Category: Uncategorised

Job Opportunity: Business Development Officer – Community Transport

Location: Middlesbrough (hybrid working available)
Salary: £24,790 per annum (pro rata equivalent £14,874 per annum)
Hours: 21 hours per week
Contract: 1-year Fixed Term Contract

Are you passionate about accessible transport, rural communities, and making a real difference?

Tees Valley Rural Action (TVRA) is looking for a dynamic and driven Business Development Officer to support the growth of our Community Transport service. This is a rare opportunity to take ownership of a thriving project that directly supports community groups, reduces isolation, and expands access to essential services.

We operate a small but growing fleet of accessible minibuses, used seven days a week by local groups across Redcar and Cleveland. With recent investment through the Levelling Up fund and an innovative partnership with Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council Public Health, we’re ready to scale up — and we need you to help us do it.

In this role, you will:

• Drive strategic growth and build new partnerships to expand service reach and sustainability
• Oversee daily operations, vehicle scheduling, and volunteer driver coordination
• Manage vehicle maintenance, compliance, and accessibility adaptations
• Launch and support a new mobile outreach minibus for public health campaigns
• Collect and analyse service data (e.g., mileage, passenger use, group types) to improve delivery and report outcomes
• Promote our services to communities, partners, and decision-makers across the region

You’ll also play a key role in our work as a regional MiDAS training centre, helping to strengthen the wider community transport sector.

We’re looking for someone who:

• Has experience in business development, project delivery, or service management
• Understands rural or community transport challenges
• Can build strong relationships with communities and partner organisations
• Is confident managing data, logistics, and compliance
• Is enthusiastic, proactive, and solutions-focused

A full UK driving licence is essential.

This is a chance to join a values-led organisation making a big impact in small communities — and to help shape the future of rural transport in the Tees Valley.

To apply, please apply using the following application form: Application Form Community Transport Officer

Job Role and Person Specification Community Transport Officer – Copy

TVRA Values

Deadline: Midnight 8^th September 2025 – Deadline Extended

For an informal chat about the role, contact Miss Julie Thornton, Head of Business Development, info@teesvalleyruralaction.co.uk

🥣 East Cleveland Good Neighbours – Big Local SOUP Events Evaluation Report Released – June 2025

Since October 2022, East Cleveland Good Neighbours (ECGN), supported by Tees Valley Rural Action (TVRA), have hosted a series of community-led SOUP funding events inspired by the Detroit SOUP model. These events have empowered grassroots groups across East Cleveland by providing micro-grants, fostering collaboration, and strengthening community ties.

📊 Key Highlights from the Evaluation Report (Oct 2022 – Feb 2025)

• 67 projects funded, supporting Big Local Plan themes:
  • Young People (e.g., Scouts, youth sports)
  • Health & Wellbeing (e.g., counselling, fitness)
  • Being Neighbourly (e.g., gardening, local pride)
  • Campaigning & Strong Local Voices

• Event Themes were then added in 2024.  Such as “Go Green” and “Volunteers Week”
• Attendance ranged from 30 to 70 people per event, with February 2025 seeing the highest turnout.
• 95% satisfaction with event structure and inclusive.
• 88% of funded groups reported a positive impact.
• New connections formed: Some groups linked with over 20 others, sparking collaborations and shared events.
• Vital funding: Many groups said they would have closed or scaled back without Big Local funding support.
• Inclusive innovation: Projects adapted to meet hidden needs—like TEES expanding hygiene support to older adults post-COVID.
• Community transformation: Groups like Saltburn & East Cleveland Befrienders evolved in confidence and public perception through repeated participation.

🛠️ Recommendations for Future Growth

• Expand the SOUP model and increase funding caps for scalable projects
• Standardise impact reporting templates
• Offer training for pitching and evaluation
• Strengthen youth engagement strategies
• Publish annual legacy reports to share outcomes and inspire replication

📣 Why This Matters

The SOUP events have proven to be more than just funding opportunities—they are platforms for civic dialogue, community pride, and sustainable development. With continued support and refinement, this model can serve as a blueprint for grassroots empowerment across the UK.

📥 Download the full report here EGGN SOUP FUNDING EVALUATION REPORT 2025 or contact us to learn more:
📧 info@teesvalleyruralaction.co.uk

3rd June 2025

Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) is pleased that further grant funding is being made available by government to help restore and modernise rural community buildings across England.

Village halls across England are now able to apply for grants to improve buildings and facilities. The grants scheme was first announced to mark the occasion of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022. The fund recognises the important role that village halls play in supporting rural communities.

To date just under £3m in grant funding has been awarded to village halls across rural England.
ACRE has been pleased to see the transformation of village halls and to have been able to contribute. From new roofs with solar panels, internal reconfigurations with additional storage and much improved kitchens and toilet facilities to church spaces being utilised for community use; the improvements have been inspiring.

