Steve Miller - Project Manager

At any one time there are around 30 traveller families in Northumberland, and quite often it is their children who miss out on basic services. The Northumberland Children Traveller’s Advocacy Project strives to tackle this, and provides young people with access to basic health care and education services.

Steve joined PNE's Building Capacity in Voluntary Organisations (BCVO) course to learn more about strategic management, as his background was mainly in office development.

“I heard about the course from a colleague. The PNE Group has a great reputation in the voluntary sector, so I thought I’d go on the course.”

For Steve, every session on the BCVO covered areas that were significant and applicable to the running of his organisation. However, there is one particular session that stands out for Steve.

“We had a session on employment law and a solicitor was brought in to talk. Everything he said was really relevant.”

The BCVO course has helped Steve tremendously in his managerial role. Understanding the role his organisation has in the voluntary sector, the importance of future planning, and investment in staff development are areas that have helped his organisation to grow.

“I have been on many courses provided by different providers, but this course was really switched on.”

Whilst on the course, Steve chose to do his NVQ level 5. Steve says that in the past he was put off doing an NVQ because of the heavy workload. However, when he joined the BCVO he was pleasantly surprised to learn of the “paperless” route approach.

“The paperless NVQ route was brilliant. It really is the way forward for the voluntary sector as it’s relevant to what we do. It gives us a touch of professionalism to compete with other sectors, and it’s environmentally friendly!”