In 2011 Manchester took the decision to address the fragmented VCSE infrastructure in the city by combining it into a single body. Effectively this arrangement has only been in place since 2012 and has already been re-tendered once (where Macc was the successful bidder). Comparisons with other major cities with long established “infrastructure” organisations show the benefit of having an identified lead organisation which champion, supports and nurtures local voluntary action in the eyes of the sector *and* stakeholders in the statutory sector, the private sector and the general public – such a profile takes time to build.
Macc believes that over the past 5 years a great deal has been achieved, primarily as a result of the city having a single infrastructure organisation that is focused on working for and with the city of Manchester’s VCSE sector. We believe there is now a greater range of support for the sector, for local people and a greater impact - for around a third of what was being spent by the city Council at the start of the decade.
Macc’s view is that - irrespective of who is funded to provide support for the local VCSE sector – the case has been proven for a single, dedicated infrastructure organisation to champion, support and nurture the city’s VCSE sector. The types of support offered and the methods of delivery involved will continue to develop and the shared responsibility of the whole sector to develop through collaboration and mutual support remains, but a single organisation acting to support, lead and convene is the element which Manchester was missing for many years.
We strongly believe that the ‘Manchester-wide option’is the offers the most benefits for Manchester and for the local VCSE sector. We believe that a single city wide organistation is best able to:
• Provide infrastructure support for VCSE groups and remain separate from frontline service delivery – the support organisation cannot be in competition with other VCSE providers or it is compromised by conflicts of interest.
• Provide a single accessible point of access for current information, advice and support. While a city wide infrastructure could seem remote to smaller groups and there may be some very small groups that may find it hard to access a city wide service, this is addressed by delivering outreach services in local communities: the Volunteer Centre team delivers regular outreach session and our Capacity Building team have worked to support small groups in Central and North Manchester or clustered around types of activity (e.g. workclubs).
• Provide a united and strong independent voice for the VCSE sector taking a ‘helicopter view’ of the city and the sector, identifying strengths and gaps in provision and exploring ways to address them. The infrastructure organisation’s role is often to ‘join the dots’, bulding connections across diverse areas, communities and themes.
• Provide a clear simple mechanism for partners enabling bodies such as the City Council and the NHS to work in partnership with the city’s large and diverse VCSE sector. At a time when much of the public service strategy collaboration and integration, a single lead infrastructure organisation coterminous with other key agencies such as the Local Authority, the single CCG and the new Local Care Organisation is needed to convene the VCSE sector’s engagement with these developments.
• Lever additional funding and resources into the sector working with independent, statutory and private sector bodies both within and outside the city, building relationships with funders such as Big Lottery, public sector commissioners and CSR leads in local businesses.
• Maintain and develop information about the local VCSE sector a single well-maintained database, online directory and research (e.g. State of the Sector) creates a unique and valuable resource for the sector and partners shared through reports, briefings and open data releases.
• Work with partners in all sectors to create collaborative solutions through acting as a trusted facilitator – working with key subsectors such as children and families organisations, health and wellbeing groups. In recent years this included building collaboration around advocacy services, support for people with complex needs, carers services and homelessness. In this way a single infrastructure organisation acts as catalyst and connector for the development and delivery of large scale programmes of work across the city which engage and benefit the large, medium and small groups in the VCSE sector.
• Representing the local VCSE sector at strategic level sharing the views of the sector and influencing stakeholders and decision makers within Manchester, in the emerging Greater Manchester devolution agenda and at regional and national levels.
• Provide value for money by keeping back office and overhead costs to a minimum as a result of being a single organisation i.e. one staff team, one premises, a single marketing budget, etc.
About Macc
Much has been achieved over the past 5 years because there has been one, city-wide infrastructure organisation, Macc. Macc has managed to do this in an environment where grants and contracts to support infrastructure service provision have been declining – we have worked hard to simplify and improve the support available to the sector and relationship with partners while also being as efficient and cost-effective as possible, including making additional savings on the infrastructure budget year on year.
Macc’s main income is a contract with Manchester City Council (MCC). Since 2012 MCC have re-tendered all contracts, with increased activity and a tapering contract value. Macc’s income from MCC has reduced by around 40% since 2012. Macc has other income streams including Manchester’s NHS CCGs (rolling 1 year contract), project funding and income from selling services in order to ensure we can develop our offer to the local VCSE sector and create the best results for the city. Macc has strived to develop the key ‘ingredients’ of infrastructure over the last 5 years but importantly, due to a city-wide, sector-wide approach, Macc has also been able to add value to this work, increasing our offer and our impact.
