• Swindon & Wiltshire Social
• Friday March 21 2025
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Wiltshire Community Foundation to hold third sector conference to celebrate 50th anniversary

A conference to mark the 50th anniversary of Wiltshire Community Foundation will focus on the charities and voluntary organisations the Foundation supports.

The conference – in Devizes on May 6 – will bring together a range of speakers covering topics such as understanding local needs, demonstrating impact and value, and managing risk.

Attendees will have the opportunity to network over lunch with fellow voluntary organisations and a variety of funders, exchanging ideas and learning from each other.

Sessions will be run by Catherine Stevens, SW Funding Manager at the National Lottery Community Fund, who will deliver a workshop on the Fund’s new strategy to 2030. There will also be a talk from James Gare, partner at chartered accountants Monahans, and a session with Wiltshire Community Foundation Trustees and staff from Doorway Chippenham.

Margaret Firth, Wiltshire Community Foundation’s director of partnerships, and Rachel Hawley from research and data organisation OCSI, will also deliver a breakout session which introduces and demonstrates a new open access resource that can support local charities and voluntary groups to evidence need in their local area.

There will also be a breakout session on measuring and demonstrating impact, with examples from projects funded through the Foundation’s Targeting Health Inequalities Wiltshire programme.

Wiltshire Community Foundation’s joint chief executive, Fiona Oliver, said: “We are pleased to host this conference as we celebrate 50 years of working with the voluntary sector to identify and address local needs, improving lives in our communities.

“Collaboration and being informed are two of our core values, and we hope this conference reflects these principles through thought-provoking breakout sessions and valuable networking opportunities.”

The event is sponsored by commercial partners Gaiger, Wadworth, and TH White.

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