director, OCVS
+02: Collaboration highlighted in international conference paper.
OCVS Policy Analyst Kat Paton highlighted some of the efforts and future challenges involved
in supporting community participation in New Zealand in her presentation at the IAVE World
Conference in India in late 2006. You can download a copy of Kat's paper entitled
Community-Government partnering to support volunteering in New Zealand at
www.ocvs.govt.nz/publications/index.html#papers.
The Good Practice in Action seminar series also explored the topic of collaboration through
the Strengthening the Government-Volunteering Interface seminar in November 2006.
Presentations from this seminar are online.
+03: Study of the New Zealand Non-Profit Sector continues.
Publication of Defining the Non-Profit Sector: New Zealand in 2006 was just the beginning for
this key project to address the lack of data on New Zealand’s community and voluntary
sector. The Committee for the Study of the New Zealand Non-Profit Sector and the team of
Massey researchers have a busy year ahead in 2007. Much of the focus will be spent on
gathering information to complete the Johns Hopkins University Field Guides on topics such
as:
- the legal position of non-profit organisations in New Zealand
- the historical background to the sector
- the impact of past and current government policies on the sector
- key issues facing non-profit organisations today.
An annotated bibliography on the non-profit sector will also be compiled.
Information from Massey University's work and the Non-Profit Institutions Satellite Account
will be drawn together to form the basis of the NZ National Report in mid-2008. The NZ
National Report will also include data from Johns Hopkins University comparing NZ's nonprofit sector to that of other countries.
The Statistics NZ project team will also be busy in the lead up to the publication of the NonProfit Institutions Satellite Account in August 2007. This will pull together economic
information on non-profit organisations and enable in-depth analysis of a part of the economy
not currently well-described in New Zealand’s National Accounts. Prior to this (on 16 April) ,
Statistics NZ will be releasing the number of non-profit organisations in New Zealand based
on the activity of the organisation.
Read more about the project, including reports from the Committee at
www.ocvs.govt.nz/work-programme/non-profit-study.html#committee.
[End of section 1].
++Section 2: Sector & Government News & Events.
If you have an event, conference or meeting related to community or voluntary issues, you
are welcome to send a brief description of the event to us at ocvs@msd.govt.nz for inclusion
in our email updates.
+04: Start the year off with a little expert help and guidance.
Keeping track of all the helpful resources available for community groups and public servants
is an ongoing job, and often people simply aren’t aware of the useful materials they can
access.
So here are a few links to just some of the materials to help you in your work (whether it be
paid or unpaid):
For community groups
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Keeping it Legal E Ai Ki Te Ture – simple accurate information to help community
groups understand and meet their legal obligations. Visit www.keepingitlegal.net.nz
The Community Resource Kit is a practical 'hands-on' resource to help organisations
get started and to develop good practice in the voluntary sector environment. It
includes information on 12 topics from planning and governance through to financial
management, employment and information technology. Check it out online at
www.community.net.nz/how-toguides/crk/.
Managing Well – lists resources and support available to help set-up or run a
community organisation or project. Access this catlogue online at
www.community.net.nz/communitycentre/managing-well/default.htm?region=default
The Te Puni Kokiri governance website is designed to help trustees and directors of
Māori organisations with their responsibilities and roles as guardians and leaders.
Governance in its widest sense refers to how any organisation is run, and includes all
the processes, systems, and controls that are used to safeguard and grow assets.
Much of the guidance material on the site is relevant for any trustee or board
member.
Presentations from SPARC's Strategic Planning - Development and Delivery seminar
are designed for people who are involved, or will be involved, with leading or
participating in planning for sports organisations. These are available online at
www.sparc.org.nz/sport/business-improvement/seminar-programme-06/strategicplanning.
Te Papa's National Services Te Paerangi Resource Guides help those running
museums with governance, management, planning, customer service, relationships
with communities, managing volunteers and much more.
