Northern Ireland

I am off to Northern Ireland tomorrow for a meeting of the UK Volunteering Forum. This is comprised of the Chief Executives of Volunteering England, Volunteer Development Scotland, Volunteer Development Agency Northern Ireland and normally me for WCVA. We meet with civil servants from all those places and discuss volunteering issues.

After our meeting we are going to an official reception at Hillsborough Castle, the residence of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, which should be 'good crack'. It certainly looks an impressive place, built in the 1770s with extensive gardens, and it is a privilege to be going.

Then I plan to go to a conference on volunteering at the Stormont Hotel, with David Blunkett MP and others speaking.

By the way, the hens seem to be doing fine so far. No eggs yet...Harriet will probably be the first to lay.