SLCVO Blog 22 May

This week’s blog shares highlights from across the team, including a look at this week’s Community Hub and how SLCVO reports on our work to the Highland Third Sector Interface (HTSI). We also explore how to make monitoring and evaluation work for your group, introduce Red Chair Highland—a digital inclusion CIC looking to expand into our area—and round up a range of news, opportunities and updates that local groups have asked us to share.

Team Update

This week has been another busy Community Hub week with Matt, Kal, and Jo-Anne at Dunvegan Hall, joined by around 14 local groups. The Corry Capers toddler play session was a highlight, adapting their usual outdoor-style activities for an indoor setting. Meanwhile, the Dunvegan Community Café kept everyone well fuelled with tea, coffee, and plenty of cake—always a welcome addition. Our final Dunvegan hub will take place on 25th June, after which we’ll be moving to Lochalsh for three months. Looking ahead to the autumn, we are planning hubs in Portree and Staffin, before moving on to Sleat and Raasay in the new year. Keep an eye on our website for the latest updates.

Matt also met this week with Community Contacts, specialists in Self-Directed Support across Argyll & Bute and Highland. They are a highly valued partner of SLCVO, and their expertise in social care and community development is helping us navigate changes in adult social care and how best to work with communities to ensure these changes meet local needs. Find out more about Community Contacts Community Contacts | A Helping Hand with Self-Directed Support - Carr Gomm

Following last week’s Children and Young People’s Forum, Jo-Anne has created a new webpage dedicated to the HWWS collaboration work in the area. This acts as a hub for key local, regional, and national strategies, and will continue to develop as our work progresses. Children and Young Peoples Services

We plan to replicate this format for adult services, helping to clearly link our work to wider priorities and improve accessibility to information.

We also made a new connection with Red Chair Highland, a community interest company focused on advancing digital inclusion across the Highlands. We met with them this week to discuss potential opportunities to bring digital safety and support workshops to Skye. Their proposed work—focused on children, young people, and families—aligns closely with tackling inequality through improved digital access and skills. You can read more about this opportunity later in the blog.

SLCVO Reporting

Jo-Anne spent some time this week in training with our funder, the Highland Third Sector Interface (HTSI). As part of our role as a rural third sector support partner, SLCVO provides quarterly reports on our work, using a system called CharityLog to record activity—although this has traditionally focused quite heavily on numbers. Reporting is now moving towards a stronger focus on impact, as part of the “Telling Our Story” improvement project led by the Third Sector Network TSI Scotland Network - Supporting Scotland's Third Sector. This means placing equal importance on both quantitative data (statistics) and qualitative insights (case studies).

Fortunately, SLCVO has always valued feedback and storytelling across our work, and we’ve recently started to build this in more regularly rather than relying on annual or activity-based snapshots. As part of this, we’re introducing a simple online feedback form that will be used quarterly with groups we support. We’re very grateful to South Skye Men’s Shed for helping us test this so far. The form will now be refined to meet the new requirements, and we’re aiming to roll it out fully by the end of June.

As part of the reporting review, we have updated our website to clearly outline the range of services currently provided free of charge through the HTSI contract. This offer was shaped following the 2023 review of Highland Third Sector Interface (HTSI) services, which responded to wider organisational, legislative and policy changes that have influenced the role of TSIs since their inception in 2012. One of the key outcomes of the review was the introduction of a clearer classification of activity.

• Foundation activity refers to the core support funded directly by the Scottish Government and delivered as part of the HTSI contract—this forms the baseline of what SLCVO is commissioned to provide and is now detailed on our website. Third Sector Support

• Direct activity also contributes to the contract but is not fully covered by core funding, meaning it must be sustained through additional funding or income; for SLCVO this includes our consultancy work around community engagement and participation, as well as elements of our work through the HWWS collaboration. Skye and Lochalsh Health, Wellbeing and Social Care

• Aligned activity supports the wider aims of the HTSI contract but sits outside its primary purpose, complementing and strengthening overall impact—this includes our work through Befrienders and Community Connections service Befrienders Skye and Lochalsh

Looking ahead, we anticipate that this structure will be reviewed again over the next 12 months, particularly as changes to Scottish Government third sector funding begin to take shape.

