Author: alan

Save the date: A fair transition for Dumfries and Galloway

The Just Transition Commission are visiting Dumfries and will be undertaking a series of visits and hosting a number of roundtables on Thursday and Friday 22nd and 23rd of August. On the afternoon of the 23rd, there is an invitation to their final roundtable.  The Just Transition Commission is in an independent group that advises… Read more »

Two new members of staff join Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway logo

We are delighted to welcome new leads for both Communities and Sector Support and Children, Young People and Families. Joanna Jones has started as our Lead for Communities and Sector Support and heads our team of development and support officers whose roles include building sector capacity, collaboration, leadership, good governance, sustainability, planning and volunteering. Before… Read more »

£347,015 fund opens to communities across Dumfries and Galloway

Community Led Local Development Fund Round Three

A funding programme worth a total of £347,015 is now open across Dumfries and Galloway. Charities, constituted community groups, co-operatives, public sector organisations, small and medium-sized enterprises, community interest companies, and community benefit societies based within the region can all apply to round three of the region’s Community Led Local Development Fund. A Local Action… Read more »

Sadness at the passing of our friend and colleague

Everyone at Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway is deeply saddened at the passing of our friend and colleague Sharee Donoghue. Sharee was our Lead for Employability, Skills and Learning and joined the organisation in November 2021. Since then, she built and strengthened relationships with partners and other third sector organisations using her experience of over… Read more »

Third sector given advance notice about launch of fund’s next round

The next round of the Community Led Local Development Fund in Dumfries and Galloway is on its way. The fund priorities locally will be: Small revenue grants will be available up to £5,000 and the main revenue and capital grants programme will open to applications up to £50,000. A Local Action Group (LAG) made up… Read more »

Community asset transfer success for groups and charities across the region

Dumfries and Galloway Council

Four community asset transfers from Dumfries and Galloway Council and the lease of land at Agnew Park in Stranraer to a local charity have been given the go-ahead this week. Queensberry Garages in Sanquhar was the site for a successful transfer application from Sanquhar Enterprise Company. Located off Queensberry Square, the garages will be refurbished… Read more »

Food Train – Volunteers’ Week 2024

Food Train

What do volunteers mean to Food Train? Volunteers are Food Train. The charity introduces us to some for Volunteers’ Week 2024. We’re so grateful to all those past, present, and future who care to give their time and effort to make Food Train services happen across Dumfries and Galloway. This celebration of volunteering week, we… Read more »

University invites third sector organisations to take part in welcome fairs

Third sector organisations are being invited to take part in the Welcome Week at The University of Glasgow, Dumfries Campus from September 16th-20th. The university is seeking enthusiastic stallholders for various fairs, held daily from 9.30am to 2.30pm in the Rutherford McCowan Building on the Crichton Campus. Here’s what is planned for the week: Monday,… Read more »

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway – Volunteers’ Week 2024

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Volunteers Week, we are taking a look closer to home and featuring some of our own staff who volunteer for local organisations in their spare time. Richard Rennie, is our Locality Development Officer in Nithsdale, and volunteers as a cricket club coach. He said: “I recently moved back… Read more »

Build Innovate Sustain conference postponed until later in the year

With the General Election due to take place on July 4, Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway has made the difficult decision to postpone our development conference ‘Build Innovate Sustain’ until later in the year. The election announcement has brought with it insurmountable logistical hurdles that require us to reschedule, to ensure the event can fully… Read more »

Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service – Volunteers’ Week 2024

DAGCAS

Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service profiles two volunteer generalist adviser for Volunteers’ Week 2024 Andrew Nyondo: Volunteer Generalist Adviser “Volunteering makes me feel like I am making a contribution to society.” Andrew Nyondo is a Volunteer Generalist Adviser at the Dumfries Bureau of Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service. Originally from Nigeria, he first… Read more »

Dumfries Y Gymnastics Club youngsters – Volunteers’ Week 2024

Young volunteers donate their time to Dumfries Y Gymnastics Club and are mentored through the Saltire Awards Scheme. With their passion for the sport, the fantastic team of 9 young volunteers work with the gymnasts weekly in their classes and help out at club discos and competitions.  We have had great success in mentoring our… Read more »

The Devil’s Porridge Museum – Volunteers Week 2024

The Devil's Porridge Museum

The success of The Devil’s Porridge Museum is attributed to our dedicated volunteers, who come from all age groups. Our volunteers support different areas of the museum, from reception and the museum’s cafe, to supporting our collections, research projects, and clubs, as well as educational and holiday activities. In 2023, they provided activities and events… Read more »

