Monday, 29 January 2007

I travelled into work this morning with Bobby, who planned to write an essay for college and do some stuff in Watford.

Targets

Early on, I sent out all of the staff annual review statements as final drafts and hope to get them all signed off in the next week or so. Followign my review with Pam, my own targets for the coming year are:
· Generate support from WCVS members for WCVS’s Strategic Plan;
· Implement WCVS’s strategic plan;
· Make sure that WCVS operates within financial parameters set by the trustees;
· Ensure that staff receive training and support to fully exploit IT;
· Ensure that WCVS’s constitution is appropriate to its needs;
· Address Work-Life imbalance.

Writer's block?

The last target is Pam’s recognition that I am working too many hours. She is right and it is something I will address. But not this week. The best evidence for overwork is that today I have some difficulty concentrating. I had intended to spend the best part of today preparing three big pieces of work.

First, on Wednesday morning I have a meeting of the Watford Voluntary Sector Alliance (VSA) and I need to prepare a short presentation on WCVS’s strategic plan. This meeting is actually pretty serious stuff. WCVS’s strategic plan is pretty ambitious, but it cannot be implement without the active support and engagement of Watford’s voluntary sector (my first target for the year). This meeting will determine how easy it will be to secure that support and engagement.

Secondly, also on Wednesday morning, the CEOs of the other Herts CVSs will be meeting in Letchworth to discuss Herts CVS’s strategic plan. Obviously, I wont be there. I will be in Watford at the VSA. But some months ago I imprudently promised to sketch out some thoughts on what Herts CVS might need to do to provide organisational support for its strategic plan. I had hoped to write this over xmas, but was ill. I had hoped to write it since xmas but it didn’t happen. Now time is running out.

Thirdly, on Wednesday evening, I have to go to London for trustees’ meeting of the Disability Law Service. I have been asked to take the chair so I ought at least to read through the papers.

Fourthly, on Thursday evening I have a meeting of my own WCVS trustees.

And my Dad’s funeral is on Friday and I have to type up my Mum’s notes for the “Officiant” (such an ugly word).

But today it proved extremely difficult to move forward with any of this. There are minor difficulties with the network and it seems everyone today has “just one little question” for me, and I have several important telephone calls, and several e-mails that can’t easily be ignored… and I just can’t concentrate at all.

Mary Mary ....

Thankfully, Brian Mee dropped by to tell me the good news that Watford has finally become a Fair Trade Town – largely due to Brian’s perseverence and dedication. But still I couldn’t make progress and I was pleased when Mary Green (CEO at Three Rivers CVS) arrived for our 3:30 pm meeting and bought the day to a close.

I am inordinately fond of Mary and enjoy her company. We exchanged latest bits of news: I told her I was astounded that Three Rivers District Council were the first local authority to win top accreditation from the Audit Commission. This despite being one of only seven local authorities in the country that don't have a voluntary sector Compact and despite being the only local authority in Hertfordshire not to fund its CVS at all.

Mary and I avoided most of the difficult “what if” questions. We are both waiting to learn the fate of our bids to the Big Lottery. The difficult questions can wait another week or so.

Back at home, I concentrated on preparing notes for the Officiant at my Dad's funeral. I completed this and felt much better.