Another day out of the office. This morning I was in Stevenage to chair a meeting of the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium.
This was a key meeting as the Steering Group reported back on its work to date on the Consortium Development Plan. There was a very good attendance at the meeting, we had good discussions across a wide range of development issues, and there was clear consensus about key themes. In fact, I think it was perhaps the best HIC meeting yet: people obviously felt sufficiently comfortable to question and challenge, were well informed across a range of county-wide, regional and national agenda, and were ready and willing to share and exchange information and views. This was fortuitous as this morning we were joined by regional representatives of the Big Lottery and Capacitybuilders.
In the afternoon and evening, I stayed home preparing papers and policies for next week’s trustees meeting.
Monday. 29 October 2007
I attended a meeting at COVER in Great Chesterford for those people in the Eastern Region who are working to produce infrastructure development plans. After the last such meeting, I was confident that the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium was streets ahead of its neighbours. Now I am not so sure as others seem also to be making solid progress.
Richard Weller was present from Capacitybuilders and his key messages were that we have to meet the 31 December deadline, that we have to demonstrate stakeholder engagement in the creation of development plans, and we must move toward some objective measurement of our impact.
I shared with people my plan for the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium to be re-launched as Supporting Hertfordshire’s Independent Third Sector. That would keep me amused for hours.
On my way back, I dropped in to see Jacquie Hime and Steph Gallagher at North Herts CVS to discuss Richard Weller’s key messages and some good ideas reported from elsewhere in the East of England Region.
I arrived home late in the afternoon and spent a few hours writing strategies and project plans. By Christmas, I have to draft Watford strategies on accommodation and on community development, and I need to complete Hertfordshire-wide project specifications on ICT and VCS Training, and I need to work with Jacquie and Steph to complete an overall infrastructure development plan for Hertfordshire. My own carelessness I suppose.
Richard Weller was present from Capacitybuilders and his key messages were that we have to meet the 31 December deadline, that we have to demonstrate stakeholder engagement in the creation of development plans, and we must move toward some objective measurement of our impact.
I shared with people my plan for the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium to be re-launched as Supporting Hertfordshire’s Independent Third Sector. That would keep me amused for hours.
On my way back, I dropped in to see Jacquie Hime and Steph Gallagher at North Herts CVS to discuss Richard Weller’s key messages and some good ideas reported from elsewhere in the East of England Region.
I arrived home late in the afternoon and spent a few hours writing strategies and project plans. By Christmas, I have to draft Watford strategies on accommodation and on community development, and I need to complete Hertfordshire-wide project specifications on ICT and VCS Training, and I need to work with Jacquie and Steph to complete an overall infrastructure development plan for Hertfordshire. My own carelessness I suppose.
Sunday, 28 October 2007
Rather late in the year, Jackie made our Christmas Cake. I helped by grating and peeling and stirring things, which was quite relaxing. And I helped stir the cake and so got to make a wish.
Saturday, 27 October 2007
Jackie and I went shopping. We hate shopping. On the way back, we stopped off at Lessiter’s chocolate shop at Woolmer Green. A very prim elderly lady told me, “You know, they made all the Queen Mother’s chocolates and you can never buy them in the shops, except maybe a stray bar in Waitrose.” I had a wonderful image of immaculately prepared chocolate bars being delivered straight to the country estates of the aristocracy; should a bar be lost or abandoned for any reason, it has been trained to avoid common shops and to head straight for the nearest branch of Waitrose.
Friday, 26 October 2007
I arrived early at the office and tidied up some final points on the newsletter, dealt with some correspondence, and then had a meeting with the senior management team of the newly formed Watford Community Housing Trust. Now I know that the WCHT is based 200 yards away at the Town Hall and I know that they are looking to relocate soon.
Had I trusted to my own knowledge, everything would have been fine. But a little doubt is a dangerous thing. Before leaving I thought I’d just double-check the meeting’s location. I could only get answerphones at WCHT so I popped the WCHT postcode into www.multimap.com which directed me over to Hagden Lane in West Watford, so off I went stupidly trusting to technology. When I eventually arrived at the WCHT offices at the Town Hall I was half an hour late. The senior management team were clearly bemused at how it could take me so long to travel 200 yards and I don’t think they found my explanation convincing. I barely believed it myself.
In the time left available to us we had an extremely helpful discussion and identified many areas of possible future collaboration. This is only the second community gateway trust in the country (after Preston) and it has a marvellous opportunity to help transform Watford for the better. The team seem very capable and very committed to doing just this.
Later, I focused on trying to complete some of the various projects I have on the go. I didn’t actually manage to tick anything off as completed, but I am getting close.
Had I trusted to my own knowledge, everything would have been fine. But a little doubt is a dangerous thing. Before leaving I thought I’d just double-check the meeting’s location. I could only get answerphones at WCHT so I popped the WCHT postcode into www.multimap.com which directed me over to Hagden Lane in West Watford, so off I went stupidly trusting to technology. When I eventually arrived at the WCHT offices at the Town Hall I was half an hour late. The senior management team were clearly bemused at how it could take me so long to travel 200 yards and I don’t think they found my explanation convincing. I barely believed it myself.
In the time left available to us we had an extremely helpful discussion and identified many areas of possible future collaboration. This is only the second community gateway trust in the country (after Preston) and it has a marvellous opportunity to help transform Watford for the better. The team seem very capable and very committed to doing just this.
Later, I focused on trying to complete some of the various projects I have on the go. I didn’t actually manage to tick anything off as completed, but I am getting close.
Thursday, 25 October 2007
I spent today in Cambridge attending a training event on social accounting. This is interesting stuff and of course it is important to demonstrate outcomes and impact. But I don't think funders will take too much interest until we can credibly put a sterling value on our impact and lots of work is still needed to develop properly credible models to measure social returns on investment.
Recent reading
In the evening, I finished reading Charles Nicholl’s fascinating book The Reckoning on the murder of Chrisopher Marlowe. Before this I had re-read H Rider Haggard’s book Allan Quatermain. Now I have started David Edwards’s history Christian England. My edition says it is part one: its story to the reformation but I am not sure that part two was ever published.
Recent reading
In the evening, I finished reading Charles Nicholl’s fascinating book The Reckoning on the murder of Chrisopher Marlowe. Before this I had re-read H Rider Haggard’s book Allan Quatermain. Now I have started David Edwards’s history Christian England. My edition says it is part one: its story to the reformation but I am not sure that part two was ever published.
Wednesday, 24 October 2007
I arrived early at the office to finish off the filing from yesterday and by 9:00 my new office looked pretty good. After dealing with some correspondence, I met with Anne Boyd (our Funding Advisor) to draft our half-yearly monitoring report to Watford Borough Council and with Maria to catch up on lots of projects and to prepare papers for the forthcoming trustees meeting.
In the nature of things, I work more closely with Maria than with anyone else in the office: she is young and clever and is a very quick learner. She also knows my weaknesses and foibles and endures them with a good grace that sometimes seems to border on affection. Or it might just be exasperation.
The Mother of all Parliaments
At 4:00 pm, I donned my suit (a rare occasion) for a trip down to Westminster to meet with Phil Hope, the Minister for the Third Sector. This meeting had been arranged by our MP Claire Ward at the suggestion of Mike Smith - the new CEO of the New Hope Trust.