To stay ahead of this, SLCVO is already exploring additional ways to support third sector organisations beyond the HTSI contract. One area we are keen to develop further is local volunteering. Following the 2023 review, HTSI brought volunteering support into a single Highland-wide approach through the Highland Volunteer Academy Volunteer Academy | HTSI main. While this works well at a regional level, it can lack a strong local focus. In response, we are beginning to explore potential projects with local employability services and community groups to develop more locally rooted volunteering pathways, linking opportunities with skills development and progression in a way that reflects the needs of our communities.

Making Monitoring and Evaluation Work for Your Group

With SLCVO currently reviewing our TSI reporting, this week’s short guidance for groups focuses on monitoring and evaluating your work—why it matters, how to do it simply, and how it can help you better understand and demonstrate your impact.

Many community groups are familiar with the terms monitoring and evaluation, often through funding applications or reporting requirements. While it can sometimes feel like a tick-box exercise, it is actually a valuable way to understand and strengthen the work you do. At its simplest,

• Monitoring is about collecting information on your activities—such as how many sessions you run or how many people attend—

• Evaluation is about using that information to understand what difference your work is making.

Taking a more structured approach to monitoring and evaluation can help you:

• Check whether you are achieving what you set out to do

• Identify what’s working well and what could be improved

• Adapt your work if needs or circumstances change

• Provide clear evidence to funders and partners

A good starting point is being clear about your aims and intended outcomes.

• What change are you trying to achieve?

• Who are you trying to support?

• What would success look like in practice?

It can help to make your aims a bit more specific—for example, thinking about how many people you want to reach, what difference you hope to see, or how you’ll know things have improved. You don’t need anything complicated, just a clear idea of what you’re working towards and what success would look like for your group.

Once this is clear, you can decide what information you need to collect and how to do it in a simple and manageable way. Keeping things practical and involving your team in the process will make it more useful and easier to sustain.

Monitoring often focuses on outputs and outcomes. Gathering feedback from participants, volunteers and staff—both formal and informal—is a key part of understanding your work. You don’t need to collect lots of information, just what’s useful, for example

Outputs (what you do)

• How many sessions or activities did you run?

• How many people attended?

• Who took part (age, location, etc.)?

Outcomes (the difference you make)

• Did people feel more confident, connected or informed?

• Did skills or knowledge improve?

• Has anything changed for participants over time?

When it comes to collecting information, it’s important to keep things simple and manageable. Choose methods that fit easily alongside your day-to-day activities rather than adding extra workload. Some practical approaches include:

• Attendance lists – a quick and easy way to track who is taking part

• Short feedback forms – completed after sessions or activities

• Informal conversations – capturing useful comments as they come up

• Team reflections – brief discussions about what worked well

• Before and after questions – helping to show any changes over time

The key is to be consistent and to only collect information that helps you understand whether you are meeting your aims.

Once you’ve collected your information, taking time to reflect is essential. This is where evaluation really comes into its own, helping you build a clear picture of what’s working well, what could be improved, and where you might need to adapt or develop your work in the future. As part of this, it’s useful to ask:

• Are we achieving what we expected?

• What are we doing well?

• What could be improved?

• Do we need to change our approach?

Then, just as importantly, make sure what you learn is put into practice. Use your findings to:

• Share successes with your community and funders

• Strengthen funding applications with clear evidence

• Improve your activities based on feedback

• Tell the story of your impact more clearly

Support to Measure Impact

For groups looking to strengthen how they measure and demonstrate their impact, there is a wide range of support available through Evaluation Support Scotland.

They work with third sector organisations and funders to help them measure, understand and clearly explain the difference their work is making. This includes offering training, tailored support, and a wide range of free tools and guidance to help organisations build confidence in monitoring and evaluation. Their approach focuses on making evaluation practical and useful—helping groups not only gather information, but actually use it to improve services and show impact to funders and partners.

SLCVO has worked with Evaluation Support Scotland in the past as part of our Befriender service development, and their structured approach really supported us to better capture and present our impact. This was key in helping us evidence the value of the service to funders and ultimately enabled us to grow from one day a week to a three day a week service.

