In October's PARP.
Some useful links:
CDX blog
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Emma on Twitter
CDX on Facebook
CDX on LinkedIn
Big Society Network
Big Society in the North
CLG Website
PARP! (Policy And Research Perusal) is a monthly policy update, written by Emma Lees, CDX Development Officer - Policy.
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Hello!
 October has been a busy month for all of us at CDX as we started the Regional events on the 30 September. For us newbies at CDX it has been great to get out and meet some of you, to discuss, debate and develop Big Society.
It would be impossible for me to send out this month's PARP without talking about the Government's Spending Review - see the first item.
And so, on with the PARP!
Emma Lees
Development Officer - Policy
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Funding Cuts
 On 20 October the Government announced the results of it's Spending Review. Much of the details were expected and it saw massive reductions in the Government budget.
£81 billion worth of cuts were announced to address the structural deficit. Among proposals were:
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Almost 500,000 public sector jobs to be lost.
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£18 billion of cuts to CLG budget.
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Changes to the child tax benefit system.
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£100 million transition fund for to get organisations ready to take over public sector.
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Changes to housing benefit (see this BBC report on who is going to lose out).
A huge area of concern about the cuts is the way it will affect different groups. I found this article on the effect of spending cuts on women really interesting.
Here are some other resources on the Spending review that might be of interest:
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Building a Stronger Civil Society
 As mentioned in the October e-zine, Nick Hurd, Minister for Civil Society, last week launched Building a Stronger Civil Society, a government strategy for voluntary and community groups, charities and social enterprises. The Office for Civil Society have also launched Supporting a Stronger Civil Society, a Cabinet Office consultation on improving support for frontline civil society organisations. Read the press release.
We will be sending a brief consultation out to all CDX members early next week, so keep an eye on your emails for an opportunity to be included in the CDX response.
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The Quango cull
 The final list of Public Bodies to be axed has been released.
On the list are our collegues at Community Development Foundation (CDF) who have announced they will continue as a charity.
Alongside this they have been selected as one of the delivery agencies for future government work programmes.
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The Civil Effect
 I've recently been reading the ResPublica report on 'The Civil Effect,' which warns that the development of David Cameron’s Big Society will fail unless urgent action is taken to better support civil society in our public services.
The report talks about the ways in which red tape and commissioning need to be strengtherned.
It makes interesting reading, but for me it also raises many concerns about the expectation on the public and on the community and volunteer organisations from the Government.
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NESTA - a Challenge for our Neighbourhoods
More information on the Big Society Bank starts to emerge and NESTA are starting to look at piloting the bank activities.
If you have any social investment finance ideas, NESTA want to hear from you. The deadline for proposals is 5 November, so act quickly!
 NESTA have also launched the Neighbourhood Challenge Programme which aims to support community-led innovation. The programme is asking organisations to tender for an 18 month programme trailing approaches to community organising relevant to their own area. Again, the deadline is tight - 22 November 2010.
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Community Budgets
 CLG have announced that 16 areas will get a community budget to help protect the 'vulnerable'. Operating from 2011-12 the areas have shown they have strong local relationships with communities.
Among the areas are Birmingham, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bradford, Essex, Greater Manchester (a group of 10 councils), Hull, Kent, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, London Borough of Barnet, London Borough of Croydon, London Borough of Islington, London Borough of Lewisham, The London Boroughs of Westminster, Hammersmith and Fulham, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Wandsworth, Swindon.
Free Schools
In education news, there has been more information on the free schools agenda and the role which the community will play. I'm watching this with interest and will keep you posted
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No PARP is complete without a Big Society section...
The Big Society Network have relaunched their website, following a number of criticisms of it. The new site does give a bit more detail and includes new sections.
Someone worth following online is David Wilcox, Social Reporter. He often has comment and opinion on Big Society and follows discussions closely.
In this report he talks about 'Your Square Mile" idea, which will act as "a collective voice of citizen needs and be a challenging partner to Government."
Event: Community Development and the Big Society
3 November, London
Places are still available at this CDNL (Community Development Network London) event next week. Book your place now if you haven't already!
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 Shadow Minister for Civil Society
Roberta Blackman-Woods, Labour MP for the City of Durham, has been appointed the shadow minister for civil society.
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Trustees' Week 2010
 In case you missed it, this week has been Trustees' week, and here at CDX we'd like to take the opportunity say thanks to our fabulous Board of Trustees. They do an amazing job of helping and supporting us, giving up their time to ensure that CDX runs as smoothly as possible and represents the views of our members.
If you are interested in becoming a CDX Trustee, contact Denise for more info.
If you'd like to find out more about the Trustee role, it's really worth having a look at these KnowHow NonProfit resources, including a number of podcasts.
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 That's all for now folks, until next month!
Emma Lees
CDX Development Officer - Policy
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