Our Testimonials
We are driving positive change by developing, connecting and empowering leaders in the voluntary and community Sector.
See what our members are saying
Join over 860 senior leaders from the VCSE sector in Northern Ireland
I’m a massive advocate for CO3.
I think it’s a fantastic organisation. It supports the sector in so many different ways in terms of collaboration, connections, leadership, networking, development opportunities…
Karen Gallagher
Consultant
Great Value for Money
I really was so surprised of the extents of the membership offering, which was really good value for money.
Joanne Wilson
Head of Coporate Services at Supporting Communities
The Coaching Approach Certificate has been really useful
I work with a range of organisations on different projects and the skills and the techniques that I have developed through the certificate will be incredibly helpful to me to support senior managers
Brenda Kelly
Consultant
After each Awards ceremony we receive lovely emails and messages from many of our members…
What a brilliant event that was yesterday. I wasn’t sure what to expect from an awards event which kicked off at 4pm – but it worked brilliantly and the earlier finishing time really works for anyone who has other commitments.
There was a brilliant and positive energy in the room and the appreciation of the work you guys do is tangible.
Thanks for the invite and I hope you are all having a slow day!
I just wanted to send a very quick email on behalf of Clanmil to congratulate you and the CO3 team on what was a really inspirational afternoon and evening. The whole thing was so slick and authentic, and I don’t think anyone could argue that Katriona O’Sullivan wasn’t the perfect guest for the fireside chat with Sarah.
How such a small team made today happen was amazing! Great to see them all and catch up.
I just wanted to thank each and every member of the CO3 team for an amazing and uplifting evening.
Every aspect was perfect, the music, the unforgettable Catriona, the wonderful MC, the delicious food, the sound and visuals and the logistics and administration. It all seemed effortless but, as I know from experience, none of this is easy to achieve. So, well done!
A big thanks for the invitation to the CO3 awards yesterday, congratulations to you and the team for such a well organised and inspirational event.
I thought the music was great and Katriona was excellent, her story really resonated.
Just a note to say congrats on last night and thanks a million to you and the whole team at CO3. It was a pleasure to be part of it – honestly the best awards event I’ve been too.
Hope you’re all going into the weekend smiling.
Just a brief note to thank you for inviting me to the fantastic Awards event last Friday.
There was such a lovely energy in the room throughout the day, and the Rock Choir was an inspired choice.
I was also really struck by Darren Burns’ powerful personal story, as was everyone else at the table.
Congratulations on another tour de force by a great team!
My staff were all talking about it this morning, they cant believe such a small team
delivered such a large event so successfully.
Everything was seamless, the venue was great, food great, hosting great, speeches great, entertainment great, Katriona was great…. I could go on! There was also a real and genuine buzz in the room.
This could not have happened without a huge amount of hard work and meticulous planning.
I hope you are well and are recovering following the Awards night .
I wanted to thank you and the team for a wonderful evening delivered with great style and fun as always .I appreciate it is a considerable undertaking however you and the team deliver it with such grace and apparent ease !
Please pass on my thanks and appreciation to the small but mighty team.
I genuinely meant what I said that to get recognition for doing a job you love is above and beyond, but to get it from CO3 and your peers is something very special, so thank you very much for that.
I also want to congratulate you and the team on an amazing event. I’ve been through the nerve wrecking experience of organising large scale public events in the past and I know the pressure and the challenges. Last night‘s event was so smooth, so well organised and there was such a wonderful vibe in the room. Please pass on my congratulations to your amazing team.
CO3 has the ability to open doors
I have been a member of CO3 for nearly 14 years, and throughout this time
I have found the support invaluable. CO3 has the ability to open doors for the sector and does it in a way that is inclusive. For a small organisation the reach of the team is really significant, bringing leaders together to network, reflect, learn and grow. CO3 is a values led organisation, focusing on building the resilience of leaders in the sector and ensuring we have a strong and vibrant third sector, making a central contribution to society in Northern Ireland.
CO3 offers a unique focus on issues affecting charities
CO3 membership provides invaluable support for 3rd Sector leaders in NI, it offers a unique focus on issues affecting charities. The CO3 team recognise the breadth of responsibilities and pressure leaders are under so they provide a distinctive safe space for support, networking and advice.
CO3 events are relevant and informative whilst enabling CEOs to engage with key decision makers; their awards events affords recognition of the exceptional talent in the sector. They also acknowledge the important leadership role of trustees and CO3 support enables them to network and develop better governance.
The courses suit my learning style giving me really valuable skills
I joined CO3 for two reasons – the Trustee networking aspect as I think building strong collaborative networks is vital to supporting and championing each other in the sector. Also for the fantastic training opportunities as I enjoy expanding my knowledge and the courses suit my learning style giving me really valuable skills.
