9:30

Arrival and refreshments

10:00

Opening address - Stuart Etherington Chief Executive, NCVO

10:10

Keynote addresses and plenary discussion -

Dr Siv Vangen, Senior Lecturer in Management, Open University 

"Achieving Collaborative Advantage: Understanding the challenge and making it happen"

Siv will draw on insight from years of research into the management of collaboration. She will introduce some key issues that tend to challenge the success of inter-organisational collaboration and look at implications for managing these in practice.

Nigel Newton Sawyerr, Collaboration Manager, bassac 

Nigel will speak about the various elements of bassac's Collaboration National Support Service programme, which has a particular focus on building the capacity of the community sector. A key strand is the development of a national evidence base around good practice in collaborative working.

11:30

Break

11:50

Morning workshops 

1:00

Lunch and networking

2:00

Afternoon workshops 

3:10

Break

3:30

Closing address - Simon Berry, Chief Executive, ruralnet|uk 

Simon will summarise the key issues arising from the conference and draw out implications and opportunities for the practice of collaborative working.

4:00

End

Collaborative HR

"Beyond a Helpline or Beyond Hope?"

This workshop will present the evaluation results of a pilot project designed to provide effective HR support to small and medium sized voluntary organisations: ‘Beyond a Helpline’.

Kevin Ireland, Consultant, Compendium Consulting 

Helen Giles, Director of HR, Broadway 

Merger

This session looks at why you might want to merge, how to actually do it and what most commonly goes wrong. It will include:

• Due diligence and TUPE
• Business planning
• Choosing appropriate legal structures
• Making it happen and managing the process

Andrew Studd, Partner, Russell-Cooke Solicitors 

Mike Caudrey, Consultant, BlueSpark Consulting 

Web 2.0 technologies as tools to build communications, community and capital

This session will explore the new relationships and new engagement made possible between organisations and individuals using interactive Web 2.0 technologies.

Michelle McMahon, Business Development Manager, Ammado UK

Joint working for public service delivery

"Collaborative tendering for public service contracts"

HACT's "Collaborate" programme provided support for five groups of small/medium sized organisations who were putting together collaborative tenders for Supporting People contracts. This workshop looks at the different approaches they adopted, what happened, and the key learning points which emerged.

Alan Cripps, Managing Director, Neadon Consulting - working with HACT 

Associate charity models

"Are you proposing or are we just getting into bed?"

A presentation and discussion about ways to gain the benefits of merger whilst allowing all parties to retain the most precious elements of their own organisations. The presentation will contain information about RNIB's newly established "Associate Charity" model and give details about how it works in reality. 

Lesley-Anne Alexander, Chief Executive, RNIB

Joint fundraising and project delivery

"SWiMming with Sharks? (or how to collaborate without getting bitten)"

This session will share the pleasures and pains of an innovative and successful partnership – the Choose Action Alliance, consisting of 5 leading national voluntary youth organisations – from securing their first funding together to delivering a jointly developed new product, with drinks at Number 10 and the occasional slanging match along the way. 

Fiona Dawe, Chief Executive, Youthnet 

Adam Nichols, Chief Executive, Changemakers