Civil Society Covenant This pack contains
Description: Civil Society Covenant This pack contains information about the Civil Society Covenant, including: What is the Covenant? Why the Covenant matters, and its benefits Ongoing implementation Background Slide pack content What is the Civil
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slide1. Civil Society Covenant This pack contains information about the Civil Society Covenant, including:
What is the Covenant?
Why the Covenant matters, and its benefits
Ongoing implementation
Background<br>
slide2. Slide pack content What is the Civil Society Covenant
Why does the Covenant matter to my organisation?
The collaboration behind the Covenant
Covenant Principles
Recognition and value case study
Partnership and collaboration case study
Participation and inclusion case study
Transparency and data case study Progress since the Covenant’s launch
Further resources
First steps to engage with the Covenant
If you have between five and fifteen minutes spare
If you have between thirty to forty five minutes spare
Questions<br>
slide3. What is the Civil Society Covenant? The Covenant is a shared set of principles to guide better partnership working between the UK Government and civil society. Its ambition is to support organisations build lasting, meaningful partnerships that support people and communities.
The UK Government wants civil society to be empowered to play a role as a valued partner to statutory bodies and public organisations to tackle shared challenges and building meaningful, lasting change.
The Covenant is a tool for civil society and government to use to build better relationships and partnership working, locally and nationally. The Government hopes that through the use and adoption of the Covenant’s principles, organisations are able to deliver policies and services that respond to community needs and provide effective support for people.
The Covenant is relevant and applicable to all civil society organisations and government organisations across the UK. It complements and respects existing governance and partnership arrangements in devolved nations.<br>
slide4. Many government bodies and civil society organisations recognise that they can deliver more in partnership - but there are common barriers to effective partnership working.
The Covenant is a tool to help organisations overcome barriers. It signals a clear expectation that government and civil society should work together, and sets out a non-statutory framework for effective partnership working.
If you want to improve or expand your partnerships then the Covenant provides a tool to start conversations about, for example:
The strengths, values and perspectives that you bring to the table
Strengthening local community engagement in your work
Creating trusting and transparent relationships with local partners. Why does the Covenant matter to my organisation?<br>
slide5. The collaboration behind the Covenant The government believes that a strong and independent civil society is essential for the shared pursuit of national renewal. Working in partnership will enable us to build a better, fairer, future for all.
The Covenant was created as a clear statement that the government sees civil society as an indispensable partner.
The Covenant’s principles were developed collaboratively with civil society, government and public bodies.
Throughout Autumn 2024 DCMS worked with partners to run an eight week period of extensive engagement. Over 1,200 organisations engaged from across the breadth and diversity of civil society and from government, including government departments, local authorities and devolved governments.
The findings have been integral to the development of the Covenant. Responses focussed on the barriers to and enablers for good partnership working, how to support civil society to innovate, and how a Covenant could have impact in practice.<br>
slide6. Covenant Principles Recognition and value
Respect for independence and legitimacy
Recognition of value, role and different perspectives
Understanding responsibilities and constraints Partnership and collaboration
Early, regular and ongoing engagement
Creating the conditions for collaboration and innovation
Addressing barriers to delivery in partnership Participation and inclusion
Enabling diversity, equity and inclusion
Engaging citizens and communities in decision making and delivery
Removing barriers to active participation to build a healthy democracy and community resilience Transparency and data
Engaging in open, honest and transparent communication
Championing evidence and data availability
Improving data development<br>
slide7. Calderdale - recognising VCSE value for a flourishing future
Calderdale Council’s Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise (VCSE) strategy recognises the vital role of the sector as a key partner across the borough.
The Strategy was co-produced with VCSE representatives, and acknowledges sector's contribution to society and local economy.
Outcome: the VCSE sector is now embedded in multiple strategies across the borough, and is a key part of the local economy. For example, Calderdale’s Inclusive Economies Strategy will explore new career pathways for young people within the local VCSE sector, offering better quality work and encouraging them to remain in Calderdale. Recognition and value case study<br>
slide8. Partnership and collaboration case study Case study: Home Office Knife Crime Coalition
The Coalition To Tackle Knife Crime is a partnership of individuals with lived experience, civil society, and campaign groups. Their aim is to halve knife crime within a decade.
