The GCVS Policy Team ensures that the views of Glasgow's voluntary sector are heard in policy development processes at both local and national levels.

We communicate the concerns of the sector to elected officials, statutory agencies and other relevant stakeholders following regular consultation with our members and partnership organisations. We have a number of networks whose members ensure that we are updated with information from across the sector.

Likewise, we update the sector through  newsletters, our website and briefings, on the latest citywide and national policy developments.

GCVS represents the sector on several city-wide partnerships and participates in a range of policy-making forums. We believe that a well connected sector is key to ensuring that the views of local organisations and community groups are represented effectively to citywide and national stakeholders.

To achieve this we facilitate the Citywide Voluntary Sector Network, a group comprised of representatives from the ten local voluntary sector networks in the city, who communicate what is happening in community planning and the voluntary sector at the local level. They also sit on the boards of local community planning partnerships.

Over recent years the sector has played an increasingly important role in the delivery of public services and as a result, policy developments at all levels of government have the potential to impact positively, or negatively, on voluntary sector organisations and service users. 

GCVS is a member of the Glasgow Interface Steering Group, set up following proposals set out by the Scottish Government for the development of Third Sector Interfaces in Scotland. The role of this interface is to provide a single point of contact for government agencies and other public bodies to communicate and negotiate with the sector. This follows the adoption of the Glasgow Compact, which set out the basis of a new relationship between the third sector and public bodies.

The sector is acknowledged at national level as key in identifying emerging trends and responds to changing circumstances through direct contact with service users and the innovative approaches often pioneered by third sector organisations. The challenge for GCVS is to find ways to ensure the sector's expertise and contribution can be maximised in Glasgow. The emerging Interface offers considerable potential in achieving this.