News

Up to three-quarters of women will experience menopausal symptoms that can impact on their quality of life, and almost one in four will have severe symptoms.

Symptoms don’t just stop when they enter work, will impact on all areas of their life, and can involve a wide range of physical and psychological symptoms. Psychological issues include mood swings, anxiety, depression, memory loss, panic attacks, loss of confidence (weight gain) and reduced concentration.  However, there are also invisible psychological symptoms such as mental health issues.

From 1 April 2023 local government in Cumbria will change. The current six district councils and Cumbria County Council will be replaced by two new unitary authorities.

Government announced its decision to create two new unitary councils in July 2021. Since then, work has been ongoing to develop and implement a transition plan.

All seven local authorities, supported by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, are collaborating on the complex operation to create the two new authorities. This entails a considerable amount of work to ensure that people in Cumbria receive the high level of service and delivery they expect and deserve.

South Lakeland District Council (SLDC) have confirmed Cumbria CVS as the host for a new Poverty Truth Commission (PTC).

The PTC aims to enable the voice and experiences of those living in poverty to be directly heard at decision making levels, bringing about co-produced change for the better for them.

The South Lakes Poverty Truth Commission Support Group have agreed to us running the programme, which will receive financial support for two years from SLDC and Morecambe Bay Clinical Commissioning Group.

Events, charity news, surveys, feedback, reports, services and much more – in one handy place!

If you’ve seen something you think we should be sharing, let us know! Email us: info@cumbriacvs.org.uk

NIHR ARC NENC Inequalities and Marginalised Communities Theme Networking Event

University of Cumbria – 27 April 2022, 12noon – 4.00pm

Check out our curated roundup of information and advice on all things digital.

If you’ve seen something you think we should be sharing, let us know! Email us: info@cumbriacvs.org.uk

Best online courses for the charity sector

Amid rising demand and falling income, charities need cost effective ways to upskill their staff and volunteers. Charity Digital’s article explores some free and low cost options.

Cumbria CVS has welcomed more new members to the team over the last few months, all bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to the organisation.

We extend a warm welcome to:

Lisa Brown
Carlisle Community Resilience Worker

Lisa will be working to join up a network of the fantastic community groups that emerged in response to Covid-19, connecting with those already established. The hope is that by creating a strong network for these groups, they feel confident to jump into action if (or when) another emergency hits us. She worked for her own community group as Director of projects and campaigns previously, so has on-the-ground experience of emergency response situations. Lisa also spent many years as an election campaign organiser, so brings a diverse set of skills to the new role.

A video highlighting the vital work of volunteers in Cumbria during Covid is being launched on 11 March 2022 at 11am.

The new ‘Volunteering in Cumbria’ video is being shared on the second anniversary of the formal declaration of a major incident in the county. Since then, organisations, partners, and volunteers from across Cumbria have come together to respond to the challenges of the pandemic and support local communities.

Seventy children, from five secondary schools in the Barrow area, have created posters promoting “Healthy Body, Healthy Mind” as part of the Inspiring Barrow Kickstart Programme.

The programme works with children who have been identified by schools to be in need of assistance in improving self-confidence, communication skills, self-efficacy, self-esteem and team work.

Events, charity news, surveys, feedback, reports, services and much more – in one handy place!

If you’ve seen something you think we should be sharing, let us know! Email us: info@cumbriacvs.org.uk

Bridging the access gap for people with disabilities

A new initiative to encourage more voluntary groups, charities and volunteers to take up sign language as an extra language and skill, is now available locally.