It’s been great to meet new people through the network
Like most trustees I have learnt how to do the job on the job. Whilst learning through one’s personal experience is great, part of the value of the CO3 Trustee Network is that it enables one to learn from the experience of others as well. It’s been great to meet new people through the network and also to meet with long term colleagues who I didn’t know were trustees as well. Add in the expertise provided by the speakers at the events and the Trustee Network meetings are time very well spent indeed.
The one thing that CO3 brought was the ability to go and chat to somebody
As a chief executive it is a very lonely job at times, particularly in small charities and Northern Ireland has got many small charities. So when you feel that loneliness or isolation, the one thing that CO3 brought was the ability to go and chat to somebody, whether it be a mentor or whether it be just another chief exec to bounce off.
CO3 brings expert facilitators
CO3 offer a wide range of courses for middle, middle managers, senior managers and chief executives within the third sector. Some of the programmes include the Leading Edge programme, there’s other leadership programmes available and then they also offer some micro learning sessions around how to present things like finances to your board of directors, reviewing your governance structure within the organisation and they would bring in some expert facilitators to deliver those sessions as well.
A group of 60 leaders joined the Shared Island Forum
CO3 and Charity Institute Ireland developed the Shared Island Leadership Forum, which guided and connected CEOs from charity organisations across Ireland and Northern Ireland.
A great opportunity to make new connections
I think the Shared Island Leadership Forum is an excellent opportunity for leaders, both North and South to get together, to make new connections, to understand challenges that each of us face as individuals in the CEO position, and to be able to share those experiences to enable us to make sure that when we take the next step forward, it’s a positive one and it’s a more productive one so I think it is a great idea.
This is an opportunity to step away and have a different conversation
Very often when we work in our sector we become preoccupied with the work that we do and we can become a bit insular. This is an opportunity you’re supposed to reset, to step away and have a different conversation, to connect with people, to reconnect with some people.
A real opportunity to look at good practice across the island
I think it’s a real opportunity for shared learning, an opportunity to look at good practise across the island as a whole and hopefully we can learn from each other
Being open and sharing our own experiencie is key
I think we can make the most participating in the forum by being open and sharing our own experiences, listening to the experiences of others, particularly if they’re not in the same sector. So I think that’s the best way to do it and to support each other along the way, that’ll be key.”
The East West Forum for Civic Leadership was another great opportunity to learn and connect
A very exciting programme
The programme as a whole has been really exciting and it’s left me with a few things to go home and think about, about what I could put in place to enhance my leadership at the British Heart Foundation.
being able to explore issues with organisations from across Scotland and Northern Ireland, Wales and England has been really enlightening
This space has been really reflective and a great opportunity to think about the challenges and difficulties that we face in Northern Ireland. But being able to explore those issues and difficulties with organisations from across Scotland and Northern Ireland, Wales and England has been really enlightening in that there are uniqueness’s in each of the different areas of the UK.
Listenning to charity leaders from across the Four Nations has been impactful
I think that’s really been one of the most impactful things for me about being here is the opportunity to listen to charity leaders from across the Four Nations, hear their perspectives from the lots of different types of organisations that they’re running and see some similarities with my own, of course, because we all have shared concerns about funding and the geopolitical climate in which we’re operating, but also reflect on our different contexts as 4 nations as well
Our members also value our Policy Events
Another useful and informative event from CO3. A helpful summary of people and roles in the new Assembly and Executive, together with insights about how we can best engage with them. Good opportunities to network with others too
This was a very worthwhile event and time well spent in a busy week. It is really important for charities to understand how best to work with government and to influence spending and policy decisions in the restored Assembly. Andrew McCormick did an excellent job in using his experience to help us all to understand the complexities of this. I would be keen to attend similar events in the future.
The recent CO3 Meet the New Executive and Assembly event was incredibly timely coming less than a week after the restoration of the assembly. It was extremely interesting to hear experts analyse the new executive makeup and what that might mean for those of us working in VCSE and how we might connect with Stormont. In addition, it was a valuable and enjoyable opportunity to network with colleagues and peers from across the sector.
I found the event to be incredibly insightful, providing a comprehensive overview of the latest developments and positions of the new executive. The opportunity to network and engage with fellow attendees was invaluable, fostering meaningful discussions and connections for me.
The CO3 ‘Meet the new Executive and Assembly’ event was a great morning of networking and learning from expert speakers on the ways in which C&V leaders can influence the new incoming Executive. This was a very
Informative event which was excellently run and I will find the key takeaways very useful for my work ahead.
