'Beyond Survival: the BME Strategy Programme' aims to help create more resilient and more strategic black and minority ethnic (BME) organisations through a cascade model of specially trained 'strategy champions' from infrastructure bodies working with the target organisations.

Meeting the needs of BME organisations

The programme is looking to meet the needs identified in the Performance and Race Equalities Project (2007) by delivering a permanent improvement in the infrastructure support given to BME organisations on strategy.

The programme plans to increase the strategic planning skills of leaders of VCOs that work with or are run by specific minority ethnic or faith communities, and to provide opportunities to explore their responses to pressing strategic issues in collaboration with each other.

It is run by brap and NCVO, and funded through Capacitybuilders' Improving Reach fund.

Programme methods

The programme, which will run from early 2009 to March 2011, operates through a cascade model; recruiting strategy champions from within infrastructure organisations to work with us to deliver key elements of the programme:

• Twenty-five staff from infrastructure agencies will be recruited as strategy champions. 
• They will receive free training and support on better strategies for BME organisations from brap and NCVO (either in London or Birmingham).
• They will then in turn deliver training and support to chief executives of five BME organisations, funded by a contribution to the infrastructure organisation from the programme.

Creating a buzz beyond the programme

A simple online club will be created for those involved in the programme, enabling: 

• strategy champions to share their experiences and challenges
• BME organisations that receive the training to get in touch with each other and share ideas and learning
• the development of a repository of information about the shifting strategic context for BME organisations, and about the strategic responses that BME organisations are adopting.

Learning from the programme will be made available online and through presentations at events to engage others, including funders, with the issue of strategy in BME organisations.

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