ICT Hub bulletin - January 2008
Happy New Year to everybody!
Have your diaries at the ready as even though we are not issuing a full newsletter in January, there is lots of activity at the ICT Hub over the next few months. Below you will find information on forthcoming ICT Hub events, workshops, free volunteer help, circuit riding news, the National Conference, and details on how you or your organisation can be selected for an ICT Hub award.
ICT Hub Knowledgebase has been running for over a year now. Please tell us what you think by spending a couple of minutes completing the online survey.
The ICT Hub Knowledgebase provides information on almost every aspect of managing ICT including writing an ICT strategy; raising your profile through the latest trends in social networking and Second Life; how to back up your data and health and safety. With regularly updated articles and research written by IT professionals it is a fully comprehensive resource. If you are new to Knowledgebase and you need ICT help, why not visit the site and then if you have a few moments spare please tell us what you think.
iT4Communities, the lead national IT Volunteering Charity, have made it's 'Getting Free IT Help' workshop materials available online, so now any VCO can feel confident about using an IT volunteer to support their technology needs.
The iT4C team are happy to run the workshops in your area in partnership with infrastructure organisations, CVS, Volunteer Centres or consortia or you can download workshop materials from the iT4C website.
Contact them on 020 7796 2144 or email info@it4communities.org.uk for more information.
Do you fully understand wikis, blogs and podcasts? - How can your organisation benefit from being more in touch with new technology? From now until March, a panel of experts is available online to answer your questions on any aspect of New Media. Visit the ICT Hub Café and go to the New Media discussion forum; or simply have a look around the site and join current discussions on ICT in the sector. ICT Hub Café
ICT Hub Circuit Rider News Digest for December/January is now available for download as an accessible PDF file from www.lasa.org.uk/circuitriders. The Digest features articles on open source training and certification, Spiceworks inventorying software, event registration tools, the NOSI open source primer and various events, publications, blogs, websites and more. The previous three issues are also still available for download from the same page.
Lasa and the ICT Hub Training and Standards Project Advisory Group is pleased to announce the launch of the Principles of a Circuit Rider. Until now there has been no single statement of the principles by which Circuit Riders, e-Riders and other professionals working with charities, non-profits and other VCS organisations work.
Following extensive consultation, the ICT Hub Circuit Rider Training and Standards Project has now formulated a set of Principles. This is a significant step forward in advancing the Circuit Rider movement and developing professional recognition of the community - both in the UK and in time to those working internationally.
view Principles
For further information on work around Circuit Rider training and standards, see www.lasa.org.uk/circuitriders/training.shtml
The ICT Hub National Awards will be presented at this year's ICT Hub National Conference in March. (see below for further information). The awards are a chance to acknowledge organisations or individuals in the voluntary and community sector that demonstrate exemplary good practice in their application of ICT. These awards will celebrate achievement and aim to encourage others to follow their lead in making better use of ICT in their organisation.
The deadline for nominations is Friday 8th February. For further information please visit the ICT Hub website.
ICT Hub National Events 2008
ICT Hub Arts event: A Wider Embrace - Increasing Participation, 13th February, Birmingham
Whether it be using a database to manage the contacts for your dance event, using a free piece of software to edit a piece of music, showcasing your artwork on an online gallery, or collaborating with other arts groups using blogs and wikis; technology can be used in all aspects of the arts. This one day event in partnership with Voluntary Arts England is designed to help arts organisations understand how to get the most from ICT in order to efficiently and cost-effectively deliver their activities and reach and manage their audiences.
ICT Hub Mental Health event: Using and benefiting from ICT in the Mental Health Sector - February 22nd, London
How can ICT benefit the Mental Health Sector? Are more people using the internet to donate to charity? Does sharing information improve your service delivery? How can you tap into the new Online Technologies and reach out to new audiences? This one day event in partnership with the Digital Inclusion Team and the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health for voluntary and community organisations (VCOs) working in mental health; will cover both generic ICT issues and those specific to the mental health sector.
ICT Hub Circuit Rider Conference 4.0 - February 28th/29th, Birmingham
The conference is designed to be practical and accessible so that participants can take the knowledge they gain and apply it to their work in the voluntary sector. At the Conference you will find "live" examples of innovative technology, sessions on "practical tools for the job" and also lively discussion and debate about standards and skills for the sector.
ICT Hub Circuit Rider Training & Standards Project: Effective Technology Advising - March 1st, Birmingham
This one-day course for Circuit Riders and other VCS IT professionals will help non-profit consultants to improve their practice and be more effective advisers. Relevant to both beginners and those with experience; topics will include the stages of a consulting project, the non-profit consulting environment and creating mutually satisfying working relationships. The course will follow on from the Circuit Rider Conference (above) on Saturday 1st March at BVSC, Birmingham. Places are limited and you are advised to book quickly. For further information please email Ian Runeckles at iruneckles@lasa.org.uk or call 020 7426 4473
ICT Hub conference for organisations working with rural groups, March 5th, Wiltshire
A one day conference for voluntary and community sector organisations working with rural groups with the aim of helping them to better deliver their services through ICT.
ICT Hub National Conference - March 11th, Kensington Town Hall, London
This is the third ICT Hub National Conference featuring workshops including making the most of your contacts, greener computing, casting your web more widely, avoiding Apocalypse Now, the power of sound, and the wired fundraiser. The ICT Hub awards will also be presented.
ICT Hub Specialist Infrastructure Events 2008 - regional
The ICT Hub's commissioned Specialist Infrastructure Programme will deliver a series of regional events across the country in early 2008.
- ICT for BME Groups (delivered by BTEG)
- ICT for Faith Groups (delivered by Regional ICT Champions)
- ICT for LGBT Groups (delivered by Consortium for LGBT)
- ICT for Homelessness Groups (delivered by Homeless Link)
- ICT for Arts Groups (delivered by Voluntary Arts England)
- ICT for Hospices Groups (delivered by Help the Hospices)
For full details of each event, please visit www.icthub.org.uk/events
Further resources
ICT Hub Suppliers Directory - following it's revamp in December, it is now even easier to find trusted suppliers nationwide for your ICT needs
ICT Hub Helpdesk - if you can't find what you're looking for or are having any problems with the website, please contact our helpdesk staff who can point you in the right direction: 0800 652 4737 or email helpdesk@icthub.org.uk
Regional Champions - for local advice, contact your regional champion directly.
Noticeboard
ESiT are proud to support the ICT Hub "Guide to Managing ICT in the Voluntary and Community Sector".
Pick up your free copy at any of the above events or download a pdf
ESiT software delivers data management solutions supporting organisations within the not-for-profit, commercial and environment sectors. Offering standard or bespoke modular options for customer relationship management (CRM), fundraising, document management, asset tracking and environmental monitoring, ESiT has a suite of products and services designed with your organisation's needs in mind. www.esit.co.uk
Advertise here...
For a small fee, you can advertise in this space. For further information, please contact us at ictresources@icthub.org.uk.
About this email
If you have any questions or comments about this informational email please let the ICT Hub know by emailing ictresources@icthub.org.uk.
f you wish to submit an article for the newsletter, please contact the commissioned author, Simon Davey.
Contact us at www.icthub.org.uk of call our free helpdesk 0800 652 4737.