Watford CVS only got involved ten days or so before, helping to make sure that as many Watford groups as possible took advantage of the opportunity.
Apart from myself and Mike Smith, Watford’s delegation comprised Pam Handley (of WCVS, 9 Lives Furniture and Watford Charity Centres Ltd), Anne Gallacher (of the Watford Palace Theatre), David Fitzpatrick (of the Hertfordshire Community Foundation), Lincoln Beckford and two colleagues (from Street Stars), Jane Pattinson and colleague from Watford Mencap, and a good team from the Peace Hospice led by their Chair Stuart Nagler.
Phil Hope talked through the Government’s strategy for the Third Sector and then fielded some well-informed questions on a wide-range of subjects including support for migrant workers, the future of the Compact, taxation for social enterprises, the Quirk report, Audit Commission assessments of local government, the promotion of volunteering, voluntary sector engagement in LSPs, the distribution of funds to regions using statistics from ward and super output levels, and the possibility of there being a standing committee on the Third Sector.
I think everyone was struck with how Phil Hope understood the voluntary sector. Although his CV makes his background clear, I think we all feared that this was just spin and that before becoming a MP he had really spent his life in an one of those Ivory Towers we keep hearing about. But he did understand and he did a good (politician's) job of responding to the points we raised.
After, Claire Ward spoke with us further and took us to the House of Commons chamber. Surely this is one of the most irksome duties for an MP, but Claire Ward conducted the tour with humour and patience.
After returning to Watford and dropping by the office to collect papers and check a few things, it was nearly midnight before I arrived home.
In the nature of things, I work more closely with Maria than with anyone else in the office: she is young and clever and is a very quick learner. She also knows my weaknesses and foibles and endures them with a good grace that sometimes seems to border on affection. Or it might just be exasperation.
The Mother of all Parliaments
At 4:00 pm, I donned my suit (a rare occasion) for a trip down to Westminster to meet with Phil Hope, the Minister for the Third Sector. This meeting had been arranged by our MP Claire Ward at the suggestion of Mike Smith - the new CEO of the New Hope Trust.
Watford CVS only got involved ten days or so before, helping to make sure that as many Watford groups as possible took advantage of the opportunity.
Apart from myself and Mike Smith, Watford’s delegation comprised Pam Handley (of WCVS, 9 Lives Furniture and Watford Charity Centres Ltd), Anne Gallacher (of the Watford Palace Theatre), David Fitzpatrick (of the Hertfordshire Community Foundation), Lincoln Beckford and two colleagues (from Street Stars), Jane Pattinson and colleague from Watford Mencap, and a good team from the Peace Hospice led by their Chair Stuart Nagler.
Phil Hope talked through the Government’s strategy for the Third Sector and then fielded some well-informed questions on a wide-range of subjects including support for migrant workers, the future of the Compact, taxation for social enterprises, the Quirk report, Audit Commission assessments of local government, the promotion of volunteering, voluntary sector engagement in LSPs, the distribution of funds to regions using statistics from ward and super output levels, and the possibility of there being a standing committee on the Third Sector.
I think everyone was struck with how Phil Hope understood the voluntary sector. Although his CV makes his background clear, I think we all feared that this was just spin and that before becoming a MP he had really spent his life in an one of those Ivory Towers we keep hearing about. But he did understand and he did a good (politician's) job of responding to the points we raised.
After, Claire Ward spoke with us further and took us to the House of Commons chamber. Surely this is one of the most irksome duties for an MP, but Claire Ward conducted the tour with humour and patience.
After returning to Watford and dropping by the office to collect papers and check a few things, it was nearly midnight before I arrived home.
Tuesday, 23 October 2007
The Big Move
Today we all moved offices, or at least eight of our ten members of staff swapped offices. It was a day of some chaos.
People have an impressive capacity to use physical labour to strengthen social bonds. I’ve noticed this often, but the rigour of this deep-seated impulse always impresses itself on me. Everyone worked really well to get the moves completed, but I particularly noticed the contributions of our three youngest members of staff: Farzana, Maria and Saud.
In the midst of all this, I was liaising with the office of our local MP Claire Ward to make arrangements for a visit tomorrow down to Westminster. I also spoke with Moreen Pascal about some work on equalities she is undertaking for the Herts Infrastructure Consortium. And I enjoyed a long telephone conversation with Paul Ruskin, Cambridgeshire’s IT guru, about IT in Hertfordshire. One of the projects I am working on is to sketch out the major lines of an IT strategy for the voluntary sector in Hertfordshire. And then Angelo (our technical IT chap) arrived to check the PCs and talk about IT strategies. Angelo and I abandoned the work at the office and went off for an early lunch to talk. As ever, Angelo had some excellent ideas and we talked through all sorts of possibilities.
Back at the office, I moved computers to their new locations while Angelo sorted out some trickier IT problems.
By the end of the day, everything looked pretty much back to normal apart from my office. Wonderful Maria had offered to stay and help me sort things out, but I felt I really needed to do it myself to make sure I know what files and papers I had.
Amid all the debris, I met in the evening with Matt Cadman. Matt is the driving force behind Watford's community radio station Fresh FM. He has big ambitions for the future but he needs support and particularly he needs to gather around him the right people with the right skills.
Today we all moved offices, or at least eight of our ten members of staff swapped offices. It was a day of some chaos.
People have an impressive capacity to use physical labour to strengthen social bonds. I’ve noticed this often, but the rigour of this deep-seated impulse always impresses itself on me. Everyone worked really well to get the moves completed, but I particularly noticed the contributions of our three youngest members of staff: Farzana, Maria and Saud.
In the midst of all this, I was liaising with the office of our local MP Claire Ward to make arrangements for a visit tomorrow down to Westminster. I also spoke with Moreen Pascal about some work on equalities she is undertaking for the Herts Infrastructure Consortium. And I enjoyed a long telephone conversation with Paul Ruskin, Cambridgeshire’s IT guru, about IT in Hertfordshire. One of the projects I am working on is to sketch out the major lines of an IT strategy for the voluntary sector in Hertfordshire. And then Angelo (our technical IT chap) arrived to check the PCs and talk about IT strategies. Angelo and I abandoned the work at the office and went off for an early lunch to talk. As ever, Angelo had some excellent ideas and we talked through all sorts of possibilities.
Back at the office, I moved computers to their new locations while Angelo sorted out some trickier IT problems.
By the end of the day, everything looked pretty much back to normal apart from my office. Wonderful Maria had offered to stay and help me sort things out, but I felt I really needed to do it myself to make sure I know what files and papers I had.
Amid all the debris, I met in the evening with Matt Cadman. Matt is the driving force behind Watford's community radio station Fresh FM. He has big ambitions for the future but he needs support and particularly he needs to gather around him the right people with the right skills.
Monday, 22 October 2007
Safer Watford
Promptly at 9:00 I arrived at the Town Hall for a meeting with the consultant retained by the borough to review the focus and aims of the Safer Watford Partnership. The consultant seemed very capable and it is good to see the Borough Council getting the right people in to do these important jobs.
