Tips for publicising your group
- Ask members to tell friends and neighbours – word of mouth is the most effective publicity! Remind and encourage members to do this regularly. Do you have an elevator pitch to describe your group in 20 seconds? You could practise in pairs telling people about the group.
- Ask members to help distribute any leaflets or posters – Some suggested places are libraries, children’s centres, community centres, leisure centres, GP surgeries, supermarket noticeboards, local shops, and housing block entrances
- Ask members how they heard about the group so you know what publicity works best and therefore what to concentrate on
- Network with other local groups and forums in order to raise your profile and remind people
- Plan a publicity strategy for the year ahead
- Find out about local festivals and book a stall
- Complete our CCL Group Info template, return it to us and we’ll circulate it to over 100 people who signpost Lewisham residents
- Use social media if your members are on it
- Tips on attracting men: http://www.ageingbetterincamden.org.uk/latestnews/2021/1/12/report-working-with-older-men
- Tips on attracting new people, particularly people who don’t usually join groups, written for older people but relevant to all ages: http://www.ageingbetterincamden.org.uk/outreach
Warm Welcome: A free guide to running activities with older people.
Publicity and attracting new members is a start– but you also need to keep them! Older people (and others) we meet continually tell us how important the the welcome they receive is when visiting a new group. A warm welcome is essential to encourage new people to take part in activities and remain connected in their communities.
This toolkit supports groups to make their attendees feel welcome: http://www.ageingbetterincamden.org.uk/warm-welcome-approach
If you’re short of time, download the Warm Welcome toolkit summary and video.
Networks for Community groups in Lewisham
There are many useful networks in the borough of Lewisham that will support your community group. Have a look at our up-to-date list here: Networks for Community groups in Lewisham
Recruiting volunteers – Tips
- The best way to recruit volunteers is by word of mouth – ask everyone you know or meet if they are interested or if they know anyone who could be interested. Ask your members to do the same.
- Another excellent idea is to fill out Lewisham Local’s online form for recruiting volunteers. They send a newsletter to 4,300 people interested in recruiting volunteers and have a searchable website HERE
- Next Door is worth using, especially if you have members living locally who can share the message in the numerous hyper-local areas.
- Team London at the GLA claims a community of 150,000 volunteers you can reach HERE.
- Social Work student placements, University and College placements – e.g. Greenwich, Goldsmiths, Lewisham College. Email michael.stuart@ageuklands.org.uk for details
- REACH is a good way to recruit experts, e.g. web, marketing, social media, Trustees and much more
- Goodsted is recommended for specific skills such as designing a logo, generally by remote volunteering.
- Be On Hand is good for employee volunteering:
- Catbytes IT Hib recently had success recruiting several volunteers from a free ad on Indeed.
DBS checks
Several companies offer online DBS checks and these are generally cheaper and faster. Two companies used widely by the voluntary sector are:
Care Check: https://www.carecheck.co.uk
uCheck: https://www.ucheck.co.uk/
Another option is for a volunteer to request a basic DBS check themselves for £18 through https://www.gov.uk/request-copy-criminal-record
Feature in the CCL Professionals Directory
Community Connections Lewisham has a Directory of information available to professionals in the borough. It contains all the services, support, activities and groups we know about – over 1,000 documents! Over 160 professionals access it to find what’s available for residents and it continues to grow, so it’s a great opportunity to share information and raise the profile of your services.
If you would like your service to be featured in the Directory, please fill out the following forms and send them back to communityconnections@ageuklands.org.uk:
CCL Directory Information Template
If you want to benefit from the information available on the Directory yourself, to help you and your members find and access services, you can request access to the Directory please email communityconnections@ageuklands.org.uk. Please note that you will need a Microsoft Authenticator app to access the Directory, and we provide regular 30 minute training opportunities to learn to use the Directory.
Good Practice Form – Support
When services are entered into the Directory we request a Good Practice Form is filled in. This helps us to ensure policies and procedures exist to support any vulnerable residents.
The following downloads can help you to get the policies and procedures in place:
Health and Safety Policy – example template for small group without paid staff
Risk Assessment (e.g. for a drop-in or lunch club)
Adult Safeguarding Policy template-Lewisham small community organisations – Sept 2023
Equal Opportunities-Policy sample NCVO template
If you need any further support in getting these or any other policies and procedures organised for your service, please contact Michael.Stuart@ageuklands.org.uk who will be pleased to support.
Downloadable Resources
Below is a list of free downloadable Information Sheets (click to open). These are designed to be helpful resources for existing and newly developing community groups:
Policies and Procedures Checklist
Complaints Procedure (one page template for groups)
Evaluation – Pictorial measures
Gaps Report 2022-2023
Livery Company factsheet – summarising fundraising opportunities with livery companies