If you’re thinking about developing your own monitoring and evaluation, or want to get better at telling your story, their resources are a great place to start.

Find out more here:https://evaluationsupportscotland.org.uk/

SLCVO can also support you to develop an approach that works best for your group through our HTSI support contract. If you’d like some help getting started or developing your monitoring and evaluation, we can help you navigate available guidance and support options, offering advice on what’s most relevant to your situation. Email us to find our more info@slcvo.org.uk 

Exploring Digital Inclusion Opportunities for Skye

We recently met with Red Chair Highland, a community interest company dedicated to advancing digital inclusion across the Highlands, to explore potential opportunities for collaboration in Skye. Red Chair Highland shared that they have been looking at ways to expand their services into Skye for some time and are considering an application to the new CLLD fund. Their proposal centres on delivering hybrid digital safety and digital support workshops in communities across Skye. These sessions would aim to build skills, confidence, and online safety awareness—helping to reduce digital exclusion and improve access to opportunities.

As part of this early-stage development, Red Chair Highland is keen to connect with local partners who can help shape the project. This includes working together to:

• Identify suitable venues and locations

• Reach and engage participants

• Support session planning and delivery

• Help promote the workshops locally

We’ll be continuing conversations and making connections over the coming weeks. If you’re a local organisation, group, or service interested in supporting or collaborating on this initiative you can find out more about their work here Red Chair Highland | Digital Inclusion Services Highlands | 58 Denny Street, Inverness, UK

Their website is also a great location to access reports about Digital Connectivity in Scotland 2020–2025 Consumer Digital Reports | Red Chair Highland 1

Have Your Say – Youth Highland Survey for Young People

Youth Highland is currently leading an important piece of work on behalf of the Poverty and Equalities Commission, and they are keen to hear directly from young people across the Highlands.

They have launched a short and simple survey to gather views on key themes that have emerged from community consultation over the past 11 months. This is a valuable opportunity for young people to share their experiences and help shape future priorities around poverty and inequality.

Organisations and groups working with young people are encouraged to support this by sharing the survey and helping young people take part.

Young Life in Highland Survey – take part here

Have Your Say: National “My Health, My Rights” Survey

A new national survey from Children’s Health Scotland is now open, giving children, young people and those who support them the chance to share their experiences of health, care and support.

The “My Health, My Rights” Survey aims to capture real-life experiences and ensure that children’s voices are heard in shaping services and decision-making. It highlights the challenges many are facing, including long waits for support and the impact this can have on wellbeing, education and family life.

The survey is open to children and young people, families, and professionals, and will help inform national conversations and future improvements.

Deadline: Sunday 8 June 2026

Take part here:http://www.childrenshealthscotland.org/nationalsurvey26

Supporting Armed Forces Families – New Newsletter Out Now

Armed Forces Families Highland have just released their latest newsletter—and it’s packed with useful updates, opportunities and support. The newsletter brings together a wide range of information specifically aimed at serving personnel, veterans and their families, making it easier to find out what’s happening locally and what support is available. Whether you’re looking for community events, wellbeing support, or ways to get involved, it’s well worth a read. This kind of joined-up information is invaluable in helping people stay connected and access the right support at the right time—particularly in more rural communities where services can feel harder to navigate.

You can read the full newsletter here: It’s Here. It’s Packed. It’s FOR YOU!

Job Opportunity: Carer Link Worker (Lochaber & Skye)

Connecting Carers are currently recruiting for a Carer Link Worker covering Lochaber and Skye, offering a great opportunity for someone passionate about supporting people in their local community.

This role focuses on working directly with unpaid carers, providing information, advice and support to help them access the services they need. The post holder will act as a key local contact, building relationships within communities, raising awareness of support available, and working alongside partners in health, social care and the third sector.

The role is community-based, involving regular local travel, and centres around person-centred conversations—helping carers identify what matters most to them and supporting them to develop and review plans that reflect their needs.

This is a part-time post (28 hours per week), with flexibility offered, and presents a valuable opportunity to make a real difference to carers across the area.

Find out more and apply here: https://connectingcarers.org.uk/opportunities/carer-link-worker-covering-lochaber-skye-vacancy-ref-cc080/