Being Accountable: Voluntary Organisations, Government Agencies and Contracted
Social Services in New Zealand by Jo Cribb. Launched in 2006, this book explores
the contracting relationship from the perspective of voluntary organisations and
highlights the fact that voluntary organisations and government agencies typically
have similar aims: to provide services that generate positive results for those
receiving them.
CommunityNet shares news, guides and tools for and by clubs, trusts, hapu and iwi.
For government
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The Good Practice Participate website helps public servants to engage successfully
with community, voluntary, iwi and Maori organisations. It supports active involvement
in decision-making as a sign of a healthy, participatory democracy.
The Good Practice Funding website covers why government funds NGOs, the
importance of healthy relationships with NGOs, funding processes and NGO
perspectives on government funding.
Treasury’s Guidelines for Contracting with Non-Government Organisations for
Services Sought by the Crown – guidelines to help government agencies deal with
NGOs on funding issues. Access this from www.goodpracticefunding.govt.nz
Principles to Underpin Management by Public Entities of Funding to Non-Government
Organisations – a good practice guide that sets out the principles the Auditor-General
expects public entities to consider, and act in keeping with, to manage funding
arrangements with NGOs. Access this from www.goodpracticefunding.govt.nz/goodfunding-processes/index.html
+05: Charities register opens.
The registration of charities under the new Charities Act begins on 1 February, marking a new
era of transparency and accountability for New Zealand charities. While registration with the
Charities Commission is voluntary, charities that want to retain their income tax and gift duty
exemptions will need to register before the tax laws change on 1 July 2008.
Free registration workshops will take place throughout the country in February and March
2007. These will include information about why, when and how to register under the Charities
Act - as well as what happens after registration.
Find out more (including dates and locations) at www.charities.govt.nz/news/events.htm
+06: Census data on unpaid work released.
Statistics NZ released the 2006 NZ Census data on unpaid work outside the home on 6
December 2006.
In the four weeks prior to the 2006 Census:
- 460,143 people (14.56%) aged 15 and over looked after a child who did not live in their
household.
- 258,708 people (8.13%) aged 15 and over helped someone who was ill or had a disability
and did not live in their household.
- 437,241 people (13.84%) aged 15 and over helped or did voluntary work for or through any
organisation, group or marae.
Overall, there were no significant changes in the measures of unpaid work between the 2001
and 2006 Census.
The Census data is not a comprehensive measure of voluntary activity in New Zealand as the
questionnaire only asks people to indicate their unpaid work activity for the four weeks
preceding the Census, so it does not capture people who may only undertake such activity at
other times in the year, or those under the age of 15. A more effective measure is the Time
Use Survey, which is due in 2008.
For other facts and figures on volunteering in New Zealand, see www.ocvs.govt.nz/thesector/faq.html#stats-vol-in-nz
+07: E-initiatives wiki gives overview of government ICT projects.
Government agencies are sharing information about various information and communication
technology (ICT) projects via a wiki at: http://elabs.govt.nz/wiki-ei/index.php/E-initiatives
The E-initiatives wiki is an online library of interesting projects across government that involve
the use of ICT to:
- interface with the public, or for internal use
- support the delivery of services or information
- automate 'back office' systems, applications, and information resources that make up the
agency's business
- introduce common standards and processes for data.
Sharing this information will allow those working on similar projects to benefit from others’
experience and enable anyone with an interest in ICT to check on progress towards the goals
of the E-government strategy, which is all about making government work for New
Zealanders.
+08: Nominations open for media awards.
The Asia-Pacific MDGs Media Awards honour distinguished reporting on the Millennium
Development Goals by producers and journalists in print, radio and television covering the
Asia-Pacific Region. The first prizewinner for each category receives US$7,000 plus a trophy
and certificate, and the runner-up US$2,000, a trophy and a certificate. The deadline for
entries is 25 March 2007.
Read more at www.mdgasiapacific.org/index.php?q=node/7.
