Inform & Influence is a free training course for young people aged 16 to 25 who are outside of formal education or not in employment and training. The objectives of this workshop are to: help young people speak out on why they don’t ‘do politics’; give them a better understanding of what democracy is all about; provide them with a better understanding of how their country is governed; let them know how their involvement in politics can impact on decisions which affect young people living in their country. If you can provide up to ten young people that fit the criteria and a training room then the British Youth Council will provide a three hour training course with an experienced trainer to facilitate a fun and engaging training course for FREE, with lunch included.

If you are interested in joining up with another organisation to lower costs for training, let us know. E-mail us at hiccap@scvo.org.uk

The Scottish Urban Regeneration Forum (SURF) and the Scottish Government's Scottish Centre for Regeneration (SCR) are teaming up again to deliver the prestigious SURF Awards for Best Practice in Urban Regeneration 2008. These are presented each year to projects that are doing outstanding regeneration work in some of Scotland's most disadvantaged communities. The deadline for nominations is 12 noon on Friday 19 September 2009.

The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator has published 'Public and Charity Perspectives: Summary of the 2008 OSCR Surveys'. Two surveys carried out earlier this year tracked levels of public trust in Scottish charities and sought feedback from charities on OSCR's priorities, communications and operational functions.