Capital Projects Collaboration - CHART North (2011)
Venture Group has been working with CHART (Culture Heritage Arts Resource Trust) North on a concept designed to attract greater funding for Whangarei’s culture, heritage and arts sector.
The project involved Venture Group developing and working through a ‘project prioritisation plan’ with 10 key CHART stakeholders to develop collaborative strategic priorities for the sector.
The organisations are The Papermill, Waipu Museum,Old Library Ltd, Whangarei Museum, The Quarry, Youth Theatre, Hihiaua Trust, Reyburn House, Whangarei Arts Museum, and Whangarei Youth Music.
The 10 organisations also agreed to a review of their business capability as one criterion for membership in the collaborative. Gill Minogue from Venture Group designed the tools and process for the review.
Venture Group presented a Capital Projects Collaboration report to the recently formed sector Advisory Group, which is charged with recommending a priority list of capital works projects for completion through to 2020 to the CHART Board.
Rawene Community Development project - Tindall Foundation SCOPE (2010)
Gill Minogue from Venture Group recently completed a project with Rawene and Districts Community Development Inc (RAD), thanks to funding received through the Tindall Foundation SCOPE programme. SCOPE aims to build the capacity within a particular sub-set of the not-for-profit sector by providing funding for small community organisations to access the assistance of experienced sector-savvy consultants at no cost to the groups.
Through the project, RAD identified the need to recruit people from the local community with specific skills, or who were willing to be trained to provide them. RAD also identified the need to share information and understanding about the transition the group was making to a more strategic, proactive ‘thinking’ mode. All along, the project endeavoured to ensure that there was clear communication with the local community about RAD’s vision, mission, purpose and role.
Honouring Seniors Oral & Social History - Whangarei Library Foundation (2009-2011)4) (2004)
This landmark project, recording people’s early memories of Whangarei’s rural districts, has taken place under the auspices of the Patrons of the Whangarei Library Foundation. With funding from Creative Communities, NZ Community Trust, and the Australian Sesquicentennial Gift Trust for Awards in Oral History. The project has captured the stories of people ‘born and bred’ in rural districts around Whangarei, including descendants of original or early Pakeha settler families. The role of kauri is a common underlying theme in the interviews.
The material has been digitally recorded and the interviews archived, along with support photos and other material, in the Northland Room of the Whangarei Public Library, as well as at the Oral History Centre at the Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington.
Academy of the 28 Maori Battalion: 'A' Company - He Puna Marama (2008-2009)
Venture Group did much of the development of a successful funding application to ASB Trust’s Maori and Pacific Educational Achievement Initiatives Fund.
Stage One: The funding application, including a review of recent data and research papers on the educational underachievement of Maori in general, and Maori boys in particular; production of paper that describes best environments, conditions and methods for improving Maori male educational achievement.
Stage Two: Business case development and ongoing project planning. Project management framework; outcomes framework; risk management plan; governance readiness; impact analysis and evaluation capacity.
Stage Three: development of job descriptions, staff and cadet recruitment and selection processes, internal organisational policies and procedures, hostel policies and procedures, and other work as required to assist the project to be ready to start in January 2010.
Policy development workshops - Centre for International Development (2008)
Preparation and facilitation of workshops in Auckland and Wellington for staff of aid and development NGOs to introduce them to policy issues: theory and practice.
Preparing a case for funding - Mangakahia Sports Complex (2007 - 2008)
Stage One: funding assistance (2007)
Comprehensive case was made to Whangarei District Council on behalf of this multi-purpose rural community facility. This involved successfully developing a case for funding of a significant grant for the 2007-8 year towards deferred maintenance and repairs.
Stage Two: 3 year operational grant (2008) The second stage involved making a case for ongoing base funding over a three year period to enable the facility to develop a wider choice of community and recreation opportunities to meet the needs of a growing and changing district population.
Business Health Check & Sustainability Plan - Kawakawa Community Trust (2007-2008)
A business health check to strengthen and increase community and organisational confidence in the Kawakawa Community Trust, funded by Te Puni Kokiri.
Stage one: analysis of the Trust’s operations; strategy, planning and performance management; structure & human resources; governance; finance & viability; risk management; communications with stakeholders.
Stage Two: Implementing the business health check recommendations.
Accommodation options for social service organisations - Whangarei Council of Social Services (2007)
Consultation and desk-based research to develop a proposal for the WDC to support a Whangarei Social Services Centre and underpinning social services policy.
Evaluation: Storybook Dads project - Arts Access Aotearoa (2006-2007)
Evaluation of arts-based pilot programme at the Northland Regional Correctional Facility, Ngawha, linking prisoners with whanau / children through the production of story CDs and books. The programme aims to increase prisoners’ involvement with their own and their children’s education and development, and to develop prisoners’ communication skills through the development of story reading, story writing and story recording and presentation skills. The evaluation helped to inform Arts Access Aotearoa’s funding decisions about the programme as an arts-based programmes that can contribute to reducing re-offending and positive reintegration back with whanau and community.
"Arts Access Aotearoa contracted Venture Group to evaluate one of our community projects entitled Storybook Dads. Storybook Dads was a pilot project to aid prisoners to become more involved with their own children’s education and development through the production of story CDs and books.
Venture Group assessed the success and benefits of the project’s future development, and identified areas that could be improved upon.
Arts Access found Venture Group to be highly professional and flexible around our needs, and went over and above our original brief. The breadth of research and recommendations in the evaluation of this project were of huge benefit to our organization and the project’s future directions.
Arts Access has no hesitation in recommending Venture Group to conduct thorough evaluative work of community projects, and we look forward to engagement with them in the future".
Marianne Taylor, Executive Director, Arts Access Aotearoa
Moving to Financial Sustainability - The Papermill (2005)
Funding plan developed, funding applications prepared and submitted, recruitment process for Business Director drafted.
Strategic Planning - The Papermill (2005)
Overview provided for strategic planning workshop and format developed for planning document.
Future directions - The Papermill (2004)
Options available to develop arts space for disabled people: Pathways to Inclusion / Creative Spaces.
