The BCB is certified by the Bermuda National Standards Committee

 

 

The Bermuda National Standards Committee is announcing another banner year of progress in the strengthening of Bermuda's services to vulnerable families and the non-profit sector in general.  

 

The BNSC is a public-private partnership whose members are focused on supporting increased accountability, programme evaluation, and accreditation from those organizations that participate in their process for accountability.

 

The Bermuda National Standards Committee is a group of Bermuda funders, policy makers, and professionals who united to create opportunities for human service organisations and charities to use when seeking to demonstrate the quality of their work and meet the requirements of their donors and clients.

 

In 2005 the BNSC established a memorandum of understanding with the Council on Accreditation (COA) in New York to operate the first international COA accrediting process. The agreement includes a commitment to preserve the international standards and use international reviewers while maintaining a less expensive and more culturally relevant Bermuda operation. Bermuda was the first country to forge such a partnership and several countries have sought to make similar agreements with the COA since.

 

Since 2005, the BNSC has provided internationally recognized accreditation status to seven organizations in Bermuda that provide prevention and intervention programming in the field of Human Services. Three of those organisations are sections of the Government's Department of Child & Family services. The other four are Bermuda Charities. They each underwent a detailed site-visit where international reviewers trained by COA as volunteer auditors visited the applicants for accreditation to confirm the quality of their operations.

 

The Board of the Bermuda National Standards Committee is pleased to announce that the newly accredited members of BNSC as of January 1^st, 2009 are Child & Family Services and Happy Valley Day Care Centre. These two Government service providers have demonstrated that they are operating at an international level of best practice accountability in all areas and will continue to report on their success and growth to the BNSC each year.

 

Many charities do not provide a direct prevention or intervention service that requires accreditation but still desire a vehicle for demonstrating accountability and validating the high quality of their work. The BNSC offers an Organisational Certification process for groups that fit that description. A total of four charities are now certified through BNSC.

 

The Board of the Bermuda National Standards Committee is pleased to announce that the newly certified members of BNSC as of January 1^st, 2009 are The Bermuda Cricket Board and The Centre on Philanthropy. These two groups have demonstrated that they are operating at an internationally accepted level of best practice in the areas of Governance, Finances, Ethics, and Performance Improvement. They will also continue to report on their success and growth to the BNSC each year.

 

With the many challenges that the world is facing, The Bermuda National Standards Committee is delighted that charities and human service groups in Bermuda are choosing to participate in these demanding processes to ensure that the quality of care and responsible use of resources in our community are accountable and effective.

 

Several groups from both the Government and Charity sectors have already committed to the 2009 process and The Bermuda National Standards Committee is welcoming more applicants for the New Year.

 

 President of the BCB, Reginald Pearman stated:

 

"Four years ago we set our strategic goals, one of which was to be recognised as an international model of best practice among the Associate Members of the ICC. Achieving this certificate validates our progress to date. To be certified by the Bermuda National Standards Committee for best practice in charity management is a historic achievement for the Bermuda Cricket Board. The BCB's administrative operations underwent a detailed review by the committee against international standards of best practice recognising us as an organization with excellent ethical practice and fundraising, good governance, financial management and performance improvement. The BCB receives generous funding from many donors especially the Government. This certification further confirms that this investment is well-planned, well-managed and appropriately utilised in accordance with our published strategic goals."