“VAST offered me a pathway which made it all seem possible. They have been on hand along the way for help and advice.”
Georgina, Reaching CIC
About VAST
Supporting the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Sector for over 100 years, VAST is a registered charity providing vital services across Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire.
We are passionate about people and communities, and we use that passion to fuel our commitment and dedication to developing a thriving VCSE sector to improve the quality of life for local communities.
Everything we do helps to create, support, and develop strong, efficient, and resilient voluntary and community groups, enabling them to thrive and flourish, and ultimately, to provide the best services possible to support their communities.
We act as an advocate on behalf of the VCSE sector, supporting cross-sector work with public and health sector partners. We also provide back-office support, bespoke capacity building and volunteering support, and a comprehensive training programme to enable VCSE organisations to flourish.
A flourishing sector = thriving communities!
So this is what we do...
As a Local infrastructure Organisation for the voluntary, community & social enterprise (VCSE) sector, VAST’s role is to provide leadership, advocacy, representation, and support to not-for-profit organisations as well as supporting collaborative cross-sector work with both the public and health sectors.
Our VCSE support includes charity accountancy and payroll services, as well as organisational development, tailored volunteering support, and a comprehensive training programme.
VAST’s home is the Dudson Centre in Hanley, and our fully-serviced office space makes it the perfect home for other local VCSE organisations too! With easy access to high-quality meeting room and catering facilities, the centre has everything you need to host successful meetings, training and workshops, events, and networking sessions.
how we do it...
Essentially, VAST aims to be the ‘One-Stop-Support-Shop’ for Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire’s VCSE sector.
Everything we do helps to create, support, and develop strong, efficient, resilient voluntary and community groups, enabling them to thrive and flourish, and ultimately, to provide the best services possible to support their communities.
and why
Because we’re passionate about people, and communities are at the heart of everything we do. It’s our mission to develop a thriving VCSE sector to improve the quality of life for people in our local communities.
Click on one of the functions below to find out more about our work
With the sector, for the sector.
Operational, strategic, and crossing the sectors.
A focus on what’s strong, not what’s wrong.
Inclusive, fulfilling, and supportive opportunities.
Feedback
We’re always trying to improve our services and support to make sure we’re delivering what our sector needs. To help us make these improvements, please let us know how we’re doing and how you think we can improve our services.
Our annual reports
Our previous Trustees’ Reports and Financial Statements are available to read below.
For more information, please get in touch.
What our clients say
"The support from VAST staff is invaluable for sharing ideas and information."
"A fantastic service. Highly professional, helpful, accurate, timely, always goes that extra mile. I am reassured by the high quality of service and the staff excellence."