Richard Paxton of Little Aston Village Hall, Staffordshire told us:
“The promise of a grant from the Platinum Jubilee Village Halls Fund was a real boost to our fundraising efforts. It changed the apparent perception of the project by other grant sources from one that was unlikely to achieve sufficient funding into a one that was worth backing. We are so grateful”

Groups responsible for village halls and working on projects to the value of £37,500 or more that lead to a reduction in rural loneliness, have a positive impact on the local environment, support the rural economy and contribute to community life can apply for grants between £7,500 and £75,000.

Grants for the smaller projects that halls wish to carry out may be made available later in the year or, do consider the Rural Community Buildings Loan Fund.

Find out how to apply

Please read the criteria carefully to find out if your village hall is eligible.

Queries can be emailed to villagehallsfund@acre.org.uk

After another long period of ups and downs and twists and turns in the voluntary sector, Third Sector Trends is back to find out what’s going on.  We’d really like you to take part so that we can build a better picture of what is happening here in the North East.

Many of you will have helped with this research before and if you’re a new organisation, Durham University are just as keen to see what you do, how things are going and what you’re achieving.

Whether you’re big or small – thriving, struggling or just going along as normal – they need to hear from you. It’s quick and easy to do on your PC, laptop, tablet or phone. It’s interesting too and really helps to build a picture about how the voluntary sector responds to and initiates change in society.

So if you’re an amateur sports, dance or gardening club, a village hall, a carers’ group, an arts organisation, a campaigning trust; or if you deliver social or health services, care for the environment or run a hostel or food bank – whatever you do, it’s all equally important.

The study is big (6,000+ responses in 2022) and runs right across England and Wales. But its focus is still very local – looking at how the voluntary sector develops and works in areas like ours – whether the interests you serve are focused in a neighbourhood/village – or span national/international boundaries.

It’s completely confidential, incredibly relevant to the voluntary sector and those who support it and only happens every three years.

To take part, click here Third Sector Trends in England and Wales 2025.

If you’re worried about anything – please contact Professor Tony Chapman, Durham University tony.chapman@durham.ac.uk

As part of our ongoing collaborative work with Redcar & Cleveland Voluntary Development Agency and with the support of Citizens Advice Redcar and Cleveland we’d like to invite you to share your views on the causes that you’re involved in, what challenges you’re facing and what kind of support you feel you need, by completing the survey below or through our conversational form by clicking here.

This is for all voluntary sector delivering activity across the Redcar & Cleveland area, including rural areas and village halls.

Dear partners,

It’s devastating to be writing again to you so soon after the horrific attack in Southport last week. The targeting of people seeking sanctuary, of refugees, of the Muslim community – and of any other people affected by violence and intimidation – ought to be swiftly and robustly condemned by all of us across civil society. We stand with each of the communities who are being targeted with hatred and violence and condemn any acts of racism and aggression towards them.

This update is not a summary of what is available in the news or on social media. Instead, it is a summary of what we have heard from our partners in terms of the risks, and the actions and messages they are promoting. This note in itself may prompt more information from across our network – we have created a dedicated Community Tensions channel on SLACK (our online tool for updates in an emergency) to post updates and resources for partners. Please join the channel and share any relevant information you may hold locally. If you can’t access it, please contact us here.

Please also feel free to share and build on these important messages across your own networks, as we identify need, offers of support and incredible examples of resilience as our partners in faith, voluntary and community groups up and down the country tackle the aggression with compassion, kindness and strength.

Thank you for all you’re doing, and a gentle reminder that we’d encourage anyone tempted to share content online to check the source and the facts in the knowledge that content designed to divide us has real life consequences for people in our communities.

Yours in partnership,

Robyn Knox MBE

Director

VCS Emergencies Partnership

Situation

Most at risk: Refugees, asylum seekers – particularly those in hotel accommodation – and Muslim communities.

Risk of more riots this week: Sharing of locations comes with its own risk, but all areas, particularly those without a significant population of refugees or Muslim communities (and therefore those who are most minoritised).

Opportunity: Efforts to connect with formal and informal community or faith leaders is where partners are experiencing the greatest leverage/influence.

Partner Activity

Faith groups and VCS across the country are countering aggression with messages of positivity and activity that strengthens social cohesion. NCVO, NAVCA and Locality are all sharing messages and resources for their respective memberships that show solidarity in support for those targeted and condemning the violence.

Martin Brookes (CEO of VONNE) is coordinating a regional response to the violence in Hartlepool, Middlesborough and Sunderland (and elsewhere in the North East). The local infrastructure, community foundations and Citizen’s Advice in the region are working together to give a coordinated statement and bring people together to work on community cohesion, as well as locally-led “clear up”, and coordinating offers of support should they emerge.

NAVCA are providing a space for Local Infrastructure Organisations in places where riots have taken place to come together on Monday afternoon to share experiences and resources that may be helpful.

Muslim faith networks including the Muslim Charities Forum, the Muslim Council of Britain and an informal network of 40 mosques across the UK are sharing their views and messages with the EP on the current situation, risks and concerns.

Greater Manchester Combined Authority are well connected into local infrastructure and asylum and migration services and have been monitoring the situation closely since the weekend.

