VCS Engage

VCS Engage was a national programme funded by the DCSF voluntary sector infrastructure and capacity building fund, a £3 million investment covering the children, young people and families sector. The purpose of the fund was to develop the voluntary and community sector's (VCS) capacity to engage more effectively in the delivery of services, particularly with children’s trusts. It was led by the National Children’s Bureau (NCB), which was the body accountable to the DCSF for the successful delivery. VCS Engage brought together a whole range of different activities under one umbrella. Many different organisations took part in the development and delivery of these activities, and NCVYS was responsible for the delivery of activities under the Youth Strand of the programme.

Every Child Matters: Change for Children is the Government’s framework for delivering services for children, young people and families. The framework was developed in 2002/3 and was incorporated in the 2004 Children Act.

The aim of the framework is to make sure that services are assessed, planned, commissioned and delivered in a coordinated way, and it is radically changing how this is being carried out. The VCS have an essential role to play in the delivery of public services, but there are concerns that the new framework will create significant challenges for the sector.

These concerns led to calls for the Government to address the needs of the VCS, and VCS Engage is one such response to these calls.

What was the aim of the programme?

The overall aim was to strengthen the engagement of the voluntary and community sector (VCS) in the planning, commissioning and delivery of services for children, young people and their families.

This broke down into three key areas:

1. Build the capacity of the VCS to engage in Children’s Trusts at the strategic level in needs analysis, planning and commissioning;

2. Increase the confidence and skills of the VCS to enter the children’s services market and compete with other providers on a level playing field;

3. Encourage collaboration and co-operation across the VCS and with strategic partners and providers in both the public and private sectors.

To find out more about the programme >> VCS Engage