FAQs - Membership
If you are a small group of volunteers, or a large multi-national organisation operating inNorthern Ireland, you are eligible to become a full member of NICVA.
If you are not a voluntary or community based organisation, but have an interest in the sector you can access NICVA’s services by becoming a NICVA subscriber.
A branch of a Northern Ireland organisation cannot be a full member but can receive nicvanews on request.
Full membership is open to independent voluntary and community organisations. A branch of a Northern Ireland organisation cannot be a full member, but can avail of additional mailings.
Full members will receive all NICVA services and information and can vote at NICVA’s AGM, other policy fora or in the election of NICVA’s Executive Committee. Pricing structures available on the How to Join page.
The cost of membership is determined by the gross annual income of your organisation
NICVA membership benefits and services
Information and Advice
NICVA’s family of websites:
www.nicva.org – a site which hosts a vast amount of good practice information for the sector.
www.communityni.org – a site which hosts news, events, jobs and promotional opportunities for the wider sector and the general public.
www.communitybuyer.org – a web based directory of companies which provide products and services aimed at the voluntary and community sector.
www.grant-tracker.org – a unique fundraising resource for Northern Ireland.
nicvanews: a magazine which provides up to date information on policy, training, events, funding, resources and services from NICVA and the wider sector. You will receive 10 per year as part of your membership.
eNews: a weekly electronic round-up of news, events, jobs and training for the sector.
Fundraising Advice: advice and training on fundraising and how to maximise income from grant-makers, general public and social economy.
Goverance and Charity Advice: governance reviews training, advice and information with practical help in drafting and amending governing documents, obtaining charitable status and advice on best practice.
Finance: advice and information pensions, payroll and financial matters.
Human Resources: advice and information and sample policies on all human resources procedures.
NI Assembly Monitor: a weekly email bulletin which summarises key developments in the NI Assembly and highlights upcoming issues of importance to the sector.
Representation
Policy Manifesto: produced by NICVA every three years to influence the priorities and budget of local political parties and the NI Assembly.
Policy Fora: Over 250 people from the voluntary and community sector sit on one of NICVA’s nine policy fora which bring together policy expertise and practitioners from areas such as arts, women, men, community relations, environment, criminal justice and older people.
Research: NICVA’s research team carries out research on a variety of topics that are of interest to the voluntary and community sector, including State of the Sector the seminal voluntary and community sector almanac.
Access to projects
Vital Links: A programme of free training, seminars, conferences and publications designed to foster and promote positive engagement between key political and government institutions and the voluntary and community sector
Centre for Economic Empowerment: Programme of training, seminars, conferences and discussion papers aimed at developing the economic analysis skills of the sector and increasing the capacity of the sector to engage in the economic debate.
CollaborationNI: The programme aims to engage the voluntary and community sector in the debate around the need for collaborative approaches. The project offers a range of practical help such as a calendar of scheduled training courses, tailored, in-house training delivered in the workplace and expert facilitation to assist group-based discussion and joint decision-making.
CutsWatchNI: is a new project developed by NICVA which maps the impact of public sector spending cuts on voluntary and community groups in Northern Ireland. It is designed to highlight both the impact of cuts on the organisations and on the communities they support. CutsWatchNI is a web based resource.
Community Leadership Programme: A programme offering training and learning opportunities to help strengthen the leadership capacity of community groups. This is a one year programme where groups have the opportunity to participate in ten action learning sessions. Individual accreditation is also available via this programme.
Resources
Training courses: 30% discount on all NICVA training courses
Members Sessions: free access to two members’ information sessions per year plus 30% discount on any other NICVA training, event or seminar, consultation or conference. See www.nicva.org for the latest training calendar and events listings.
GrantTracker: a unique fundraising resource for Northern Ireland - Free 3 month subscription for new members to NICVA services.
Conference facilities: 30% discount on the use of our extensive conference and meeting facilities with access to audio /visual equipment and video conferencing. Free car parking available.
Insurance: working with Marsh Ltd and Eccelastical, NICVA has tailored this bespoke scheme specifically to the needs of the voluntary and community sector with special rates and policy covers designed for the diverse range of activities and requirements of NICVA’s members.
Energy Savings: access to the NICVA/Energia affinity scheme saving you up to 15% on your organisation’s electricity bill.
Fundraising Standards Board: save up to 50% discount on membership. The FRSB is the independent self-regulatory body for UK fundraising. They work with their member organisations, to encourage commitment to and compliance with best practice in fundraising.
Sector Matters: established by NICVA, Sector Matters is Northern Ireland’s first social enterprise providing quality business services to the voluntary and community sector and small businesses. Offering extra support to organisations in all areas of human resources, financial services, interim management, funding applications, tender development, bespoke research and programme evaluation.