Find out more about the eight Millennium Development Goals at
www.mdgasiapacific.org/index.php?q=node/12.
+09: Collecting fuel discount vouchers faster than you can use them?
If your car, purse or wallet is filling up with supermarket receipts for fuel discounts and you
doubt whether you’ll ever use them all, why not give them to a local community group to use
for its vehicles or to pass on to volunteers who use their vehicles for voluntary activity?
+10: Get your community group on national television.
‘Open Door’ is funded by New Zealand On Air and broadcast on TV3 Network. It's a unique
form of community-based television that allows groups or individuals to apply to make a
documentary programme about an issue - be it family, social, sexual, political, religious or
whatever - that involves or concerns them. The production company, Morningside
Productions and TV3 will select the ten best proposals. The programmes are made using the
expertise and equipment of the production team, but with participants taking editorial control.
Find out more at www.opendoor.net.nz/the-show.php?section=the-show&sub_section=start
and apply SOON (applications are currently being considered).
+11: 1st New Zealand Hindu Conference.
This historic event for the Hindu community in New Zealand will be held at the Hindu Heritage
Centre, Mangere East, Auckland on 12 and 13 May 2007. The conference theme is The
contribution of Hindu community to the national life of New Zealand. It will cover the
economic, health, environmental, social and cultural aspects. The conference will have invited
and voluntary papers, an exhibition, and some workshops.
New Zealand Hindus have come from Fiji, India, South Africa, United Kingdom, Nepal, Sri
Lanka, Malaysia, Caribbean and many more countries.
Read more about the conference at
http://www.community.net.nz/communitycentre/events/national/nz-hindu-conference.htm.
+12: Capacity Development for Policy Advocacy: Current thinking and approaches
among agencies supporting civil society organisations.
This new Working Paper (WP260) from the United Kingdom presents a summary of current
thinking on issues of capacity building for organisations involved in using research-based
evidence in policy processes. It provides examples of current practice among organisations
involved in work similar to that of the Civil Society Partnership Programme (CSPP), which
produces several policy types of publications.
For an online copy of this paper, see http://www.odi.org.uk/CSPP/Publications/Index.html.
+13: New research study into altruism.
Why do some people volunteer or donate to charity? A new study from USA’s Duke
University Medical Center suggests activation of a particular brain region predicts whether
people tend to be selfish or altruistic.
Read more about the findings at www.healthnews-stat.com/?id=382&keys=altruistic-behaviorbrain-altruism.
+14: Building a Common Outcome Framework To Measure Non-Profit Performance.
The USA’s Urban Institute and its project partner, The Center for What Works, collaborated
from June 2004 through May 2006 to identify a set of common outcomes and outcome
indicators or “common framework” in the measurement of performance for non-profits. The
aim was to avoid non-profits with multiple projects and multiple funders having to deal with
different requirements for tracking outcomes for similar programs.
The idea was that if agreement on a common core set of outcome indicators can be reached,
then outcome reporting can be efficient and focused. (These aims are similar to New
Zealand’s own Funding for Outcomes initiative and the work done to introduce integrated
contracts.)
The report from the US provides suggested core indicators for 14 categories of non-profit
organisations and then expands the notion of common core indicators to a much wider variety
of programmes by suggesting a common framework of outcome indicators for all non-profit
programmes. You can read the 17-page report at
www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411404_Nonprofit_Performance.pdf.
[End of section 2].
++ End notes.
If you wish to be added to (or removed from) the Office for the Community and Voluntary
Sector distribution list for this e-newsletter and other regular communications, send an email
to: ocvs@msd.govt.nz with your name and postal address.
The Office for the Community and Voluntary Sector exists to inspire co-operation and superb
relationships between the government and the community and voluntary sector. You can find
out more about the OCVS on our website: www.ocvs.govt.nz, by email at:
ocvs@msd.govt.nz, phone: 04 918 9555, or by fax: 04 913 3080.
[Issue 8 ends].