March has so far been a strange month for the VCSE sector, as the local and national picture of coronavirus changes every day, and Voscur members make their business plans as flexible as possible (you may want to bookmark our new coronavirus briefing).

At a time when the news headlines can get us all down, it’s time to bring some positivity and celebrate the achievements of our full members and associate members.

New concept for Bristol Pound

The Bristol Pound model is set to change after a rethink of its business model and a search for new business partners to retain the city-wide community currency. Both the digital and paper currency will continue, but the digital version is expected to move to a new online platform in the next few months.

Diana Finch, Managing Director of Bristol Pound, wrote in a blog post: ‘In the next month, we’ll be finalising a contract to underpin the working relationship with our future partner, and I look forward to being able to announce their name when that is done.’

Since the launch of the local currency, over £5 million Bristol Pounds have been spent in the city.  

Call for artwork from all Bristol city wards

Associate Voscur member Bristol City Council has an open call for artwork from Bristol residents, where each city ward will be represented in its own piece of art displayed at City Hall.

Individual artists, schools and community or arts groups are welcome to submit artwork about a ‘Sense of Place’ – the people, stories and buildings in their local area. Your artwork can be a photograph, painting, mixed media or collage, drawing, engraving, or a digital print (non-photographic), but the maximum size is A2 (42cm x 59.4cm).

The first round of submissions involves sending up to three photographs of your artwork via email. Entry closes on Friday 27 March. Click here for a detailed overview and a link to the submission form.

St Peter’s Hospice pre-loved pop-up shop in Cribbs Causeway

St Peter’s Hospice will bring a selection of premium womenswear from its charity shops to a new pop-up shop inside John Lewis at Cribbs Causeway, with stock donated by John Lewis staff.

You can find the pop-up in the ladieswear department from Thursday 12 – Sunday 29 March and, if you visit on a weekend, you might also catch a live music performance from local acts fundraising for the Hospice.

The charity pop-up shop is open to the public, but John Lewis has also hosted an exclusive fashion and pampering event for St Peter’s Hospice nurses, as a way of saying thank you to the nursing staff.

Several Voscur members nominated in the Bristol Life Awards

The Bristol Life Awards nominees have been announced for 2020, and there are several Voscur members on the list. Travelling Light Theatre Company is nominated in the Arts category, Community of Purpose is nominated in the Civic category, and Bristol Music Trust and Unique Voice CIC are both nominated for Education.

In the Charity category, nominees include Above and Beyond, Caring in Bristol, FareShare South West, Many Minds, Off The Record, PROPS and St Monica Trust. Impressively, over half the nominees for the Charity Award are Voscur members.

Well done to all the organisations nominated overall – this is a well-deserved reward for your hard work in the community.

If you know a VCSE organisation that could benefit from Voscur membership, don’t forget that it’s free for those with an income of £10,000 or less. Beyond that, membership continues to be great value, with members saving on the cost of Voscur training courses and events, funding application reviews, job adverts, and much more. You also get exclusive access to Grants Online Local.

Click here to find out more.