The Home Office has provided a platform for youth voice, ensuring young people’s lived experiences contribute to shaping government policy.
Outcome: The Coalition has brought important perspectives into policy and programme creation. Resulting initiatives provide safe options for weapons surrender, making our streets safer. A key example of this is the contribution made to the development and design of extended surrender arrangements for ninja swords, knives and other weapons.<br>
slide9. Participation and inclusion case study Case study: Barnsley Stronger Communities
In 2013, the Barnsley Stronger Communities programme shifted from traditional service delivery to a community partnership model, and actively involved communities and civil society in decision making.
The council established ‘Ward Alliances’ with elected community members, a devolved budget and decision making powers. Ward Alliances have co-designed local strategies, ensuring that they are informed lived experience.
Outcome: An increase in local engagement in local decision making, and an increase in volunteer hours and the number of local groups active in the area.<br>
slide10. Transparency and data case study Case study: EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Vulnerability Programme
The design of the EUSS posed challenges for vulnerable EU citizens in the UK. Civil society organisations lacked accurate data to inform their work supporting these individuals.
The government launched a grant programme for civil society organisations to enhance data collection, sharing and transparency.
Outcome: This grant supported civil society organisations to gather data that informed policy changes and outreach, improving understanding of needs and enabling collaborative, evidence-based solutions.<br>
slide11. Progress since the Covenant’s launch Since the launch of the Covenant, the UK Government has begun to implement the Covenant at a local and national level:
DCMS has launched a new £11.59m Local Covenant Partnerships (LCP) Fund providing support for 15 local authority areas across England, to develop and implement new ‘local covenant partnership’ agreements. The LCP fund will support civil society organisations, local authorities and public service providers to work collaboratively to tackle local policy priorities and better meet the needs of their communities.
Leading voices from across the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector have been appointed to the new Civil Society Council. The Council will oversee implementation of the Covenant at national and local level and provide a central forum to address issues that cut across government and to identify opportunities for civil society to play a greater role in the design and delivery of policies and services.<br>
slide12. Progress since the Covenant’s launch DCMS has produced a set of assets to support local awareness and understanding of the Covenant. They include
A short overview of the Covenant
A fact sheet, with guidance on implementing the Covenant
Use and share these resources among your networks to champion the Covenant and its aims.<br>
slide13. Further resources The Civil Society Covenant, read the full Covenant document.
Tools and resources to put the Covenant into practice, including:
Real-world examples of local partnerships
An illustrative guide of behaviours that indicate progress and warning signs for each of the Covenant’s principles
The Civil Society Covenant Fact Sheet
Further information about the Covenant programme, including background
The Local Covenant Partnerships Fund, to implement the Covenant at a local level, DCMS has launched a new £11.59 million fund that will provide support for 15 local authority district areas across England, to develop and implement new ‘local covenant partnership’ agreements.<br>
slide14. First steps to engage with the Covenant…
if you have five or fifteen minutes If you have five minutes to spare:
Read our short overview on the Covenant.
If you have fifteen minutes to spare :
Look at our fact sheet
Consult our illustrative guidance of examples of what the Civil Society Covenant principles will look like in practice
Browse the case study bank to see examples of existing good partnership working in practice from across the UK<br>
slide15. First steps to engage with the Covenant…
if you have thirty to forty-five minutes If you have between thirty to forty-five minutes to spare:
Host a meeting with partners and deliver this slide pack as a presentation on the Covenant. Use this presentation as a starting point to speak with your internal and external networks to begin discussions around how you can use and adopt the Covenant’s principles to improve your relationship and partnership working.
Share the Covenant. More organisations in your area actively using the Covenant will maximise its impact locally. Speak to your networks and share this slide pack, the the Covenant overview and fact sheet to promote the it and its benefits to local organisations.<br>
slide16. Questions To ask your own organisation:
How would we characterise our current relationship with our external partners? Are they positive, could they be improved upon?
Which of the Covenant’s principles would be most useful to highlight when speaking to our partners about the status of our relationship?
How can we let partners share honest feedback with us?
Questions to ask partner organisations:
Do you feel like our working relationship is genuinely collaborative?
