Member Survey 2010

ANHLC member Survey 2010 and ANHCA National Neighbourhood House Survey
It is the time of year again that we present to you the ANHLC member survey 2010. You may have heard Angela describe the data you give us through these surveys as being like gold, and although it might not turn heads like a bar of the real stuff it is invaluable to the work we do as a peak representing the sector.

This year we are very excited to be administering the survey in collaboration with ANHCA, the National Neighbourhood House peak body, who are collecting data on the Neighbourhood House sector nationally. This means you only need to complete one survey that covers both ANHCA and ANHLC’s data requirements.

When you click on the link to the survey the first section to appear is the ANCHA survey. As you progress through the survey you will get to the second section which is the ANHLC survey.

ANHCA National Neighbourhood House Survey
Your National Peak Body, Australian Neighbourhood Houses and Centres Association (ANHCA - formerly National Link) is collaborating with each State Peak Body to survey the 1000 Neighbourhood & Community Houses and Centres across Australia. The data collected will be used by ANHCA nationally and on a state by state basis by the respective State Peaks. Survey results will be de-identified, i.e. not attributed to individual Neighbourhood Houses, for reporting purposes.

Why should you bother with this survey?

  • Want more funding?
  • What about access to DGR?

There are over 1000 Neighbourhood & Community Houses and Centres across Australia, yet we do not have a full picture of who we all are and what we do. Imagine the power of the statistics of that many local organisations in communities across the country focussed on strengthening their local community. If we can put that information in front of federal politicians and bureaucracies the sheer weight of the economics, employment and volunteer opportunities that we all represent can open doors for you and all of us.

We believe past lobbying and advocacy campaigns at a local, State and Federal level have been hamstrung by our lack of a full picture of our sector. For example the recent DGR campaign needed data to develop an economic case for the “worth” of our sector to the economy but the information we had across the country was patchy.

On behalf of ANHCA, thank you for participating and if you have any queries about the ANHCA survey please contact ANHLC.

ANHLC Member Survey 2010
Like last year we are conducting the survey electronically using Survey Monkey, which makes it so much easier for us in terms of data analysis and reporting.

The ANHLC member survey provides us with vital baseline data on the sector as a whole to inform our policy and advocacy work. We’re gathering this data primarily to report our achievements and help demonstrate the contribution that Houses / Centres make to communities.

NH Networks will receive data on the Houses / Centres in their individual networks, whilst ANHLC will post the overall survey results on our website and in our newsletter. We ask for the name of the House / Centre for data verification purposes: all public reporting will be de-identified (numbers/stats only).

This online survey should take approximately 20-30 minutes to complete as long as you have the right information at hand.

Sounds too good to be true, right?

OK, nothing’s perfect. Due to the structure of the survey you must complete the survey in one sitting. You can use the “previous” and “next” navigation buttons to go back and edit pages if you change your mind.

It is important you do NOT use your browser’s “back” or “forward” buttons to navigate through the survey. Use the “previous” and “next” buttons at the bottom of each survey page instead.

We apologise for these limitations. However, to overcome them we recommend you collect all the required information and documentation before starting the survey and set aside some uninterrupted time to complete it.

The following topics are covered in the survey:

  • Income and sources of funding
  • Programs and participants
  • Staffing and volunteers
  • Planning and needs analysis
  • ACE and ACFE
  • Childcare

In terms of income, we are interested in the total income of the House / Centre as per your most recent annual report for the year ending Dec 2010 or June 2010, whichever applies.

The most of the other questions refer to the 2010-11 financial year and some to the 2010 calendar year. This is due to varying arrangements of funding bodies, e.g. NHCP works on a financial year and ACFE on a calendar year. Read the questions carefully to be sure.

We are also interested in how many different sources of funding you are drawing on for the 2010-11 period – information which can be found in your current Funding and Service Agreements, contracts and/or organisational budget.

Here are some tips for completing the survey quickly and painlessly:

  • Look at the checklist below and have all relevant documentation and figures ready before you start
  • Set aside some uninterrupted time to complete the survey – if you have all documentation at hand it should only take about 20-30 minutes
  • If the survey will not let you go past a certain page check you have answered all the required (asterisked) questions, and that you have answered if the required format eg whole numbers (no words and no $$ signs etc).

If you have any problems with the survey contact Liz at ANHLC on (03) 9654 1104 or elizabeth@anhlc.asn.au

Survey check-list

Before you start, gather together the following:

  • Your most recent Annual Report (for the year ending Dec 2008 or June 2009, whichever applies)
  • NHCP Funding and Service Agreement 2009-10
  • ACFE Funding Agreement 2009
  • Any other funding agreements for 2009-10 or 2009 (e.g. from local government, other grants, DHS / HACC, VicHealth, etc)
  • NHCP and / or ACFE reporting documentation
  • Organisational tax records e.g. Notice of Endorsement as Tax Concession Charity (formerly known as Income Tax Exempt Charity or ITEC) and / or DGR endorsement

It might also be helpful to have some of the following internal records or reporting documents:

  • Organisational budget for 2009-10
  • Volunteers log book or record of attendance
  • House / Centre program evaluation reports
  • House / Centre participant or student feedback summaries
  • Project reports
  • Childcare attendance records
  • Community Needs Analysis reports
  • Staff and payroll records

ANHLC and the NH Networks are working in partnership on this survey in order to reduce the workload for all concerned: for you, it means questions that would usually be asked by both ANHLC and the Networks have been combined into one survey. You get to indicate at the end of the survey if you are happy for ANHLC to pass on your raw (identifiable) data to your NH Network, or whether you would rather we just include your data as part of a general (de-identified) report back to the Network.

If you cannot complete the survey online please contact ANHLC and we will provide you with a paper copy. If you would like your answers from last year’s survey to assist in the 2010 survey contact us and we will email them to you as a PDF.

The survey closes on 25 February 2011.

So now that you are ready, click this link to be taken to the survey:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/anhca_survey_2010

Good luck and thank you for participating!