Immediately after, I left with Maria for a meeting at the Muslim Community Project to talk through political and logistical arrangements for our 3 December networking lunch at the north Watford mosque. The Community Project had organised an impressive team and we were also joined by two representatives of the Muslim Awareness Forum for a thorough discussion about arrangements. I am confident that this is going to be a great event.
Just as Maria and I were rising to leave, our host Mohamed Khan announced that food was arriving. And so we stayed for a flavoursome lunch of chicken curry, dhal, rice and chapattis.
Back at WCVS, I met with Laura to talk though the next stage of development for the Community transport scheme, and with Vanessa on arrangements for next February’s county-wide trustees’ conference.
Before leaving the office I did some work on two of the HIC projects we are working on, and I sent the Value and Volumes report off to my CVS colleagues for a “peer review” of sorts.
Aged Ken
Back home in the evening, I was struck by how quickly Ken (our decrepit white cat) is now aging. He can still manage the cat flap but it is a real struggle; every exit and re-entry is a minor trauma for him and mostly he mews at the door until one of us opens it for him. He doesn’t like using the stairs and wont unless he is scared by fireworks or rowdy children. He has now lost all his teeth and can’t munch on cat biscuits - we no longer torture him with these after we realised he was just sucking them for a bit and then spitting them back into his bowl. He doesn’t seem to be in pain and still purrs contentedly when he can sit on a warm lap. Poor old Ken.
Promptly at 9:00 I arrived at the Town Hall for a meeting with the consultant retained by the borough to review the focus and aims of the Safer Watford Partnership. The consultant seemed very capable and it is good to see the Borough Council getting the right people in to do these important jobs.
Immediately after, I left with Maria for a meeting at the Muslim Community Project to talk through political and logistical arrangements for our 3 December networking lunch at the north Watford mosque. The Community Project had organised an impressive team and we were also joined by two representatives of the Muslim Awareness Forum for a thorough discussion about arrangements. I am confident that this is going to be a great event.
Just as Maria and I were rising to leave, our host Mohamed Khan announced that food was arriving. And so we stayed for a flavoursome lunch of chicken curry, dhal, rice and chapattis.
Back at WCVS, I met with Laura to talk though the next stage of development for the Community transport scheme, and with Vanessa on arrangements for next February’s county-wide trustees’ conference.
Before leaving the office I did some work on two of the HIC projects we are working on, and I sent the Value and Volumes report off to my CVS colleagues for a “peer review” of sorts.
Aged Ken
Back home in the evening, I was struck by how quickly Ken (our decrepit white cat) is now aging. He can still manage the cat flap but it is a real struggle; every exit and re-entry is a minor trauma for him and mostly he mews at the door until one of us opens it for him. He doesn’t like using the stairs and wont unless he is scared by fireworks or rowdy children. He has now lost all his teeth and can’t munch on cat biscuits - we no longer torture him with these after we realised he was just sucking them for a bit and then spitting them back into his bowl. He doesn’t seem to be in pain and still purrs contentedly when he can sit on a warm lap. Poor old Ken.
Sunday, 21 October 2007
I spent the day at home working more on the Value and Volumes report and preparing for the HIC studies into IT and Training.
BBC4 devoted the evening to archaeology, which Jackie and I enjoyed greatly.
BBC4 devoted the evening to archaeology, which Jackie and I enjoyed greatly.
Saturday, 20 October 2007
A quiet day at home and visiting family. And England lost a rugby game after giving away too many unnecessary penalties.
Friday, 19 October 2007
I woke up to Jackie gently singing “Happy Birthday” and presenting me with breakfast and tea and cards and gifts. What do you buy the man who has everything? The box set of Indiana Jones DVDs: I can’t wait.
After breakfast I drove over to Hertford to drop off our tender bid at County Hall. The bid looked rather pathetic shoved in a re-cycled envelope and done up with sellotape. It was before 8:00 am. I had been told: “just deliver it to the Rear Reception, they’ll be someone there and they’ll know what to do.” But when he finally turned up, the man at the Rear Reception had no idea what to do. Apparently each HCC department has its own procedures and systems.
Having finally been given a receipt for our tender (albeit from the wrong HCC department), I headed off to St Albans for a meeting of Herts CVS. We were meant to meet with nine CEOs and nine trustees to discuss the Herts CVS Strategic Plan. One difficulty was that this meeting arrived at the wrong time: too long after the plan was drafted but too early to introduce any elements from the Herts Infrastructure Consortium’s Strategic Plan. Another difficulty was that there was really no agreement on what we wanted from the meeting. Another difficulty was that nine-plus-nine was reduced to eight-plus-eight and then to seven-plus-seven.
As professional CEOs, this was not one of our finest moments: I fear our unpreparedness was obvious and I had not the feintest idea what contribution our facilitator was trying to make. There were one or two interesting disussions, but mostly we replicated discussions that had already taken place in Herts CVS or the Herts Infastructure Consortium. I felt slightly embarrassed that my Chair of trustees gave up a morning for the event.
In the evening, Jackie and I went out for a nice quiet romantic meal together. A truly blissful birthday evening.
After breakfast I drove over to Hertford to drop off our tender bid at County Hall. The bid looked rather pathetic shoved in a re-cycled envelope and done up with sellotape. It was before 8:00 am. I had been told: “just deliver it to the Rear Reception, they’ll be someone there and they’ll know what to do.” But when he finally turned up, the man at the Rear Reception had no idea what to do. Apparently each HCC department has its own procedures and systems.
Having finally been given a receipt for our tender (albeit from the wrong HCC department), I headed off to St Albans for a meeting of Herts CVS. We were meant to meet with nine CEOs and nine trustees to discuss the Herts CVS Strategic Plan. One difficulty was that this meeting arrived at the wrong time: too long after the plan was drafted but too early to introduce any elements from the Herts Infrastructure Consortium’s Strategic Plan. Another difficulty was that there was really no agreement on what we wanted from the meeting. Another difficulty was that nine-plus-nine was reduced to eight-plus-eight and then to seven-plus-seven.
As professional CEOs, this was not one of our finest moments: I fear our unpreparedness was obvious and I had not the feintest idea what contribution our facilitator was trying to make. There were one or two interesting disussions, but mostly we replicated discussions that had already taken place in Herts CVS or the Herts Infastructure Consortium. I felt slightly embarrassed that my Chair of trustees gave up a morning for the event.
In the evening, Jackie and I went out for a nice quiet romantic meal together. A truly blissful birthday evening.
Thursday, 18 October 2007
Today I had two major jobs. First I needed to respond to some queries raised by the Big Lottery. The queries were simple enough, but simply collating the information took until mid afternoon. During this time there was one major distraction when I had to tend to a visitor after one of our chairs collapsed underneath her. The poor lady was quite shaken and I was glad that Anne was there as our First Aider - she was very impressive and handled everything superbly.
After completing the response to the Big Lottery, I met with Des and Saud to talk through a tender to Herts County Council. I have already made a bit of a start on the tender while I was off work, but the deadline is tomorrow (Friday). Des had done a bit of work digging up some useful references, and he and Saud had some useful points to make.
I finished the tender about 9:30 pm, but then I had to find and copy supporting documentation etc and I eventually arrived home about 11:30.
Jackie had left out some sausages and mash: lovely sausages! We had searched for a proper old-fashioned butcher and finally found one on the road to Knebworth (there is no butcher at all in Welwyn Garden City) and it’s good to taste real meat again.
