Cheshire West Voluntary Action

We are proud to have been supporting the local community since 1914. Our vision is 'Championing the community sector – building trust, influencing, inspiring'. We work with community organisations, as well as partners in other sectors, across west Cheshire. Our staff have extensive knowledge and skills to help community sector organisations thrive, supporting with things like governance, good practice, volunteering, funding, training, networking and more.

'Resilience in Action' workshops are all about discussing the basic and free steps individuals and households can take to become more resilient to potential emergencies and disruptions. Workshops are conversational, interactive, and informal, with a particular focus on the local and the personal. We discuss a range of scenarios and subjects, ranging from flood alerts and warnings, power outages, disruptive weather, to practical tools like building a 'grab bag' and completing a household emergency plan. By the end of the session, you will have a better understand of how to keep yourself and your household more resilient and better prepared for 'emergencies'. Take-home messages are designed to be simple and understood by a wide audience, and can be passed on to friends, family, and anyone you are working with.

Cafe 71

Delivering a basic understanding of cancer prevention. Including myths, preventative measures and screening programmes.

Thank you for registering for this online training. We'll be back in touch closer to the training with joining instructions.

Cheshire West Voluntary Action (CWVA) is providing training for community sector organisations that are interested in using Plinth as their community impact system. Plinth has been used by CWVA since the start of 2025, offering a wide range of features, such as case management, event bookings, outcome measurements, surveys and forms, and much more. Community sector organisations linked to CWVA are able to use Plinth for free. This training will provide an overview of the system, how community sector organisations can take advantage of the different features, and how CWVA is planning to use Plinth to aggregate data and show the collective impact being made by the sector.

Please note that we do require attendees to pay a £10 deposit to book on. This will be refunded upon attendance, or cancellation with three working days notice. This qualification is typically delivered over 1 working day. It is designed for those working in lower risk workplaces, or higher risk workplaces with a lower number of staff and visitors. The course fits the following criteria:<ul><li>Regulated qualification</li><li>Meets H.S.E requirements</li><li>6 guided learning hours (1 day)</li><li>Valid for 3 years</li><li>Certificate included</li><li>Assessed by MCQs and practical observation</li></ul> This qualification has been developed to meet the first aid training requirements outlined by the H.S.E. The course includes:<ul><li>What is first aid?</li><li>First aid in the workplace</li><li>Responsibilities of the first aider</li><li>Primary survey</li><li>Unconscious casualty management</li><li>Resuscitation</li><li>Choking</li><li>Shock</li><li>Wounds and bleeding</li><li>Minor burns</li><li>Seizures</li></ul> Schedule for the session:<ul><li>8:45am - arrival</li><li>9am - start and registration</li><li>10:15am to 10:30am - BREAK</li><li>12:15pm to 12:45pm - BREAK</li><li>2pm to 2:15pm - BREAK</li><li>3:30pm - short written assessment and questionnaire</li><li>4pm - departure</li></ul> If you have any additional learning needs or adjustments required, please do contact michael.mitchell@cwva.org.uk.

Headquartes of Cheshire Football Association

Cheshire FA

CWVA will be hosting a series of Volunteer Managers Network Meetings throughout 2026. These meetings are open to staff AND volunteers, community sector OR public sector, who are involved in recruiting, managing, and coordinating volunteers within their organisation. They are a key chance to network, learn from one another, and share information about what is happening within the sector.&nbsp; This month, we will be hosted by St Luke's Hospice in Winsford. Tea, coffee, and biscuits will be available throughout.

St Luke's Hospice

Building Stronger Partnerships to Win Funding and Deliver Greater ImpactThis practical and interactive workshop explores how voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations can work more effectively together to respond to funding opportunities and deliver improved outcomes for their communities. As commissioners and funders increasingly favour collaborative approaches, organisations need the knowledge and confidence to develop successful partnerships and joint funding applications.

The Chester Bluecoat Charity

This introductory training session provides a practical and engaging overview of unconscious bias, helping participants understand how biases develop, how they can affect the workplace, and what strategies can reduce their impact.

This interactive session explores how staff and volunteers can support people experiencing vulnerability without taking away their voice, choice or control. Participants consider how well-intentioned helping can sometimes create dependence or unintentionally disempower people, and how support can instead build confidence, choice and involvement.Through discussion, practical scenarios and paired activities, participants explore the Empowerment Ladder – FOR, WITH and ENABLE – and practise listening, asking open questions and using language that encourages people to make their own informed choices.The session also considers professional boundaries and safeguarding, helping participants recognise when to empower, when additional support may be needed and when concerns must be reported.

