The information professionals’ online newsletter, FreePint, has a feature on ‘Finding Facts: The European Union after 50 Years’, with a full round-up of the main and lesser known EU web sites with useful material. http://www.freepint.com/issues/220307.htm.

The VCS Engage project aims to strengthen the engagement of voluntary and community sector children’s services in the planning and the delivery of services, as part of Every Child Matters, the government’s framework for delivering services for children, young people and families.

New web site at http://www.vcsengage.org.uk.

Keele University. Action with Rural Communities in England annual event.

See ACRE site.

The Charity Commission is establishing a Faith and Social Cohesion Unit to work with and support faith charities, strengthening their governance and accountability. This will be funded by the Department of Communities and Local Government.

It will initially work primarily with Muslim charities and communities, but the Muslim Council of Britain is quoted by Third Sector as seeing this focus as “counterproductive”. Work with other faith communities is to follow at a later stage.

Commission news release at http://www.gnn.gov.uk/environment/fullDetail.asp?ReleaseID=276874&NewsAreaID=2, Third Sector (registration required) at http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/News/649368/.

Northern Ireland’s voluntary and community organisations feel that the government’s Positive Steps report, published in March 2005 and which aimed “to deliver real change on the ground” for the sector, has had little impact. This is in contrast with a minister’s view that good progress has been made on implementing its recommendations.

Umbrella body NICVA’s third monitoring report is available (in pdf, 294kb) via http://www.nicva.org/index.cfm/section/news/key/020407PositiveSteps.

“The shallow appeal of the internet to civil society has been its power to scale up talking …. The deeper appeal …. is its power to scale up listening.”

Citing blogs and other social networking tools, and the power to build connections, Michael Gilbert of Nonprofit Online News goes on to explain how voluntary organisations must learn to listen on a new scale. Read more at http://news.gilbert.org/ScalingUpListening.

‘Overcoming barriers: Six personal stories’ illustrates how Papworth Employment Programmes supports disabled people into and within work. Downloadable as a large pdf, 1.72MB.

‘Social Enterprise Futures’ from the Smith Institute examines how barriers to the growth and development of the social enterprise sector could be overcome.

It has been produced by the independent think-tank with help from the Social Enterprise Coalition and others. In pdf format, 248kb.

‘Healthy Business: A guide to social enterprise in health and social care’ has been launched “following extensive research by a joint team from the Social Enterprise Coalition and industry legal specialists Hempsons”.

The publication can be downloaded as a large pdf, 2.84MB, from http://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/Page.aspx?SP=2068.

Social Innovation Exchange, or SIX, is a new global network of networks to promote social innovation.

The partnership which launched the web site at http://www.socialinnovationexchange.org includes the Young Foundation, Cisco, Global Ideas Bank and School for Social Entrepreneurs.

Strike action on pay is on the cards at three Scottish community care charities.

News Alert from Governance magazine reports that after strike ballot forms were sent late last month to staff at Quarriers, its union Unison is also preparing for possible industrial action at The Mungo Foundation and Glasgow Association of Mental Health (GAMH).

The Innovation Exchange programme, with funding of £1.2 million available, has been put out to tender by the Office of the Third Sector.

This aims to provide third sector innovators with access to the people and potential capital they need to make their ideas a reality. Combining online and offline approaches, it will facilitate peer-to-peer collaboration and offer tailored support.

Tenders to run the programme are needed by 14th May. See more information on OTS news page.