Jackie herself was sound asleep. Sometimes I must really try her patience.
After completing the response to the Big Lottery, I met with Des and Saud to talk through a tender to Herts County Council. I have already made a bit of a start on the tender while I was off work, but the deadline is tomorrow (Friday). Des had done a bit of work digging up some useful references, and he and Saud had some useful points to make.
I finished the tender about 9:30 pm, but then I had to find and copy supporting documentation etc and I eventually arrived home about 11:30.
Jackie had left out some sausages and mash: lovely sausages! We had searched for a proper old-fashioned butcher and finally found one on the road to Knebworth (there is no butcher at all in Welwyn Garden City) and it’s good to taste real meat again.
Jackie herself was sound asleep. Sometimes I must really try her patience.
Wednesday, 17 October 2007
Rather pleasingly on my first morning back in the office, I talked with three of our member groups on charity registration, staff appraisal and training. But otherwise it took all morning just to read through correspondence and return urgent telephone calls. And there was some very interesting correspondence too.
First, the emerging Hertfordshire Training Consortium has received from the Learning and Skills Council some funding for a worker to help establish itself. Originally, it was made very clear by LSC that they were providing funding to establish a voluntary organisation to deliver LSC-funded training to members of the public. Although this is A Good Thing it is not something in which Watford CVS has any direct interest. Our interest is on delivering training to meet the needs of voluntary organisations so we stepped back a little from the Training Consortium. It now appears that things might have changed a little: I will need to investigate.
Secondly, there are more queries from the Big Lottery Fund about our Business Plan. I think most of the queries are already addressed in our Plan, but I will check tomorrow.
Thirdly, back on 5 October I had been very encouraging meeting on the future of Watford’s Community Centres. It now seems my enthusiasm and optimism may have been misplaced: somewhere along the line games are being played and I don’t have the time or the energy for them. Or perhaps this is just my impatience again?
Finally, Helen (our Volunteer Centre co-ordinator) has received an invitation from our MP Claire Ward to join a delegation to meet Phil Hope, the new Minister for the Third Sector. This is a great opportunity for Watford’s groups.
At lunchtime, I attended a meeting of the Disability Forum to talk briefly on the PCT consultation process and the need for a county-wide solution to PCT transport problems. The meeting was very supportive and contributions confirmed my fears that the PCTs’ current practices are pretty chaotic.
I left the Disability Forum meeting early to head off to the Disability Law Service in London for their AGM and for a trustees meeting. This all went very smoothly. It’s a great organisation and the staff and other trustees are all very committed and very kind. While there I took the opportunity to talk to Joss, their head of legal services, about the transport issues that arose at Watford's Disability Forum. She was very good, giving clear advice and guidance that I will feed back to the Disability Forum as soon as the opportunity arises. I also spoke with Linda, DLS’s CEO, about Big Lottery funding. I was frustrated to hear that DLS's Business Plan had been fully approved within two days. Our plan has so far taken ten weeks, despite us receiving feedback that it was “excellent”.
After my first day back in the office I arrived home a little after 10:00 pm. It’s nice to be back in the swing of things.
First, the emerging Hertfordshire Training Consortium has received from the Learning and Skills Council some funding for a worker to help establish itself. Originally, it was made very clear by LSC that they were providing funding to establish a voluntary organisation to deliver LSC-funded training to members of the public. Although this is A Good Thing it is not something in which Watford CVS has any direct interest. Our interest is on delivering training to meet the needs of voluntary organisations so we stepped back a little from the Training Consortium. It now appears that things might have changed a little: I will need to investigate.
Secondly, there are more queries from the Big Lottery Fund about our Business Plan. I think most of the queries are already addressed in our Plan, but I will check tomorrow.
Thirdly, back on 5 October I had been very encouraging meeting on the future of Watford’s Community Centres. It now seems my enthusiasm and optimism may have been misplaced: somewhere along the line games are being played and I don’t have the time or the energy for them. Or perhaps this is just my impatience again?
Finally, Helen (our Volunteer Centre co-ordinator) has received an invitation from our MP Claire Ward to join a delegation to meet Phil Hope, the new Minister for the Third Sector. This is a great opportunity for Watford’s groups.
At lunchtime, I attended a meeting of the Disability Forum to talk briefly on the PCT consultation process and the need for a county-wide solution to PCT transport problems. The meeting was very supportive and contributions confirmed my fears that the PCTs’ current practices are pretty chaotic.
I left the Disability Forum meeting early to head off to the Disability Law Service in London for their AGM and for a trustees meeting. This all went very smoothly. It’s a great organisation and the staff and other trustees are all very committed and very kind. While there I took the opportunity to talk to Joss, their head of legal services, about the transport issues that arose at Watford's Disability Forum. She was very good, giving clear advice and guidance that I will feed back to the Disability Forum as soon as the opportunity arises. I also spoke with Linda, DLS’s CEO, about Big Lottery funding. I was frustrated to hear that DLS's Business Plan had been fully approved within two days. Our plan has so far taken ten weeks, despite us receiving feedback that it was “excellent”.
After my first day back in the office I arrived home a little after 10:00 pm. It’s nice to be back in the swing of things.
Tuesday, 16 October 2007
Day Six
It's over. I enjoyed a good sleep overnight and arrived in Letchworth around 9:00 am feeling pretty good. The morning’s meeting of the HIC steering group went alright, but we haven’t made quite as much progress as we’d hoped and it is clear that everyone is beginning to feel a bit ragged. Or (I don't like to think it but ...) perhaps the tail end of my virus was making me impatient with people.
After the meeting I didn’t risk travelling to Watford. Instead I went home and worked on our tender to HCC for a county-wide “advocate for BME children”. Nor did I return to Letchworth for a family meal with my Mum and brothers and in-laws. Instead I had a good early night, just grateful to be well again - and I started calculating the "damage" caused by my few days' illness.
It's over. I enjoyed a good sleep overnight and arrived in Letchworth around 9:00 am feeling pretty good. The morning’s meeting of the HIC steering group went alright, but we haven’t made quite as much progress as we’d hoped and it is clear that everyone is beginning to feel a bit ragged. Or (I don't like to think it but ...) perhaps the tail end of my virus was making me impatient with people.
After the meeting I didn’t risk travelling to Watford. Instead I went home and worked on our tender to HCC for a county-wide “advocate for BME children”. Nor did I return to Letchworth for a family meal with my Mum and brothers and in-laws. Instead I had a good early night, just grateful to be well again - and I started calculating the "damage" caused by my few days' illness.
Monday, 15 October 2007
Day Five
All last night my temperature was on its own personal rollercoaster leaving me alternately shivering and burning. I had hoped I’d got over this - clearly this virus has a sting in its tail! I finally got to sleep at about 6:00 am. But when I awoke at lunchtime I felt much better.
I didn’t feel 100% by any stretch of the imagination, but my temperature feels reasonably stable and my body only aches in the usual places rather than in every joint and muscle. I spoke early on to Maria (where would I be without her?) who reassured me everything was under control and I should spend the day recovering properly.
So Maria cancelled my few commitments for the day, and I spent the afternoon gently working through some projects and trying to gather my strength for a return to work tomorrow.
