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Volunteer West Dunbartonshire
Do you have new volunteer opportunities coming up that you would like to advertise?  Or would you like to boost one of your adverts to increase interest? Remember our new platform is free to use for West Dunbartonshire based organisations. Use the platform to promote your opportunity, engage your volunteers, and even manage their training and shifts.

Don’t worry if you haven’t used the platform before or are unsure of its capabilities. There are free training tutorials to guide you through. We are also here to help. Get in touch today to learn more: volunteering@wdcvs.com

Learning Needs Analysis Questionnaire
West Dunbartonshire Child Protection Committee are currently undertaking a Learning Needs Analysis to help plan future multi-agency child protection learning within West Dunbartonshire. As part of this they would appreciate if you could take the time to complete this form. The more people that take part the better understanding they will have about the learning needs of the workforce to help them plan training and other learning events. This will be accessible until Friday 2^nd October. Take part here

Getting started with AI for leaders
The latest in CAST’s series of free self-serve AI courses is designed to help senior leaders get to grips with AI. Many charity leaders they speak to recognise the importance of AI, but haven’t had the time to explore the tools fully. Meanwhile, their teams may already be experimenting, making it increasingly important for leaders to feel able to engage in the conversation, ask the right questions and understand the opportunities and risks. Their new course will give you an understanding of what AI is, guide you through practical, hands-on experience of using an AI tool (Claude) – and provide you with a host of useful onward resources. The course consists of four weekly emails, each with a 30-40 minute activity. Sign up for CAST’s new AI for Leaders course here

LGBTQ+ young people research survey
LGBT Youth Scotland wants to hear from LGBTQ+ people aged 13 – 25 in Scotland in their Life in Scotland for LGBTQ+ young people research survey. They are asking about your experiences of community, healthcare, education, sport and media, justice, and your feelings of safety and happiness as LGBTQ+ young people in Scotland. The research is led by LGBTQ+ young researchers so that it meets the needs of your communities. By taking part in this survey you will help make meaningful and direct change for LGBTQ+ communities in Scotland. LGBT Youth Scotland will use the research findings to influence the Scottish Government, decision makers, and service providers, like Education Scotland and the NHS, to make life in Scotland better for LGBTQ+ young people and make sure your experiences are heard. This survey closes on Monday 5^th October.

VIVA Awards: Open to Applications
The VIVA (Valuing Involvement and Volunteering Achievements) awards, organised by West Dunbartonshire CVS, will celebrate the unique contribution volunteers make across the authority. Submissions will be assessed by an independent judging panel, with three individuals or organisations shortlisted in each category. The Awards Ceremony will take place on December 2nd at the Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel. To find out more and to make a nomination go to our dedicated VIVA Awards page.

Free Digital Inclusion Training
Charity Digital has recently launched a free course to help Scottish charities become digitally inclusive. This has been funded by the Scottish Government’s ‘Connecting Scotland’ Digital Inclusion Fund and Okta For Good. Their free online course, “Achieving Digital Inclusion”, provides guidance on improving access to services and devices while also helping your organisation enhance digital accessibility, develop digital skills and build digital confidence. The module takes approximately 2 hours to complete. Upon completion participants receive a certificate and access to their digital inclusion toolkit for continued support. Enrol for free by clicking here and entering the code digital Inclusion.