Dumfries Y Gymnastics Club – Volunteers’ Week 2024

Volunteers have always played a key role in our club structure throughout the years, more so now than ever. As our club continues to grow, the commitment and dedication from our volunteers is extremely valued. In our four-piece competitive section, we have Lorna and Lisa, who volunteer numerous hours weekly to help our gymnasts and… Read more »

Stewartry Dog Training Club – Volunteers’ Week 2024

Stewartry Dog Training Club members

For #VolunteersWeek, we feature Stewartry Dog Training Club, which was established in 1987 to provide people in the Stewartry and surrounding areas with an opportunity to train and learn with their dogs. The club also runs classes for puppies to help new owners, is registered with the Kennel Club and runs the Kennel Club Good… Read more »

Castle Douglas Development Forum – Volunteers’ Week 2024

For #VolunteersWeek, we feature some of the projects and the valuable work of Castle Douglas Development Forum. Stepping Stones Community Larder Stepping Stones Community Larder and Foodbank has been operating as a foodbank for over three years and more recently, as a community larder open to all, for almost a year now. They have an… Read more »

Celebrate your volunteers to mark 40th anniversary of Volunteers’ Week

The 40th anniversary of Volunteers’ Week is fast approaching, taking place from June 3-9. Once again, Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway would love to help you showcase your volunteers throughout the week. We will be featuring the region’s amazing volunteers (including some of our own staff) across all our channels and hope you will want… Read more »

A fond farewell for Elizabeth

Elizabeth Sykes and her partner Norrie McIntosh outside Burns House, home of the Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service Stranraer Bureau.

Elizabeth Sykes has worked as Manager of the Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service’s Stranraer Bureau since 2008.

Regional Arts Fund supports third sector organisations to deliver events

DG Unlimited

Dumfries and Galloway Council in partnership with DG Unlimited has made grant awards totalling £50,000 from the Dumfries and Galloway Regional Arts Fund 2024/25. Thirteen local groups across the region are benefiting from the fund this year. Frank Hayes, Chair of DG Unlimited, the independent charity that champions the region’s arts, said: “DG Unlimited is proud… Read more »

The Usual Place one of eight in region to benefit from Lottery funding

Young people at The Usual Place.

The Usual Place in Dumfries and seven other organisations in the region will benefit from a share of over £15 million of National Lottery funding which will help to keep vital local services running. The funding, made possible by National Lottery players, means that many community and voluntary sector groups will be able to continue… Read more »

Award celebrates the value of volunteers at Food Train

Food Train has secured top marks for the way in which the charity supports its volunteers to make a positive impact on older peoples’ lives. The Dumfries-founded organisation has been awarded Investing in Volunteers (IiV) status, recognising its high standards for good practice in how it works with its volunteers. Food Train’s operations are supported… Read more »

Pop-up enterprise hub launched on Dumfries High Street

• The launch of Midsteeple Quarter’s Enterprise Pop-up Hub at The Smithy, Dumfries High Street. Midsteeple Quarter Community Engagement Activator Kathryn Hill and board member Robert Richmond are pictured, front, with, left to right, Kenny Bowie (Dumfries & Galloway Chamber of Commerce), Kirstie Scrimgeour (South of Scotland Enterprise), Selina McMorran (Third Sector Dumfries & Galloway), Gary Calderwood (Business Gateway), Jamie Shovelin (Dumfries & Galloway Chamber of Commerce) and Sarah-Jane Burns (CodeBase)

Fledgling enterprises in Dumfries are being offered the chance to trade for free on the High Street. The opportunity to make use of The Smithy from Fridays until Mondays is part of a package of support being made available for start-ups through a Pop-up Enterprise Hub initiative aimed at providing a springboard to success. Led… Read more »

Message from Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway’s new CEO

Hello. I’m delighted to have joined Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway at such an important time for our sector and for our region. Much has changed over the past few years as we face the post-pandemic challenges that we haven’t yet addressed, on top of already difficult pressures for our children, families, and communities. I’m… Read more »

Consultant sought to map employability services in region

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway (TSDG) is looking for a consultant to identify third sector organisations within the region that are providing employability-related services to deliver activities linking to the Employability Pipeline. TSDG is one of 32 third sector interfaces in Scotland. There is one in each local authority area. TSDG has four purposes: To… Read more »

Lottery Funding assures befriending support in Dumfries and Galloway

Penny Halliday

A Listening Ear Dumfries and Galloway will now be able to expand its current befriending services throughout the region following funding from the National Lottery Community Fund, Improving Lives. The project will see A Listening Ear continue its work to support people who are isolated and lonely in the region, extending its already successful telephone… Read more »