Then just as I thought tomorrow all looked too much for me (morning meeting in Letchworth, afternoon meeting in Watford, evening meeting in Watford, later evening family gathering in Letchworth), Vanessa called to offer to attend the evening meeting in Watford. What a lovely lady. Even so, if I am going to survive re-entry to work the remainder of the day will need some serious reorganising - and I dread to think how much e-mail has built up since last Wednesday!
On the scale of global warming
I wont worry about it until I know whether or not I get a decent night’s sleep tonight. My chances of enjoying a good night's sleep weren't helped when I heard of our Health Minister's announcement that Obesity could be a health problem "on the scale of global warming". What on earth could this mean?
All last night my temperature was on its own personal rollercoaster leaving me alternately shivering and burning. I had hoped I’d got over this - clearly this virus has a sting in its tail! I finally got to sleep at about 6:00 am. But when I awoke at lunchtime I felt much better.
I didn’t feel 100% by any stretch of the imagination, but my temperature feels reasonably stable and my body only aches in the usual places rather than in every joint and muscle. I spoke early on to Maria (where would I be without her?) who reassured me everything was under control and I should spend the day recovering properly.
So Maria cancelled my few commitments for the day, and I spent the afternoon gently working through some projects and trying to gather my strength for a return to work tomorrow.
Then just as I thought tomorrow all looked too much for me (morning meeting in Letchworth, afternoon meeting in Watford, evening meeting in Watford, later evening family gathering in Letchworth), Vanessa called to offer to attend the evening meeting in Watford. What a lovely lady. Even so, if I am going to survive re-entry to work the remainder of the day will need some serious reorganising - and I dread to think how much e-mail has built up since last Wednesday!
On the scale of global warming
I wont worry about it until I know whether or not I get a decent night’s sleep tonight. My chances of enjoying a good night's sleep weren't helped when I heard of our Health Minister's announcement that Obesity could be a health problem "on the scale of global warming". What on earth could this mean?
Sunday, 14 October 2007
Day Four
After another torrid night, I think my fever finally broke this morning. I slept far better and in the afternoon I had sufficiently improved to spend two hours pottering in the garden. Later I even did an hour's writing (still on Value and Volumes).
Then I completed Lillian Smith’s extraordinary 1944 saga of the Deep South Strange Fruit - released in the slip-stream of Gone With the Wind and utterly refusing to pull its punches. Social realism at its best.
Maybe it's all over?
After another torrid night, I think my fever finally broke this morning. I slept far better and in the afternoon I had sufficiently improved to spend two hours pottering in the garden. Later I even did an hour's writing (still on Value and Volumes).
Then I completed Lillian Smith’s extraordinary 1944 saga of the Deep South Strange Fruit - released in the slip-stream of Gone With the Wind and utterly refusing to pull its punches. Social realism at its best.
Maybe it's all over?
Saturday, 13 October 2007
Day Three
Another restless night. In the afternoon I managed to make it dowstairs onto the sofa. I watched England play football and this helped me drift peacefully in and out of consciousness for a couple of hours. In the evening I watched England play rugby - two hours later I was a complete nervous wreck and grateful to get back to bed.
Another restless night. In the afternoon I managed to make it dowstairs onto the sofa. I watched England play football and this helped me drift peacefully in and out of consciousness for a couple of hours. In the evening I watched England play rugby - two hours later I was a complete nervous wreck and grateful to get back to bed.
Friday, 12 October 2007
Day Two
I had a soaring temperature and felt utterly miserable and wretched. I think at some point that I managed to call someone somewhere to explain that I was unwell. But I might have imagined it.
I had a soaring temperature and felt utterly miserable and wretched. I think at some point that I managed to call someone somewhere to explain that I was unwell. But I might have imagined it.
Thursday, 11 October 2007
Through sheer willpower, I managed to get in my car and drive to Letchworth to meet with Jacquie and Steph - we had set aside two days to work together on drafting the HIC development plan. But by the time I arrived at the North Herts CVS offices, I knew I’d seriously misjudged things.
I was physically very much present there in the office, with my laptop and files, my tissues, Beechams powders and Lockets. I remember one or two helpful discussions and some attempts at writing, but my brain was befuddled and I could contribute virtually nothing toward the day’s project. And worse, my presence only distracted Jacquie and Steph and put them at risk of catching this awful virus. Jacquie and Steph were each very kind, but after an hour or two I could tell that they both thought pretty much the same.
I left Letchworth late afternoon. I think I made some half-hearted face-saving promise to do some work overnight. I barely remember getting home. Jackie was very soothing and indulgent and put me to bed, but it was a feverish sleepless night.
I was physically very much present there in the office, with my laptop and files, my tissues, Beechams powders and Lockets. I remember one or two helpful discussions and some attempts at writing, but my brain was befuddled and I could contribute virtually nothing toward the day’s project. And worse, my presence only distracted Jacquie and Steph and put them at risk of catching this awful virus. Jacquie and Steph were each very kind, but after an hour or two I could tell that they both thought pretty much the same.
I left Letchworth late afternoon. I think I made some half-hearted face-saving promise to do some work overnight. I barely remember getting home. Jackie was very soothing and indulgent and put me to bed, but it was a feverish sleepless night.
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Unsurprisingly after yesterday’s marathon writing session, I arrived at work late in the morning. I felt hugely relieved to have broken the back of the Value and Volumes project. I also felt "Not Quite Right" which naturally I put down to tiredness.
At the office, I spoke with Des Reid and Saud Hafiz about the possibility of a Watford CVS tender for the county-side Advocacy Project - put simply, HCC want a focal point for supporting parents and children who have experienced discrimination on the groupnds of race of religion. I have only recently picked up on the opportunity (thanks Mohamed) and the closing date is the end of next week. But between our Connexions Personal Advisors, we have a solid repository of experience and knowledge and it could bolster our existing work …
I also spoke with other colleagues paving the way for my planned absence from the office on Thursday and Friday when I will be working on the HIC development plan for Hertfordshire’s infrastructure.
But by the time I arrived home, I felt dreadful. It's certainly more than just tiredness. Jackie is off work this week after experiencing heart palpitations and I should have been nursing her - but instead I was the one collapsing on the sofa and striking a tragic pose.
At the office, I spoke with Des Reid and Saud Hafiz about the possibility of a Watford CVS tender for the county-side Advocacy Project - put simply, HCC want a focal point for supporting parents and children who have experienced discrimination on the groupnds of race of religion. I have only recently picked up on the opportunity (thanks Mohamed) and the closing date is the end of next week. But between our Connexions Personal Advisors, we have a solid repository of experience and knowledge and it could bolster our existing work …
I also spoke with other colleagues paving the way for my planned absence from the office on Thursday and Friday when I will be working on the HIC development plan for Hertfordshire’s infrastructure.
But by the time I arrived home, I felt dreadful. It's certainly more than just tiredness. Jackie is off work this week after experiencing heart palpitations and I should have been nursing her - but instead I was the one collapsing on the sofa and striking a tragic pose.
Tuesday, 9 October 2007
I had set the alarm back an hour and had hoped to have bath and breakfast before leaving for work. But I was worried about rousing Jackie so left straight away on tip toe and arrived at work about 6:30 am.
