The Birmingham Association of Neighbourhood Forums (BANF) is a city-wide umbrella organisation. It aims to provide neighbourhood forums with the necessary support to ensure that they are as effective as possible in involving and representing local people.

Association meetings are held eight times per annum to which each neighbourhood forum is entitled to send two representatives.

BANF is a company limited by guarantee and is run by a management committee elected on an annual basis by representatives of the individual neighbourhood forums.

We couldn't complete our modernisation strategy without considering the BANF Printshop.

This has, in the past, been a great asset for forums allowing them access to low cost printing without them having to sacrifice on quality.

As well as the normal low cost, self service, facility we have introduced a service whereby you can opt for the complete printing and folding process to be carried out by the printshop. This, of course, attracts an additional charge but is still far cheaper than the prices of commercial printers.

The printing facility is not just available to member forums. Any organisation can avail themselves of our services and save themselves a deal of money.

So, for all your printing needs phone us on 0121 359 4224

Experts believe neighbourhood partnerships are the best way to bring about the improvements needed to improve quality of life and safeguard towns and cities against climate change.

A new report from the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) says a neighbourhood-based approach is the most cost-effective way to upgrade local infrastructure.

Birmingham Council has appointed the chief executive of Newcastle-under-Lyme Council, Mark Barrow, as its new strategic director of development. Mr Barrow will oversee the council’s planning, regeneration and development strategy and be responsible for ‘redesigning services, where necessary, to ensure they are best suited to achieving results in the current economic and political climate’.

Anne Ward, the chief executive of Plus Dane housing group is stepping down. Ms Ward has worked in the housing sector since 1967 and set up Dane Housing, the first housing transfer organisation in Cheshire, in 1998.

The International Cooperative Alliance has named Charles Gould as its new director-general. The former chief executive of Volunteers of America has been brought on board to lead the organisation as it prepares for the International Year of the Cooperative in 2012.

A new campaign has launched to help social enterprises and community trading organisations buy goods and services from each other.

Shop for Change is the brainchild of the Initiative for Social Entrepreneurs (ISE) and aims to keep the third sector in Birmingham flourishing at a time of public spending cuts.

A survey into the purchasing habits of social enterprises and other third sector organisations in Birmingham revealed that almost half source less than 10% of their supplies from within the sector.

About Third Sector Assembly

The Third Sector Assembly is a long-term association of existing and future third sector networks.

It is brought together by BVSC to improve communication across the sector, to grow its ability to influence and to improve relationships with the public sector. Read More

Recent government policy has highlighted the importance of participation and engagement and local authorities are now seen as pivotal to the involvement of local citizens in civic life. Alongside this, there is an expectation that local government and the third sector will work together, both to improve public services and to foster the wider development of civil society.