The Covenant highlights [sub principle of choice] as a key aspect of partnership working. How do you feel we could do more of or improve this? If so, how?<br>
slide17. Questions If you have further questions about the Covenant, please email civilsocietycovenant@dcms.gov.uk<br>
What is the Covenant?
Why the Covenant matters, and its benefits
Ongoing implementation
Background<br>
slide2. Slide pack content What is the Civil Society Covenant
Why does the Covenant matter to my organisation?
The collaboration behind the Covenant
Covenant Principles
Recognition and value case study
Partnership and collaboration case study
Participation and inclusion case study
Transparency and data case study Progress since the Covenant’s launch
Further resources
First steps to engage with the Covenant
If you have between five and fifteen minutes spare
If you have between thirty to forty five minutes spare
Questions<br>
slide3. What is the Civil Society Covenant? The Covenant is a shared set of principles to guide better partnership working between the UK Government and civil society. Its ambition is to support organisations build lasting, meaningful partnerships that support people and communities.
The UK Government wants civil society to be empowered to play a role as a valued partner to statutory bodies and public organisations to tackle shared challenges and building meaningful, lasting change.
The Covenant is a tool for civil society and government to use to build better relationships and partnership working, locally and nationally. The Government hopes that through the use and adoption of the Covenant’s principles, organisations are able to deliver policies and services that respond to community needs and provide effective support for people.
The Covenant is relevant and applicable to all civil society organisations and government organisations across the UK. It complements and respects existing governance and partnership arrangements in devolved nations.<br>
slide4. Many government bodies and civil society organisations recognise that they can deliver more in partnership - but there are common barriers to effective partnership working.
The Covenant is a tool to help organisations overcome barriers. It signals a clear expectation that government and civil society should work together, and sets out a non-statutory framework for effective partnership working.
If you want to improve or expand your partnerships then the Covenant provides a tool to start conversations about, for example:
The strengths, values and perspectives that you bring to the table
Strengthening local community engagement in your work
Creating trusting and transparent relationships with local partners. Why does the Covenant matter to my organisation?<br>
slide5. The collaboration behind the Covenant The government believes that a strong and independent civil society is essential for the shared pursuit of national renewal. Working in partnership will enable us to build a better, fairer, future for all.
The Covenant was created as a clear statement that the government sees civil society as an indispensable partner.
The Covenant’s principles were developed collaboratively with civil society, government and public bodies.
Throughout Autumn 2024 DCMS worked with partners to run an eight week period of extensive engagement. Over 1,200 organisations engaged from across the breadth and diversity of civil society and from government, including government departments, local authorities and devolved governments.
The findings have been integral to the development of the Covenant. Responses focussed on the barriers to and enablers for good partnership working, how to support civil society to innovate, and how a Covenant could have impact in practice.<br>
slide6. Covenant Principles Recognition and value
Respect for independence and legitimacy
Recognition of value, role and different perspectives
Understanding responsibilities and constraints Partnership and collaboration
Early, regular and ongoing engagement
Creating the conditions for collaboration and innovation
Addressing barriers to delivery in partnership Participation and inclusion
Enabling diversity, equity and inclusion
Engaging citizens and communities in decision making and delivery
Removing barriers to active participation to build a healthy democracy and community resilience Transparency and data
Engaging in open, honest and transparent communication
Championing evidence and data availability
Improving data development<br>
slide7. Calderdale - recognising VCSE value for a flourishing future
Calderdale Council’s Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise (VCSE) strategy recognises the vital role of the sector as a key partner across the borough.
The Strategy was co-produced with VCSE representatives, and acknowledges sector's contribution to society and local economy.
Outcome: the VCSE sector is now embedded in multiple strategies across the borough, and is a key part of the local economy. For example, Calderdale’s Inclusive Economies Strategy will explore new career pathways for young people within the local VCSE sector, offering better quality work and encouraging them to remain in Calderdale. Recognition and value case study<br>
slide8. Partnership and collaboration case study Case study: Home Office Knife Crime Coalition
The Coalition To Tackle Knife Crime is a partnership of individuals with lived experience, civil society, and campaign groups. Their aim is to halve knife crime within a decade.
The Home Office has provided a platform for youth voice, ensuring young people’s lived experiences contribute to shaping government policy.
