A week in the life of a charity Operations Director...

One of my new years resolutions was to start writing my blog again. After a case of writers block and it never getting near the top of my to do list, I thought I would bite the bullet and start by writing about last week, which was a very varied and packed week, yet quite a typical one! A week in the life of Operations Director...!


Monday
Bank holiday - day off!

Tuesday
Completed helpline statistics monitoring for the first quarter of the year (Jan - March). We have recorded 307 contacts to our helpline (telephone, text and web chat) service in this period.

Went to the last Clayshoot sub-committee meeting at The Black Lion pub in Firbeck (before the event on 21st April) in the ground of Sandbeck Park, home to our fabulous Patrons The Earl & Countess of Scarbrough. Please check out more info about the event

http://www.weekendatlast.co.uk/?p=1309

I take one of my team to the local pub for a working lunch where we discuss her annual appraisal. We both cant believe a year has passed since we last undertook this exercise.

I have a one-to-one assessment with one of the new trainee helpline volunteers who recently completed the 5 sessions of core training for new volunteers. I ask the volunteer several questions covering areas of the helpline volunteer person specification to check her understanding. I offer feedback on her performance in the training and ask her for comments about how she found the training. I am pleased to tell her she has passed the assessment much to her delight.

Wednesday

Just after 10am its time for the cheque presentation with some of the girls from the Miss South Yorkshire contest and organiser Jill. Caroline Walsh from Doncaster won the coveted title of Miss South Yorkshire 2012, Jade Mellows was crowned Miss Sheffield and SAFE@LAST volunteer Zara became Miss Rotherham. We pose for the cheque presentation of £4306 that was raised through the competition for SAFE@LAST. All those involved have done really well again. I chuckle to myself about how I stick out like a sore thumb next to these glamorous girls.

I am pleased to see the return of my PC after it has been to our IT support company for fixing. Whilst its being installed, I continue filing the helpline training resources from a few weeks ago. One of our members of staff drop in with their little girl to hand in £3.20 she had collected and wanted it to help children that are less fortunate than herself. What a star!

I have another one-to-one assessment with a new helpline volunteer. This will make the tenth I have done out of 13 volunteers who did the training. The last three are scheduled in soon.

I finish last few preparations for our fundraising and awareness night market stall at Barkers Pool in Sheffield. Load up the car and go to Sheffield City Centre to meet a couple of volunteers who will set up the stall.

I then dash back to the office to chair a planning meeting for The BIG Sleepout, our sponsored rough sleep. This year we plan to hold one in each borough of South Yorkshire again.

After I finish work, I go home and chill out for an hour before going back to the Sheffield Night Market to volunteer on the last shift. Its great to chat with the volunteers on the stall when it gets quiet. I take it in turns to stand at the front of the stall offering free samples of our cakes that volunteers had baked to engage people in conversation. A couple of people approach the stall who read out tweet about the market! I am even more impressed now with the power of social media! I give an interview to Bungreave Community radio before packing up the stall at 9:15pm.

Thursday
First meeting of the day is the ‘Improving Lives Select Commission’ (which use to be the Scrutiny panel for children and young people) at Rotherham Town Hall. I represent the Voluntary & Community Sector on behalf of the Rotherham Children Young People & Families Consortium. The Commission is made up of primarily elected members. Items on todays agenda includes a Government consultation on Childrens Safeguarding Performance Data Set and raising the participation age regulations. I am able to make several points including highlighting how the voluntary sector can ‘reach the parts other sectors cannot’ and therefore the importance of our sector being acknowledged and covered in the consultation.


I return back to the office and catch up on emails before meeting Simon Pugh who is talking about the ‘Sports Makers’ programme which is about maintaining the olympic legacy after all the interest in sport it will generate. I talk to him about our Rhyming Ramble (sponsored walk) we are planning with poet Ian McMillan in July and also potential opportunities of including sport in future work by out Detached Street Work team.

I continue to catch up on emails and paper work.

My last appointment of the day is a cheque presentation at St Marys School in Rotherham with our trustee Christine who raised £2280 from her recent variety fundraising show STARS@LAST. I am delighted that many of the young people from Rotherham Teachers Student Academy who performed in the show also posed for the photo.

Friday
My planned meeting with the Rotherham Local Strategic Partnership Manager is cancelled so I head into the office to catch up on paperwork and emails. I prepare the volunteer helpline assessments that I have booked in for Saturday afternoon.

Visit to Doncaster Racecourse with Rachel, one of our fabulous Volunteer Ambassadors. We were very impressed with the facilities and our minds our buzzing with potential ideas of future events. We chat non-stop about some of our ideas on the drive back to the office.

Brief meeting with a small team of volunteers who are keen to lead on the SAFE@LAST eBay shop which we hope to launch in National Small Charities Week in June. The volunteers had already done a count of the first items we plan to sell via the site, our branded merchandise such as our white wrist bands that seem to be back in fashion (or so I’m told)! We talk about the aim to raise funds for the charity as well as awareness and to strengthen the brand. There are also possible links with ‘Charity Chicks’ our pop-up charity shop.

Saturday
I drive into the office to do two more one-to-one assessments of new helpline volunteers and I am pleased to tell them they have both passed. One of the volunteers brought some home made muffins in to be used at the fundraising swishing party being held on Sunday to raise money for a colleagues sponsorship target for her Kili trek.