Getting our message across

You might want to know what's happening within the sector; need to find a group or service; be trying to track down a report; want to generate some publicity; need help with communications like writing press releases, writing for the web or getting your message across; want to write an article for one of our publications or the website; want to see what's in our library ...

The Information and Communications Team is your first port of call. If we can't directly help you with a question, we should know someone who can.

Sharing information

As well as assisting with your queries, we get information out to you in a number of ways, particularly through our publications - eNews, our weekly email round up of news, events, training, funding and job listings - and NICVA News, our monthly membership magazine, which brings you more comprehensive coverage, particularly of funding opportunities. NICVA also issues one off and occasional publications such as State of the Sector, Viewfinder, and a Media Guide.

We also have a family of websites to help you find the information you need, including nicva.org, our corporate site which keeps you up to date with our work, and the recently relaunched CommunityNI. GrantTracker (managed by our funding team) is an essential tool for finding sources of funding, while communitybuyer.org (managed by the Membership Officer) is an online directory of companies, products and services aimed at the voluntary and community sector with additional advice and guidance.

NICVA also maintains a comprehensive resource library of print publications and two computers with free Internet access, which you can access by appointment.

Subscribe to eNews

Enter the world according to eNews and savour 'lightly grilled MPs', hear the 'cheek by Jowell' and much more. eNews is NICVA's free weekly roundup of news and events for the voluntary and community sector, delivered to your inbox each week. You can also use the service to promote your organisation's activities.

Make sure you don't miss out by subscribing now - just email john.mccormick@nicva.org with 'subscribe' in the subject field.

Not convinced? Here are some user comments:

"Just today we filled the last place on our course. So thank you for publishing our press release in eNews."

"I have been inspired to 'Make my Move' after reading the jobs spot in eNews!"

"Finding your info very good for background to policy issues."

NICVA News

All NICVA members receive a copy of NICVA News by mail each month. It contains news, events, funding and training opportunities from the voluntary and community sector. A popular new addition is our featured member section which gives you an opportunity to promote the work of your organisation and we have had a regular section this year on the social economy.

We also welcome your news stories and events for inclusion. Just email the editor at john.mccormick@nicva.org or call 028 9087 7777 to find out more.

Not receiving your copy? NICVA News is mailed out to the person who pays your membership subscription, so if you feel that should be you, don't forget to let us know.

The NICVA and CommunityNI websites

Our corporate site, nicva.org, is home to information on the wide and varied range of work that NICVA carries out. This covers everything from campaigns and consultation work, the weekly Assembly Monitor for news on what's happening at Stormont, information on all our upcoming training courses and events, right through to our conference facility hiring information and staff contact details.

On the home page you will find direct links to particular areas of the site, like the latest training calendar, our Chief Executive, Seamus McAleavey's Twitter feed and the topical and popular Recession Toolkit, which is continually being developed. There are sections of the site devoted to the research and policy work being carried out and to the latest in charity legislation and governance issues, as well as links to the publications available as downloads.

On the CommunityNI site, which has recently had a makeover, there is now a very easy registration process which allows you to include profile information about yourself and about your organisation. You may then post your news items, press releases, job vacancies or events to the site instantly and can go back and edit them if you need to.

There are also some new features, including an opinion section, where you can have your say about a burning issue or comment on the opinion pieces that others have already posted. If you share common work interests or geographical locations with others, you can also now create a 'group' on the site, which allows you to share specific posts or documents, with a range of options as to how accessible these are. We already have a number of groups sharing meeting dates and minutes in this way, as well as tips and best practice examples, and for the time being much of NICVA's human resources material is available through the Human Resource Forum on CommunityNI.

We're always happy to receive your feedback on using the site. Already comments from users say:

"It was very easy to use. I had no problems at all with it. Many thanks."

"It is a really great tool and we will definitely be using it again in the near future."

Fiona, NICVA's Web Editor, will be happy to help you with any queries you have about registering or using the CommunityNI site and you can contact her at fiona.veitch@nicva.org or on 028 9087 7777.

If you're interested in 'social networking' our Web Editor also maintains a Twitter feed for the two main websites and we are currently looking at expanding our online presence in other areas, including Facebook.

Contact the Information and Communications Team

Information and Communications Manager (Marketing, press and media contact) - Caroline Magee

Information Officer (general enquiries, publications and library) - John McCormick

Web Editor (enquiries relating to nicva.org and communityni.org and social media) - Fiona Veitch