The Windings

This session helps volunteers understand how to build positive, professional relationships while maintaining clear and healthy boundaries. Participants will explore the importance of boundaries in volunteer roles, learn how to recognise and respond to challenging situations, and develop practical strategies for managing expectations, communication, and confidentiality. By the end of the session, volunteers will feel more confident in supporting others safely, effectively, and within the limits of their role.

This interactive session provides staff and volunteers with a practical introduction to safeguarding and their responsibilities for helping to keep people safe.Participants will explore what safeguarding means in everyday community and voluntary sector settings, including how organisations can prevent harm, abuse, neglect, bullying and harassment, and why safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.The session introduces the six key principles of adult safeguarding and considers how empowerment, prevention, proportionality, protection, partnership and accountability can be applied in practice.Participants will learn about different forms of abuse, including physical, sexual, psychological, financial, discriminatory and organisational abuse, neglect, self-neglect and modern slavery.Through discussion, scenarios and interactive activities, the session also explores professional boundaries and some of the everyday situations that can develop into safeguarding concerns, such as giving out personal contact details, offering lifts, physical contact and lending money.By the end of the session, participants will be better able to:<ul><li>understand what safeguarding means and why it matters;</li><li>recognise different types and possible indicators of abuse;</li><li>understand who may be at increased risk of harm or exploitation;</li><li>recognise when boundaries or everyday situations could become safeguarding concerns;</li><li>understand their individual responsibility to safeguard others; and</li><li>know the importance of reporting concerns or disclosures promptly and appropriately.</li></ul>

Roles and responsibilities of charity trustees. This session is designed to help you understand and confidently apply the legal, governance, and practical duties that come with leading a charity.This session will explore the Charity Commission's core legal duties, such as ensuring the charity’s purposes are met for the public benefit, complying with the law, acting in the charity’s best interests, managing resources responsibly, acting with reasonable care and skill, and ensuring accountability. It will cover practical governance principles — including decision-making processes, delegation, conflict of interest management, and the distinction between governance and day-to-day management.

The Bluecoat Building

Congratulations! You've booked a place on CWVA's Communication and Listening Skills training session at The Windings. Hope you enjoy every second of it! It will start at 1pm and end at 3:30pm.

This training equips participants with the essential communication and active listening skills needed to build strong voluntary workplace relationships, reduce misunderstanding, and improve overall performance. Through practical activities and guided reflection, learners will explore effective verbal and non‑verbal communication techniques, develop strategies for listening with purpose and empathy, and learn how to respond constructively in challenging conversations.

Is your organisation's total annual income under £50,000?

Cheshire West Voluntary Action are delighted to be working in partnership with The Chester Bluecoat Charity to offer this training to voluntary and community sector organisations.Please note there is a £15 charge for each booking, with no more than 2 spaces per organisation.For organisations with a total annual income under £50,000, spaces are free and the £15 charge will be reimbursed upon attendance.This qualification is typically delivered over 1 working day. It is designed for those working in lower risk workplaces, or higher risk workplaces with a lower number of staff and visitors. The course fits the following criteria:<ul><li>Regulated qualification</li><li>Meets H.S.E requirements</li><li>6 guided learning hours (1 day)</li><li>Valid for 3 years</li><li>Certificate included</li><li>Assessed by MCQs and practical observation</li></ul>This qualification has been developed to meet the first aid training requirements outlined by the H.S.E. The course includes:<ul><li>What is first aid?</li><li>First aid in the workplace</li><li>Responsibilities of the first aider</li><li>Primary survey</li><li>Unconscious casualty management</li><li>Resuscitation</li><li>Choking</li><li>Shock</li><li>Wounds and bleeding</li><li>Minor burns</li><li>Seizures</li></ul>Schedule for the session:<ul><li>8:45am - arrival</li><li>9am - start and registration</li><li>10:15am to 10:30am - BREAK</li><li>12:15pm to 12:45pm - BREAK</li><li>2pm to 2:15pm - BREAK</li><li>3:30pm - short written assessment and questionnaire</li><li>4pm - departure</li></ul>If you have any additional learning needs or adjustments required, please do contact michael.mitchell@cwva.org.uk.

Cheshire West Voluntary Action

Resilience Workshop - Cafe 71

Cancer Awareness

Plinth online demo

Level 3 Emergency First Aid at Work

CWVA Volunteer Managers Network

Collaborative Working and Joint Bidding

Unconscious Bias

Unconscious Bias

Empowering Vulnerable People

Positive Boundaries

Basic Adult Safeguarding

Roles & Responsibilities of a Trustee

Communication and Listening Skills

Level 3 Emergency First Aid at Work