I shut myself in my office and worked on the V&V report all day determined to finish the report. I was probably a little short on those occasions when someone needed to interrupt me. I was a little exasperated by some of the figures not behaving in a gentleman-like way. I was fully focused on the report and worked like a thing possessed.
Around 10:00 pm I made a passing reference to Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle and I should have known then that it was time to stop. But I was so determined to finish the report that I ploughed on regardless. Later, I found myself making a reference to Dark Matter – I deleted the reference and excused myself as I’d only used it as a metaphor. Later still, I quoted some Chaos Theory; this was a big Red Light moment and I knew I had to give it up for the day.
Having successfully not woken Jackie in the morning, I managed also to not wake Jackie in the small hours. I deliberately didn’t set the alarm.
I shut myself in my office and worked on the V&V report all day determined to finish the report. I was probably a little short on those occasions when someone needed to interrupt me. I was a little exasperated by some of the figures not behaving in a gentleman-like way. I was fully focused on the report and worked like a thing possessed.
Around 10:00 pm I made a passing reference to Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle and I should have known then that it was time to stop. But I was so determined to finish the report that I ploughed on regardless. Later, I found myself making a reference to Dark Matter – I deleted the reference and excused myself as I’d only used it as a metaphor. Later still, I quoted some Chaos Theory; this was a big Red Light moment and I knew I had to give it up for the day.
Having successfully not woken Jackie in the morning, I managed also to not wake Jackie in the small hours. I deliberately didn’t set the alarm.
Monday, 8 October 2007
I arrived at work a little early to catch up on things. After last week’s various meetings, I had prepared a few e-mails over the weekend and soon dispatched these. Later I spoke with three different photocopier salesmen. With all due respect to photocopier salesmen everywhere, I always find this one of the most soul-destroying jobs imaginable; consequently I always treat these people with great gentleness and sympathy, as if they’d recently lost a close relative.
Vanessa (our Development and Training Officer) hosted a meeting to launch our 2007-08 training programme, and I met with Anne (our Funding Advisor), and Maria on our forthcoming networking lunches, wrote the introduction for our Community Directory and did some work on the HIC project specifications.
Watford CVS is leading on the design of two projects. One project is “to create a sustainable infrastructure to identify and meet the training needs of 3rd sector organisations in Hertfordshire” and the other is to work up a strategy for delivering IT infrastructure to voluntary groups in Herts. Also, I am contributing to the overall Infrastructure Development Strategy. And all three documents need to be completed by 16 November.
So I first need to complete the Value and Volumes study and the Community Directory. With the Community Directory nearly done, I decided at 6:00 pm that I would go home and do some work there on the V&V study.
As soon as I pulled up at my house, I realised that I had left my memory stick at the office with all my work on. Are they called memory sticks because they are so easily forgotten? Instead, Jackie and I had a quiet evening together, and I resolved to get to work early on Tuesday and to finally complete the V&V report.
Vanessa (our Development and Training Officer) hosted a meeting to launch our 2007-08 training programme, and I met with Anne (our Funding Advisor), and Maria on our forthcoming networking lunches, wrote the introduction for our Community Directory and did some work on the HIC project specifications.
Watford CVS is leading on the design of two projects. One project is “to create a sustainable infrastructure to identify and meet the training needs of 3rd sector organisations in Hertfordshire” and the other is to work up a strategy for delivering IT infrastructure to voluntary groups in Herts. Also, I am contributing to the overall Infrastructure Development Strategy. And all three documents need to be completed by 16 November.
So I first need to complete the Value and Volumes study and the Community Directory. With the Community Directory nearly done, I decided at 6:00 pm that I would go home and do some work there on the V&V study.
As soon as I pulled up at my house, I realised that I had left my memory stick at the office with all my work on. Are they called memory sticks because they are so easily forgotten? Instead, Jackie and I had a quiet evening together, and I resolved to get to work early on Tuesday and to finally complete the V&V report.
Saturday, 6 October 2007
I spent a strenuous day in the garden, completing last weekend’s fencing project and building a proper compost heap. In the evening we visited our neighbours the Johnsons. The Rugby World Cup has really come to life with surprise (but welcome) victories for England and France (sadly the Welsh are already back home).
Friday, 5 October 2007
I arrived at work about 7:00 in time to work through Steph Gallagher’s draft of the HIC project specifications from yesterday. Steph had naturally delivered as promised and I responded suggesting some small amendments. Sha-Lee has delivered a final draft of the Watford Community Directory and I also spent some time checking this.
At 11:00 I went to see Alison Stainsby (WBC Head of Community and Leisure Services), Andy Large (WBC Head of Property Services) and Ruth Ellis (YMCA) to discuss a bid to the Community Assets fund to help renovate the Orbital Community Centre. We mapped out the broad parameters of a bid, but we all recognised that the timetable is very tight (deadline for submissions is in about five weeks). As YMCA will have to do most of the work on any bid, she will prepare a rough draft to help her decide whether the timetable is feasible.
Back in the office, I found that our Development and Training Officer Vanessa has done a brilliant job on our 2007-08 Training Programme and on sorting out a planning meeting for the Watford One World forum. I wrote to staff about calendar year and leave year ending arrangements: office closure over Christmas, “thank-you” dinner for volunteers, TOIL etc.
I received a call from Jackie to say she had left work after having some quite worrying heart palpitations. Her GP has signed her off work for a week and she has to have lots of tests. She was resting at home and I said I’d join her as soon as I could.
I first returned to WBC for a further meeting with Alison Stainsby, and this time we were joined by Norman Powell of Community Matters and David Fitzpatrick of the Herts Community Foundation. I had not had time to brief David Fitzpatrick on the meeting, but he was thoroughly splendid. We had an extremely positive and productive talk through how best we can collaborate to ensure that Watford is served by thriving community centres. Discussions will continue.
Back home, Jackie was fine but a little worried. I tucked her up in bed adn while she slept like a baby, I spent a few hours preparing our Community Directory for the printers.
At 11:00 I went to see Alison Stainsby (WBC Head of Community and Leisure Services), Andy Large (WBC Head of Property Services) and Ruth Ellis (YMCA) to discuss a bid to the Community Assets fund to help renovate the Orbital Community Centre. We mapped out the broad parameters of a bid, but we all recognised that the timetable is very tight (deadline for submissions is in about five weeks). As YMCA will have to do most of the work on any bid, she will prepare a rough draft to help her decide whether the timetable is feasible.
Back in the office, I found that our Development and Training Officer Vanessa has done a brilliant job on our 2007-08 Training Programme and on sorting out a planning meeting for the Watford One World forum. I wrote to staff about calendar year and leave year ending arrangements: office closure over Christmas, “thank-you” dinner for volunteers, TOIL etc.
I received a call from Jackie to say she had left work after having some quite worrying heart palpitations. Her GP has signed her off work for a week and she has to have lots of tests. She was resting at home and I said I’d join her as soon as I could.
I first returned to WBC for a further meeting with Alison Stainsby, and this time we were joined by Norman Powell of Community Matters and David Fitzpatrick of the Herts Community Foundation. I had not had time to brief David Fitzpatrick on the meeting, but he was thoroughly splendid. We had an extremely positive and productive talk through how best we can collaborate to ensure that Watford is served by thriving community centres. Discussions will continue.
