A pioneering CSV project that matches volunteers to families with children at risk of harm has been crowned overall winner of the Charity Awards 2010.
In a fitting tribute in the twilight stages of the illustrious 47-year career of Community Service Volunteers’ executive director Dame Elisabeth Hoodless, CSV has scooped the top prize for its Volunteers in Child Protection scheme.
Volunteers in Child Protection was a project that was identified and introduced to the UK from the United States by Dame Elisabeth herself.
CSV was presented with the top honour by Nick Hurd, the newly-installed minister for civil society, and John Low, chief executive of joint overall sponsor Charities Aid Foundation, at a celebrity-studded black-tie gala dinner in London’s West End last night.
The charity received rapturous applause from almost 800 sector luminaries.
Run in partnership with Children’s Social Services, Volunteers in Child Protection matches volunteers to families with children that are suffering from neglect and are at risk of serious harm. The volunteers support the families to address their problems, turning chaotic, dysfunctional homes into stable and safe environments.
After Victoria Climbie’s death and the subsequent public inquiry, Lord Laming’s report concluded that early intervention helps families deal with potential crises and can avert more serious interventions later. He also concluded that the community has a role to play in safeguarding children.
Soon afterward, Dame Elisabeth heard about a scheme in California that matched families in crisis with volunteers – a pioneering concept never before tried in the UK.
While many challenged whether volunteers could or should be involved with families in such complex circumstances, and doubted the viability of the scheme, Hoodless was determined to give it a go, and personally led its initial phase. She convinced a major trust to fund a pilot in two local authorities and the three-year pilot was a “resounding success”. An independent evaluation showed that children were coming off the child protection register and staying off it, improving families’ lives and saving local authorities’ money.
Bromley was the first local authority to purchase the service, four years ago, and ViCP projects are now run in five local authority areas, with 136 volunteers supporting 130 families and 400 kids. To date there has been a 100 per cent success rate – all the children that have had volunteer support have come off the child protection register and not gone back on. The scheme is inundated with volunteers and CSV has just secured a new three-year grant to enable it to roll out the scheme in ten more local authority areas.
Collecting the Award on stage at the Grosvenor House Hotel last night, CSV's director of part-time volunteering Sue Gwaspari (pictured second from right) said the real hero of the night was John, the volunteer featured in the video of the project which was played to the audience. "John has given his time to six families and helped 40 children so far, and those children have no idea he is not paid," she said.
She added that winning the award would make it easier to convince local authorities and other funders that the project was effective and worth supporting, and reminded Nick Hurd that with the government's help, CSV could do more such good work.
For more details of the 2010 winners, click here.