Macc has prioritised strengthening the sector as a whole and has been able to do this because it has a city-wide presence and approach. This means that there can be one, collective voice for the sector and at the same time, there can still be localised targeted and thematic support to meet the diverse needs of the 3000+ organisations operating in Manchester. A city-wide infrastructure can deliver and co-ordinate all of these things. These are the main areas of work provided through the current city-wide infrastructure support:
• Manchester Community Central: online portal of services, help and information under one recognisable banner; one online access point to find the help and services required by local VCSE groups and residents.
• Volunteer Centre Manchester: nationally accredited by Volunteering England VCM matches volunteers to opportunities; provides induction training for volunteers; supports organisations to be volunteer ready and co-ordinates a Volunteer Managers Network; has developed a Volunteering Strategy and Action Plan for Manchester and is involved in policy response and campaigning for volunteering related issues and good practice development.
• Capacity Building: direct face-to-face support to help groups to develop and grow and do what they do best. Bespoke support to apply for funding, register and incorporate new organisations, create business plans, take on a community building, understand their trustee/committee/director roles and responsibilities. City-wide strategic work with partners to pilot a new approach and clear process for community groups who are considering taking on an asset/building. City-wide approach with key funding partners and MCC to deliver asset-related support and training through the Heritage Building Network programme.
• Quarterly Training Programme: covering a wide range of subjects to benefit groups and individuals. A mixture of co-ordinating training provision from across the local VCSE sector and writing and delivering in-house bespoke training sessions to meet demand.
• Policy and Influence: supporting a strong collective voice and representation for the sector; influencing policy, campaigning and raising the profile of the sector and its work, keeping the sector informed of policy changes and their impact. Working with Commissioners to make sure that processes are inclusive for voluntary sector organisations and to look at new ways of delivering services pioneered by voluntary sector groups. Manchester Voluntary Sector Assembly is a key city-wide network and forum for the sector to discuss and communicate issues, concerns and solutions to key bodies such as the city council, NHS etc.
The unique position created by being the single infrastructure organisation has enabled Macc to develop further work to increase the support and opportunities for the local VCSE sector:
• Managed Grants Programmes: co-ordinating and managing funding programmes for the benefit of the sector e.g. CCG Reducing Social Isolation, CCG Mental Health and Wellbeing and Macc’s own Spirit of Manchester Grants.
• Manchester Community Assets Programme: working with national and local partners to support asset transfer work and enable VCSE organisations to take on management of local authority facilities and involve more local people in their ownership and activities.
• Community Reporters: working with People’s Voice Media and used by VCSE groups to raise their profile, showcase their work and highlighting their impact; enable local people to say what they think about where they live and tell their stories. Used to produce films for the Spirit of Manchester Awards – telling the stories of great VCSE sector activities. Community Reporters content from Manchester now features on the MyManchester website.
• GM Social Value Network: Macc has helped establish and host this initiative to encourage organisations in every sector to seek relevant social, environmental and economic value from everything they do, including service delivery, commissioning and procurement. Social value considers more than just the financial transaction and includes: happiness, wellbeing, health, inclusion, empowerment, poverty and the environment.
• State of the Sector: extensive data collection and analysis of the VCSE sector undertaken in 2014 and repeated in 2016/17. This Manchester and Greater Manchester-wide work has positively influenced policymakers and funders and continues to be a significant way in which the whole sector can be represented.
• GM Devolution: Macc is one of the founder members of the GM VCSE Reference Group which is working to champion VCSE engagement in the devolution agenda, promoting the vital role the sector plays in working towards a more equal society. Recent successes include the negotiation of a Memorandum of Understanding with the GM Health and Social Care Partnership, cementing the role the sector plays in supporting the health, wellbeing and economic development of the city-region.
• Spirit of Manchester Programme: Macc has developed a programme to celebrate, champion and promote our city’s fantastic VCSE sector and 100,000+ volunteers in the city. This includes a Manchester-specific, prestigious awards ceremony which the highlight of a year long, city-wide programme including a Festival of public events, private sector outreach work, social media campaigns and fundraising to create small grants. The 2016 Spirit of Manchester Awards saw #SpiritofMcr16 trending nationally on Twitter showcasing the city’s wealth of community activity.
This is further evidence that the decision in 2011 to combine functions into a single infrastructure organisation has enabled significant added value: the whole could grow to be greater than the sum of the parts.
Macc also has further ambitions and we are keen to maintain the momentum developed over the last 5 years. We want to build the role of social enterprises and community businesses in Manchester, to increase the number of co-operatives and organisations which enable mutual support and collaboration within communities. We hope to work with GPs and social care providers on a social prescribing approach to enable them to link patients, service users and carers to local VCSE organisatinos which could support them. We are working to increase our relationships with local businesses through offers around employer supported volunteering, skills exchange and partnership building. We will continue to develop our Spirit of Manchester programme to encourage those who live, work and study in the city to support and engage with local VCSE organisations. These are key assets in our communities. Macc sees itself as a civic foundation which has, quite simply, “Manchester” as its purpose.
