Two Months In with our Office Co-ordinator
- meganatkinson3
- Sep 24
- 3 min read
New beginnings, meeting the team and how to understand sector jargon with Gayle the Jargon Duck.
Hello! My name is Megan, and I am the Office Co-ordinator for Wirral CVS. Being new to the Wirral is exciting and being able to learn about all the good work organisations are doing across the sector is extremely motivating.
Attending my first COP (Community of Practice) meeting was the perfect place to get a snapshot of what the Wirral is up to and how the community links together to support each other. Everyone has been very welcoming and encouraging, which makes being 'the new guy' a lot less intimidating.
The team at Wirral CVS have helped me get comfortable in my new role whilst giving me a crash course in sector terminology. Although learning about the sector has been exciting and motivating, it has also been daunting and overwhelming at times, but before we talk about some of the challenges of being new to the VCSFE on the Wirral, a little about me...
After COVID-19 lockdowns I found myself craving a sense of community, but I didn't know how to go about it. I decided the best way to get involved was through volunteering with local community spaces and organisations, so I sent email after email and waited for a response. Volunteering began slowly, an event shift here and a book-organising shift there, but it quickly led to me speaking to a large number of community members from various backgrounds and experiences over a cup of tea and many biscuits. This was the community I was missing!
After volunteering for just under a year I was lucky enough to be offered a paid position in my local community hub as their 'Community Engagement Receptionist'. I fell in love with the work quickly and knew I wanted to stay in the VCFSE as long as it would have me.
I have been in my current post at Wirral CVS for two months now and feeling more settled with every week that goes by. However, my first couple of weeks could be an internal struggle at times. Meeting new people and learning about their work was exciting, but I began to notice a pattern with conversations.
In meetings, during casual talks and even in email communications there would come a point where the conversation began to shift. The speaker would get into a rhythm and all of a sudden I could not understand 90% of what they were talking about. I heard acronym after acronym, and some were said so fast I could barely hear each letter. At first I was anxious about addressing this issue out of fear that I would be viewed as inadequate. Was I expected to understand this? Is anyone else feeling the same as me? Will I sound stupid if I ask?
These feelings continued was until one of my colleagues noticed my 'deer in headlights' expression and gave me the great idea to make my own Glossary. This helped me realise the feelings I had were normal, but the only way to improve was to tackle the issue head-on. Now, not only do I have a Glossary, I also have a duck (Gayle) to quack during team meetings when jargon is being used!
The Gayle Rule: If you hear the quack, you must define what you said before moving on.
If you're curious about what made it into my Glossary, take a look below! Did I miss anything? Let us know and help expand the glossary so that it can be a resource for everyone who's new to the local sector.
ABCD: Asset Based Community Development
BAME: Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic
CAB: Citizens Advice Bureau
CCHF: Community Care and Health Forum
CHP: Community Health Partnership
CIC: Community Interest Company
CLD: Community Learning and Development
Cllrs: Councillors
COP: Community of Practice
CPP: Community Planning Partnership
CSS: Council for Social Service
DCMS: Department for Culture, Media and Sport
HAF: Holiday, Activities and Food Programme
HLF: Heritage Lottery Fund
ICB: Integrated Care Board
ICO: Information Commissioner’s Office
LA: Local Authority
LCP: Learning Community Partnership
LCRCA: Liverpool City Region Combined Authority
LDR: Local Democracy Reporter
LIQA: Local Infrastructure Quality Accreditation
LOIP: Local Outcomes Improvement Plan
LPG: Locality Planning Group
MPA: Merseyside Pensioners Association
NAVCA: National Association for Voluntary and Community Action
NDP: Neighbourhood Development Plans
NPC: National Pensioners Convention
OKR: Objectives and Key Results
ONS: Office for National Statistics
PPF: Public Partnership Forum
RNIB: Royal National Institute of Blind People
SLN/SLG: Sector Leaders Network or Group
TSO: Third Sector Organisation
VCFSE: Voluntary, Community, Faith, social Enterprise (variations: CVF)
VMF: Volunteer Managers Forum
VSNW: Voluntary Sector Northwest
WSBPS: Wirral Society of the Blind and Partially Sighted
Here are some extra jargon busting resources that can hopefully help you too:
NHS Acronym Buster
Think Local Act Personal Jargon Buster
Third Sector Hub Jargon Buster
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