Back home, Jackie was fine but a little worried. I tucked her up in bed adn while she slept like a baby, I spent a few hours preparing our Community Directory for the printers.
Thursday, 4 October 2007
This morning I visited North Herts CVS (again) to spend a very productive few hours with Jacquie Hime and Steph Gallagher on the HIC development plan. At lunchtime, Jacquie Hime and I travelled to Great Chesterton for a regional meeting of “Consortium Leads”. In the Hertfordshire consortium, we started work on our plan back in July and we will struggle to conclude things by the end December deadline. Given this, I was alarmed to learn that at least three of the region’s consortiums have barely started work on their plans.
In the evening, Jackie and I took Rhiannon’s birthday presents around. Everyone else busied themselves and I got to play Hide and Seek with granddaughter Bethany. Great fun - and I think she enjoyed it as much as I did.
Back home, Jackie complained of her chest thumping. I offered as much sympathy and reassurance as I could.
In the evening, Jackie and I took Rhiannon’s birthday presents around. Everyone else busied themselves and I got to play Hide and Seek with granddaughter Bethany. Great fun - and I think she enjoyed it as much as I did.
Back home, Jackie complained of her chest thumping. I offered as much sympathy and reassurance as I could.
Wednesday, 3 October 2007
Making a drama out of a crisis
I spent this morning in Dacorum contributing to a “desk-top exercise” for HCC’s Emergency Planning team. The event was attended by many people from the emergency services and from the military, all looking very smart in uniforms adorned with epaulettes and occasional loops of gold braid. There were also many officers from local government and from the health services, and these could be distinguished by their smart business suits and by the plastic id cards dangling around their necks. And there was also a handful of us from the voluntary sector: we were mostly dressed for a day of gentle gardening, wearing a pleasing mixture of wool, denim and tweed. How my heart swelled.
The exercise consisted of an imaginary scenario (a train crash near Kings Langley), and discussions about risks, needs and the responses of the various emergency services etc. I was struck by four things.
First, in the event of an emergency, no-one is in overall charge and no-one takes overall responsibility. I don’t know why I should ever have assumed that there would be someone to take overall control. But there wont. Responding to emergencies is very much a partnership effort and so relies heavily on good relations and good communications.
Secondly, each agency has its own detailed procedures and “responding to an emergency” simply means “identifying the correct procedure and following it” – this is all well and good provided a procedure exists and is correctly applied.
Thirdly, no-one has looked critically at the engagement of voluntary sector agencies. Those involved in this exercise were the Red Cross, St John’s Ambulance, Women’s Royal Voluntary Reserve and Salvation Army. All of course are excellent organisations capable of deploying experienced and highly trained volunteers. But there don’t appear to be any written protocols or procedures about who might be involved and when they might be contacted. Should Volunteer Centres ask everyone if they are prepared to be called in the event of a civic emergency? What if the Scientologists arrive at a disaster scene offering counselling and advice?
Fourthly, no one at all is responsible for looking after people in general. If it is necessary to evacuate people, they will be gathered together at a “reception centre” most probably at a church hall or a community centre. But of course most people wont go to “reception centres” at all, they will find relatives and friends to stay with. Only the most isolated and vulnerable will turn up at a reception centre – perhaps a single parent family, an elderly couple, or a refugee family. No-one seems to understand that these people need to be treated with dignity, and to be afforded privacy and respect. This could be very distressing, transforming a tedious necessity into a traumatic episode.
Lunches
Back at Watford CVS I talked with two Watford groups about registering with the Charity Commission, and then enjoyed a long discussion with Maria to timetable our 2008 networking lunches and sort out some bookkeeping queries.
I spent the evening sorting through some HIC business, writing correspondence and making more progress on Watford CVS’s Community Directory. I arrived home very late.
I spent this morning in Dacorum contributing to a “desk-top exercise” for HCC’s Emergency Planning team. The event was attended by many people from the emergency services and from the military, all looking very smart in uniforms adorned with epaulettes and occasional loops of gold braid. There were also many officers from local government and from the health services, and these could be distinguished by their smart business suits and by the plastic id cards dangling around their necks. And there was also a handful of us from the voluntary sector: we were mostly dressed for a day of gentle gardening, wearing a pleasing mixture of wool, denim and tweed. How my heart swelled.
The exercise consisted of an imaginary scenario (a train crash near Kings Langley), and discussions about risks, needs and the responses of the various emergency services etc. I was struck by four things.
First, in the event of an emergency, no-one is in overall charge and no-one takes overall responsibility. I don’t know why I should ever have assumed that there would be someone to take overall control. But there wont. Responding to emergencies is very much a partnership effort and so relies heavily on good relations and good communications.
Secondly, each agency has its own detailed procedures and “responding to an emergency” simply means “identifying the correct procedure and following it” – this is all well and good provided a procedure exists and is correctly applied.
Thirdly, no-one has looked critically at the engagement of voluntary sector agencies. Those involved in this exercise were the Red Cross, St John’s Ambulance, Women’s Royal Voluntary Reserve and Salvation Army. All of course are excellent organisations capable of deploying experienced and highly trained volunteers. But there don’t appear to be any written protocols or procedures about who might be involved and when they might be contacted. Should Volunteer Centres ask everyone if they are prepared to be called in the event of a civic emergency? What if the Scientologists arrive at a disaster scene offering counselling and advice?
Fourthly, no one at all is responsible for looking after people in general. If it is necessary to evacuate people, they will be gathered together at a “reception centre” most probably at a church hall or a community centre. But of course most people wont go to “reception centres” at all, they will find relatives and friends to stay with. Only the most isolated and vulnerable will turn up at a reception centre – perhaps a single parent family, an elderly couple, or a refugee family. No-one seems to understand that these people need to be treated with dignity, and to be afforded privacy and respect. This could be very distressing, transforming a tedious necessity into a traumatic episode.
Lunches
Back at Watford CVS I talked with two Watford groups about registering with the Charity Commission, and then enjoyed a long discussion with Maria to timetable our 2008 networking lunches and sort out some bookkeeping queries.
I spent the evening sorting through some HIC business, writing correspondence and making more progress on Watford CVS’s Community Directory. I arrived home very late.
Tuesday, 2 October 2007
I did not enjoy a brilliant morning. During the drive to work I discovered that after yesterday's trips to the recycling centre my car had become a playground and reserve for spiders of all sizes. At the office, I found that everyone else was absent due to meetings / leave / illness. All alone, I tried to do three things at once in three different locations, which for some reason was beyond me skills and abilities.
I enjoyed a very promising telephone discussion with our grants assessor at the Big Lottery Fund. She said we had “a really good project” with "very strong" outcomes defined, and that our business plan was “absolutely fantastic”. I am too cynical to enjoy this praise unreservedly and concluded that she probably says similar things to everyone. But her flattery did at least slightly sweeten the pill of having to break down our annual budgets into quarterly budgets. I passed on our assessor's compliments to Vanessa and Anne (who did so much of the work on our business plan).
Then I dealt with some of the 200 e-mails I'd received since last in the office and prepared some entries for our website.
I then spent three hours or so preparing a second draft of the ten priority project definitions agreed by the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium's development steering group. This last is probably the ugliest sentences ever rendered into English. I apologise. But I can think of no other way of stating this without writing a short essay. Trust me, that's not what you want. For more information just visit Capacitybuilders.