British Red Cross (BRC) have closed a number of retail shops, are monitoring their refugee support services and ensuring their staff and volunteers have guidance on keeping themselves and their buildings safe. BRC are awaiting update from the Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms (COBR), and ready to respond and connect Local Resilience Forum contacts with the wider VCS.

Voluntary Action Sheffield (VAS) have connected with global majority, refugee and faith leaders in their network to show care, offer support and ask what they would like to happen. They are focussing on communication around Hope not Hate and ensuring tight communications coordination is in place. Community leaders are most concerned about young people getting caught up in violence. VAS are also checking in with staff/volunteers and service users to provide reassurance and are reviewing their incident protocol at their offices.

Victim Support have issued a statement and are offering support to those impacted via their free support line on 08 08 16 89 111, or by starting a live chat any time, or accessing My Support Space – a free online resource containing interactive guides and videos to help you after crime.

They have also convened a major incident management group who will consider needs for staff, service users, partner community organisations and people impacted by the disorder.  Services will run as usual, but they are reinforcing safe working practices. Locally and nationally, they are reaching out to partners who represent marginalised communities and protected characteristics to ensure they know Victim Support stands against hate as an organisation. They are also keen to work in partnership with others to ensure that all victims of crime get the support they need.

Insight and Actions

Safety and security of your staff, volunteers and the people you support is paramount, the EP have pulled together a few basic suggestions that partners may want to consider:

Prioritise your people –  

1. Communicate with them, raise their awareness and make sure you give them up to date guidance on how to keep themselves and others safe
2. Consider travel times and routes
3. Be careful about your brand and how that brand identity may put your people at risk
4. Review your policies, contact details and emergency plans

Protect your properties – 

1. Review your business continuity plans
2. Consider guidance on what makes your buildings safer… recognising some are quick fixes, but many may take longer to implement (more details below)
3. Don’t forget the vacant buildings – these can be easy targets

We hope the following resources are helpful:

Health and Safety Executive have guidance on violence and aggression in the workplace 

Muslim Council of Britain have a range of resources on mosque safety

UK Trauma Council has published a range of relevant resources for those working with children and young people affected by trauma and bereavement (we shared these last week). Some of the key pages are:

• https://uktraumacouncil.org/resources
• Critical Incidents in Educational Communities – UK Trauma Council
• Guidance on creating the best environment for recovery – UK Trauma Council
• Traumatic Bereavement for children & young people – UK Trauma Council

British Red Cross offer workshops on Empathy and Migration and Coping With Challenges for young people. More information can be found on their web page including resources about how to talk to children about conflict:

• How to talk to children about conflict | British Red Cross
• Talking about major emergency | Secondary teaching resources (redcross.org.uk)
• Dealing with emotional and physical distress

British Future provide a practical guide to messaging that combats hate crime and prejudice: Calling out hatred and prejudice 

Gov.UK funding for protective Security Schemes for places of worship

Tell Mama UK share how the disinformation about Southport spread: How misinformation and disinformation about the Southport stabbings went viral (tellmamauk.org)

Belong Network have blogged on preventing tension and conflict in communities: https://www.belongnetwork.co.uk/blog-preventing-tensions-and-conflicts-in-communities/ and good practice on building shared ground and addressing community tensions: https://www.belongnetwork.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Belong_AddressingTensions_Report_V3.pdf  

Involve share a framework on building community cohesion: https://www.involve.org.uk/resources/knowledge-base/resources/community-cohesion-and-participation-practical-framework  

Victim Support provide information for victims of hate crime: https://www.victimsupport.org.uk/crime-info/types-crime/hate-crime/ 

Open source guidance on how to spot ‘fake news’ for young people: and understanding hate crime for children: https://youtu.be/qDZGw_ZZ2Cg 

For the longer term – The NaCTSO Counter Terrorism Crime Prevention Toolkit is aimed at small organisations. It contains helpful, low-cost solutions to deter crime and counter terrorism e.g. making it difficult to gain access to premises, increasing chance of detection and reducing access to contents and victims.

A 5-step process for risk management is outlined here: ProtectUK Risk Management Guidance | ProtectUK– including guidance around CCTV, doors and locks, windows, shutters and grilles – as well as how to develop a security culture.

The E-learning package E-Learning | ProtectUK is a good place to start with developing understanding and practice in this area. They have also provided guidance for staff work (Run Hide Tell)

Calling all community groups in East Cleveland!!

A full list of speakers supporting the theme Go Green for your community hall with market stalls for information and advice will be announced shortly.

Funding Opportunity for Community Projects Based on Sustainability – Go Green

The theme is sustainability and we’re offering a unique opportunity to pitch your project in a “dragons den” style scenario. Only three spaces are available to pitch your project to the audience. The top three groups will receive funding as follows: 1st place £750, 2nd place £500, and 3rd place £250.

Please note that only three groups will be invited to attend on the day.  All 3 groups will be awarded funding. This funding is welcomed from East Cleveland Good Neighbours – Big Local

Click here to apply for one of three community groups who will pitch at the event.