JET - jobs education & training

JET has been involved in two substantial Capacity Building Projects in the last three years. They have been funded respectively by Derbyshire LSC (“Lets Develop”) and by Capacity Builders through Derby CVS (“Reaching Derby”). As a result of these activities we have learnt much about the needs of both emergent and well established organisations.

Emergent organisations find it extremely hard to get started. Almost invariably they are grass roots led and in the very front-line of recruitment and service delivery. Like JET they are not formed on a whim; they are brought together with a passion and a desire to do good for deprived members of the Community. There are, however, inherent problems. Equally invariably these organisations focus on one part of the Community, occasionally to the exclusion of others. Start-up money is needed quickly but is difficult to obtain because the building blocks are not in place. In order to access funding there needs to be a Constitution, a set of Accounts, Policies and Procedures, Bank Statements etc etc. We have seen many a new organisation fail because of the need for attention to detail and limited involvement of the Trustees in the nuts and bolts of the Business. Established organisations have different challenges. Funding streams may have become exhausted, Enthusiastic and committed Trustees of the early days could have lost interests. The needs of the Community which we all serve may have changed. Competent staff has moved on because they see themselves as being in a sinking ship.

We therefore see two key strands of Capacity Building, one of which is “Establishment” and the other “Sustainability” over the long run. The first concentrates on fundamentals such as the roles and responsibilities of the Board of Trustees. Constitution, Financial Controls, Policies and Procedures etc. The second addresses more complex issues such as Product Portfolios, Mission and Vision, Business Planning, Robust, Financial Reporting, Brand Identity, Risk Management etc. In both cases the right Human Resource, aided by proactive Trustees, has to be in place to manage service delivery and growth.
JET now works with over 50 Organisations and we know that there is more to do. We have the advantage of recent history in that we have been through these hoops. We would never claim to have all the answers but we can both help and signpost with any identified needs you may have.
If you need support, if you fear for your organisation’s future, if you want to “live the dream” contact

Jobs, Education and Training
284-286 Normanton Road
Derby
DE23 6WD
Tel: 01332-298553

Contacts: Nasmin Sharief, Adeeba Zeenat, Erum Zaheer
Kasser Hussain, Peter Bartlett