Still exhausted from yesterday's exersions, Jackie and I opted for an early night and a companionable tilt at the Daily Telegraph crossword. We were just snuggling up when I noticed that Jackie's full mug of hot cocoa seemed somehow to be floating freely about four feet off the ground. It wasn't: it was falling freely. It hit the floor with a crash and hot cocoa erupted into the air and landed all over the floor, the rugs, the bedside tables, the pillows, the hand-stitched quilt, the valance, the bed, the curtains, the Daily Telegraph and the bemused old married couple in their 40s. It was truly spectacular. And it was another hour before we finally got to bed again.
I enjoyed a very promising telephone discussion with our grants assessor at the Big Lottery Fund. She said we had “a really good project” with "very strong" outcomes defined, and that our business plan was “absolutely fantastic”. I am too cynical to enjoy this praise unreservedly and concluded that she probably says similar things to everyone. But her flattery did at least slightly sweeten the pill of having to break down our annual budgets into quarterly budgets. I passed on our assessor's compliments to Vanessa and Anne (who did so much of the work on our business plan).
Then I dealt with some of the 200 e-mails I'd received since last in the office and prepared some entries for our website.
I then spent three hours or so preparing a second draft of the ten priority project definitions agreed by the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium's development steering group. This last is probably the ugliest sentences ever rendered into English. I apologise. But I can think of no other way of stating this without writing a short essay. Trust me, that's not what you want. For more information just visit Capacitybuilders.
In the evening, I finished Balham to Bollywood, Chris England's brilliant account of filming in India.
Still exhausted from yesterday's exersions, Jackie and I opted for an early night and a companionable tilt at the Daily Telegraph crossword. We were just snuggling up when I noticed that Jackie's full mug of hot cocoa seemed somehow to be floating freely about four feet off the ground. It wasn't: it was falling freely. It hit the floor with a crash and hot cocoa erupted into the air and landed all over the floor, the rugs, the bedside tables, the pillows, the hand-stitched quilt, the valance, the bed, the curtains, the Daily Telegraph and the bemused old married couple in their 40s. It was truly spectacular. And it was another hour before we finally got to bed again.
Monday, 1 October 2007
Jackie and I had booked the day off work so we could repair our fence. We worked solidly from about 9:30 am. It rained solidly from about 2:00 pm. We gave up at about 7:30 pm with the job still not finished. How we laughed together. We were soaking wet and utterly exhausted. We invented the new extreme sport of fence-building by torch light. We agreed that this was not a good way to spend a day off work. We will finish the fence at the weekend.
Sunday, 30 September 2007
Jackie and I spent the day clearing away the collapsed fence at the bottom of our garden. Once we had removed our six foot tall fence, we found that there were two shorter fences behind it, and that the gaps between the fences were completely filled with weeds, garden waste, and some building rubble. The current occupants of the house came out and denied all knowledge of this environmental catastrophe, saying they had only lived there for a year.
We got on fine with our neighbours-we’d-never-met-before and they helped clear away some of the rubbish. They seemed very pleasant and it was a peculiarly English collaboration: working politely together to erect a fence so that we’d never have to see each other again.
Around 5:00 pm we were visited by Rhiannon and family for a wonderful roast dinner together (how did Jackie manage that?)
We got on fine with our neighbours-we’d-never-met-before and they helped clear away some of the rubbish. They seemed very pleasant and it was a peculiarly English collaboration: working politely together to erect a fence so that we’d never have to see each other again.
Around 5:00 pm we were visited by Rhiannon and family for a wonderful roast dinner together (how did Jackie manage that?)
Saturday, 29 September 2007
At 9:00 am I was at the WCVS office loading up my car with display stands and a little while later I was setting up the stand at the Colloseum for the Watford Community Housing Trust’s big launch event. The Colloseum is a great but under-utilised venue; several of the windows are broken and the place could do with a refurbishment. My “pitch” was right next to the hot air blower that was belting out heat for the entire main hall. I found it hard to breathe while I was erecting the stand and phew was I hot!
But that aside it was a very good community event and everyone was wonderfully entertained by Watford FC’s Harry the Hornet, by the 20-strong Community Choir and by a 20-strong team of line dancers. WCHT CEO Tina Barnard and WBC Mayor Dorothy Hall both spoke very well and very briefly (respecting the community-focus of the day). For myself (once I’d recovered from the unwanted dry air sauna) it was good to see people from Watford Recycling Arts Project, West Herts Against Crime, Watford Credit Union, Watford Women’s Centre, the Short-Mat Bowls Club, and elsewhere. I enjoyed some very useful conversations and I was delighted to find that on this occasion at least Harry the Hornet was really the beautiful Sandra Fullerton of Barnet CVS.
After packing everything away I headed off to Ampthill to visit my sister, freshly returned from a Jubilee Sailing Trust trip aboard STS Lord Nelson. She enjoyed this immensely and was very impressed wiht the crew and helpers.
I arrived home about 8:00 ready for a relaxing meal and looking forward to the weekend!
But that aside it was a very good community event and everyone was wonderfully entertained by Watford FC’s Harry the Hornet, by the 20-strong Community Choir and by a 20-strong team of line dancers. WCHT CEO Tina Barnard and WBC Mayor Dorothy Hall both spoke very well and very briefly (respecting the community-focus of the day). For myself (once I’d recovered from the unwanted dry air sauna) it was good to see people from Watford Recycling Arts Project, West Herts Against Crime, Watford Credit Union, Watford Women’s Centre, the Short-Mat Bowls Club, and elsewhere. I enjoyed some very useful conversations and I was delighted to find that on this occasion at least Harry the Hornet was really the beautiful Sandra Fullerton of Barnet CVS.
After packing everything away I headed off to Ampthill to visit my sister, freshly returned from a Jubilee Sailing Trust trip aboard STS Lord Nelson. She enjoyed this immensely and was very impressed wiht the crew and helpers.
I arrived home about 8:00 ready for a relaxing meal and looking forward to the weekend!
Friday, 28 September 2007
I made several early telephone calls, including to the BIG Lottery assessor working on our second stage BASIS bid, and then I travelled up to Letchworth for an extremely productive few hours with Jacquie Hime of North Herts CVS. We worked through the Hertfordshire Infrastructure Consortium’s Development Plan discussing and all matters arising.
I left in torrential rain and headed off for the COVER offices in Great Chesterford for a meeting of the regional Trustees Together group. I left plenty of time to arrive by 2:00 pm, but two accidents meant that I didn’t arrive until 2:30 pm and on arriving I found the meeting should have started at 1:30 pm not 2:00 pm. Sometimes I need a full-time nanny. Despite my best attempts to sabotage the meeting, it was quite productive and we exchanged news on developments in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Suffolk.
I left in torrential rain and headed off for the COVER offices in Great Chesterford for a meeting of the regional Trustees Together group. I left plenty of time to arrive by 2:00 pm, but two accidents meant that I didn’t arrive until 2:30 pm and on arriving I found the meeting should have started at 1:30 pm not 2:00 pm. Sometimes I need a full-time nanny. Despite my best attempts to sabotage the meeting, it was quite productive and we exchanged news on developments in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Suffolk.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
