Memorandum of Understanding: partnership commitments

Strategic Engagement

A joined-up approach to engagement by creating opportunities to influence strategic direction and collaborate on partnership working.

Engage VCSE Sector organisations in key changes to relevant Council policies and services, recognising the knowledge and expertise the VCSE Sector organisations have in relation to their client groups.
 

West Berkshire Council officers and councillors will attend VCWB Voice Forums to participate in active discussion with the VCSE sector.
 

WBC ensures that the VCSE representation is present on its partnership boards.
 

WBC will sponsor, promote and attend the Knowledge Event Conference which showcases the Charity Sector.

Include relevant information about VCSE opportunities in their messages to residents.

VCWB will coordinate inclusive engagement between the Council and VCSE organisations, ensuring the sector's expertise informs policy and service changes through structured input, communication, and capacity-building.
 

VCWB will facilitate regular Voice Forums and invite WBC officers and councillors to join these forums.

VCSE representative sits on WBC partnership boards.

VCWB will organise the Knowledge Event Conference to provide an opportunity for the VCSE Sector to connect with key local stakeholders.

Include sector relevant information from WBC in their messages to the sector.

Relationships and Culture

Planned and purposeful approach to building relationships and interactions with stakeholders, partners, or target audiences to achieve specific long-term goals.
 

Relationships refer to the connections and interactions between individuals, groups, or organisations.
 

Culture is the shared system of values, beliefs, behaviours, customs, and symbols that defines a group or society. It shapes how people understand the world, interact with others, and make decisions.

Position VCWB as the infrastructure organisation responsible for identifying, coordinating, and responding to the needs of the VCSE sector.
 

Communicate key relevant messages and information regularly to VCSE Sector organisations that want to receive it.
 

WBC will facilitate practical, day-to-day partnership working between the Council and voluntary and community organisations to deliver services, share resources, co-design solutions, and achieve common goals more effectively.
 

Recognise the limited capacity of the voluntary and community sector by maximising the value of its participation in Council meetings and reducing the bureaucracy of interacting and transacting with the Council.

VCWB will act as the single point of contact for VCSE issues and provide tailored solutions, insight, and sector-wide responses in partnership with the Council.

The VCSE sector will organise itself to provide engagement and collaboration opportunities for WBC to listen and engage in discussion with the sector.
 

The VCSE sector will collaborate with WBC to deliver services, share resources, co-design solutions, and achieve common goals more effectively.
 

Recognise the restrictions imposed on WBC as a statutory body and work creatively to maximise public sector value that enhances the work of the VCSE sector.

Structure and processes

The organizational framework and the systematic methods through which activities, decisions, and goals are coordinated and achieved.

Have specific and proportionate bid processes, commissioning and payment frameworks based on the nature of the services being provided.
 

Undertake proportional monitoring for any grants issued or contracts, with advance, and annual, grant payments where possible.
 

Encourage innovation and collaboration by providing opportunities for voluntary and community sector organisations to submit joint working proposals.
 

Consultation and co-design of commissioning strategies and/or services, in good time for the discussion to be meaningful and impactful.

Respond to opportunities to deliver commissioned services in a positive way that enhances other services provided by the VCSE sector.
 

Respond and comply with all proportional requests for monitoring and reporting data relating to the delivery of procured services.

The VCSE sector can transform and mobilise services quickly to adapt to changing circumstances. Creative solutions developed and piloted through the VCSE Sector can be adopted and scaled up.
 

Actively engage with opportunities to co-design services and strategies.

Capacity and resources

The means by which an individual, organization, or system is able to carry out its functions and achieve its goals effectively, recognising the differences between how the public sector and the voluntary sector are resourced.

Provide support for infrastructure organisations (CCB & VCWB) to help with the capacity growing of the VCSE Sector.

WBC will work with the VS Training Alliance (CCB and VCWB) on the co-creation and facilitation of sector relevant training.

WBC will encourage volunteering amongst its employees and residents.

Actively engage with opportunities to bring in new resources not available to the public sector and use local intelligence to shape the direction of growth within the VCSE sector.
 

The VS Training Alliance will deliver appropriate sector relevant training and offer relevant training to the public sector.

VCWB will actively promote volunteering and recruit volunteers to strengthen the VCSE sector.