Developing communication skills in BME organisations

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Communications training videos

'Be Seen, Be Heard, Be Understood', co-hosted by KnowHow NonProfit and Voice4Change England, has been created to deliver marketing and communications training and resources to the BME voluntary sector. However, many of the communications training materials we've developed here are relevant to all non profits:

• Race for 2012 video: Annie Dare, special advisor to Martha Lane Fox, explains how and why non profit organisations should encourage people in their communities to improve their IT skills
• BME third sector issues video: a range of third sector spokespeople talk about the challenges BME organisations face in communicating with impact
• Working with social media video: Ian Parkinson conducts a workshop on how non profits can engage with low-cost social media tools such as Facebook and Twitter
• BME comms: top tips video: third sector spokespeople give their top tips for effective communications
• Raising your media profile video: Jinaid Jilaini from Oxfam and Muslim Aid talks about press and PR strategy for non profits
  

Why tackle BME communications?

It is vitally important that the voice of the BME third sector is heard so it can influence decision-making at a local and national level. Already marginalised, BME organisations suffer further when their marketing and communications efforts do not hit the mark. This may be due to:

• a lack of technological understanding of new ways of communication
  
• poor funding, leading to low technical and staff resources
• a lack of access to tailored support and training
• a failure to prioritise marketing and communications, focusing instead on policy issues

The events aim to raise the profile of good communications in BME third sector organisations and kickstart training initiatives that will help get their voices heard.

How it works

Our focus in these events is to improve the marketing and communications skills of practitioners working in BME organisations.

We bring trainers and delegates together to explore different communications tools and implementation methods that will deliver a greater impact for the BME third sector.

The launch event - video highlights

The first event took place at Cass Business School on 14 March and had speakers from leading charities, such as the Media Trust and Oxfam. It also had contributions from Race for 2012, the Digital Inclusion Taskforce. It was attended by marketplace representatives from the Big Lottery Fund, Charity Technology Trust, NAVCA, Small Charities Commission and Pilotlight.

This short video brings you the highlights of the day:

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Read a transcript of this video (Word, 31kb)

Continue the debate

The day saw great engagement between delegates and those providing training. Please carry on talking to each other in our discussion forums.

We've started a thread, so feel free to respond, or start your own discussion at Discuss the main challenges facing effective BME communications

 Links

• Voice4Change
• Future Content
• MediaTrust
• Oxfam