Outcome: The Coalition has brought important perspectives into policy and programme creation. Resulting initiatives provide safe options for weapons surrender, making our streets safer. A key example of this is the contribution made to the development and design of extended surrender arrangements for ninja swords, knives and other weapons.<br>
slide9. Participation and inclusion case study Case study: Barnsley Stronger Communities
In 2013, the Barnsley Stronger Communities programme shifted from traditional service delivery to a community partnership model, and actively involved communities and civil society in decision making.
The council established ‘Ward Alliances’ with elected community members, a devolved budget and decision making powers. Ward Alliances have co-designed local strategies, ensuring that they are informed lived experience.
Outcome: An increase in local engagement in local decision making, and an increase in volunteer hours and the number of local groups active in the area.<br>
slide10. Transparency and data case study Case study: EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Vulnerability Programme
The design of the EUSS posed challenges for vulnerable EU citizens in the UK. Civil society organisations lacked accurate data to inform their work supporting these individuals.
The government launched a grant programme for civil society organisations to enhance data collection, sharing and transparency.
Outcome: This grant supported civil society organisations to gather data that informed policy changes and outreach, improving understanding of needs and enabling collaborative, evidence-based solutions.<br>
slide11. Progress since the Covenant’s launch Since the launch of the Covenant, the UK Government has begun to implement the Covenant at a local and national level:
DCMS has launched a new £11.59m Local Covenant Partnerships (LCP) Fund providing support for 15 local authority areas across England, to develop and implement new ‘local covenant partnership’ agreements. The LCP fund will support civil society organisations, local authorities and public service providers to work collaboratively to tackle local policy priorities and better meet the needs of their communities.
Leading voices from across the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector have been appointed to the new Civil Society Council. The Council will oversee implementation of the Covenant at national and local level and provide a central forum to address issues that cut across government and to identify opportunities for civil society to play a greater role in the design and delivery of policies and services.<br>
slide12. Progress since the Covenant’s launch DCMS has produced a set of assets to support local awareness and understanding of the Covenant. They include
A short overview of the Covenant
A fact sheet, with guidance on implementing the Covenant
Use and share these resources among your networks to champion the Covenant and its aims.<br>
slide13. Further resources The Civil Society Covenant, read the full Covenant document.
Tools and resources to put the Covenant into practice, including:
Real-world examples of local partnerships
An illustrative guide of behaviours that indicate progress and warning signs for each of the Covenant’s principles
The Civil Society Covenant Fact Sheet
Further information about the Covenant programme, including background
The Local Covenant Partnerships Fund, to implement the Covenant at a local level, DCMS has launched a new £11.59 million fund that will provide support for 15 local authority district areas across England, to develop and implement new ‘local covenant partnership’ agreements.<br>
slide14. First steps to engage with the Covenant…
if you have five or fifteen minutes If you have five minutes to spare:
Read our short overview on the Covenant.
If you have fifteen minutes to spare :
Look at our fact sheet
Consult our illustrative guidance of examples of what the Civil Society Covenant principles will look like in practice
Browse the case study bank to see examples of existing good partnership working in practice from across the UK<br>
slide15. First steps to engage with the Covenant…
if you have thirty to forty-five minutes If you have between thirty to forty-five minutes to spare:
Host a meeting with partners and deliver this slide pack as a presentation on the Covenant. Use this presentation as a starting point to speak with your internal and external networks to begin discussions around how you can use and adopt the Covenant’s principles to improve your relationship and partnership working.
Share the Covenant. More organisations in your area actively using the Covenant will maximise its impact locally. Speak to your networks and share this slide pack, the the Covenant overview and fact sheet to promote the it and its benefits to local organisations.<br>
slide16. Questions To ask your own organisation:
How would we characterise our current relationship with our external partners? Are they positive, could they be improved upon?
Which of the Covenant’s principles would be most useful to highlight when speaking to our partners about the status of our relationship?
How can we let partners share honest feedback with us?
Questions to ask partner organisations:
Do you feel like our working relationship is genuinely collaborative?
The Covenant highlights [sub principle of choice] as a key aspect of partnership working. How do you feel we could do more of or improve this? If so, how?<br>
slide17. Questions If you have further questions about the Covenant, please email civilsocietycovenant@dcms.gov.uk<br>