NICVA Database: the most comprehensive listing of voluntary and community organisations in Northern Ireland.
Advertising and Promotion
Promote your organisation’s products and services, campaigns and job vacancies on www.communityni, www.communitybuyer.org, nicvanews and eNews.
If you would like further information regarding this offer and the benefits available to NICVA members please contact frances.mcatamney@nicva.org or tel 028 9087 7777 who will be happy to explain the process and ensure you receive a membership application form and information pack.
For full membership, annual costs ranges from £10 to a maximum of £175 and is based on the gross annual income of your organisation.
Subscriber costs are determined by the number of employees.
Full details of costs can be found on the membership section of the NICVA website. Alternatively you can contact Membership Administration at 028 9087 7777 or email frances.mcatamney@nicva.org
By completing an appropriate application form and returning it together with a copy of your organisation’s constitution and other supporting documents requested on the application form. Applications can not be processed without this information.
When an application form has been received it is reviewed by the NICVA Membership Officer, who may contact you to follow up on your application. If the form and the supporting information are in order, the application is forwarded to NICVA's Executive Committee for approval. The NICVA Executive Committee meet to discuss applications, on a six to eight week basis.
Once approval has been granted your organisation’s details will be added to the NICVA database and you will receive a NICVA welcome pack. The pack will contain a certificate of membership (full members only), details of discounts and services as well as other NICVA information. You will receive by post a monthly mailing of nicvanews and access to all other NICVA member services and benefits from that date.
NICVA Executive Committee’s determination in matters of membership is final. NICVA reserves the right to determine the eligibility of an organisation or prospective subscriber for membership.
You can request an application form and information pack by calling NICVA's Membership Officer on 028 9087 7777 or emailing frances.mcatamney@nicva.org. Alternatively you can download an application form from the How to Join page.
Please send completed application forms to NICVA Membership Administration, 61 Duncairn Gardens, Belfast, BT15 2GB.
There are four types of subscribers to NICVA:
- Businesses
- Public sector organisations
- Individuals who have worked in or have an interest in the sector
- Voluntary groups which are not active or organised in Northern Ireland.
Subscribers will receive nicvanews and NICVA Mailings, and can avail of the NICVA affinity deals but do not have voting rights at NICVA's AGM, Policy Fora or in the election of NICVA’s Executive Committee.
Business subscriber
A company or individual with a commercial interest in the sector (eg Consultants). The cost of the subscription is based on the number of employees.
Statutory subscriber
A non profit organisation, for example quangos, government departments or health and education boards/trusts. The cost of membership is based on number of employees.
Individual subscriber
An individual subscriber is someone who has a non commercial interest in the sector. They can subscribe to NICVA’s services for £65 per year or £30 a year if unwaged.
Voluntary subscriber
Voluntary organisations which are ineligible for full membership and groups which are not active or organised in Northern Ireland (ie groups in the Republic of Ireland) can join as voluntary subscribers.
This option is available to any network organisation who is interested in making the full range of NICVA services, and in particular the NICVA/Marsh insurance scheme, available to their own member groups.
It is a bespoke service and is only applicable to those networks with ten or more member organisations.
Yes, you can receive information from NICVA. Public and private sector organisations cannot be full members but can subscribe to NICVA services. The benefits are the same as those of full members but subscribers have no nominating or voting rights at NICVA’s AGM or in the election of NICVA’s Executive Committee.
Yes, additional mailings to the associated offices of our members or subscribers can be arranged. See additional mailings costs on the How to Join page.
NICVA has preferential rates on a wide range of products and services such as office furniture and equipment, computer software, conference facilities, insurance, electricity, advertising and exhibition equipment to name but a few.
Full details of all the organisations offering discounts to NICVA members and the wider sector can be found on www.communitybuyer.org.
You can also promote your own organisation’s products and services on www.communitybuyer.org
You can contact Marsh Ltd directly on 028 9055 6100, making sure you tell them that you are a member of NICVA. Marsh Ltd may request your NICVA reference number to verify your membership.
Details of the Marsh scheme can be found on http://www.communitybuyer.org/organisation/marsh-ltd or alternatively you can contact the Membership Officer on 028 9087 7777 or email frances.mcatamney@nicva.org for further information.
You can contact Energia directly on 028 9065 8900 making sure you tell them that you are a member of NICVA. Energia may request your NICVA reference number to verify your membership.
Details of the Energia scheme can be found on http://www.communitybuyer.org/organisation/energia or alternatively you can contact the membership officer on 028 9087 7777 or email frances.mcatamney@nicva.org for further information.
