Nearly a third of Yorkshire and Humber charities are spending reserves

Finance | Tania Mason | 31 Aug 2012

Three in ten charities in Yorkshire and the Humber are dipping into their reserves to fund day-to-day service provision – and nearly one in six have no reserves at all.

The bleak picture is painted by the latest survey of Humber and Yorkshire voluntary organisations by their local CVS, Involve Yorkshire and Humber. The umbrella body conducts the survey into the local sector’s confidence every quarter and the latest statistics are based on responses from 151 groups in the region.

While 30 per cent are already using their reserves and 17 per cent have none, a further 24 per cent said they might draw on their savings going forward. This leaves less than two in five charities locally that are not using their reserves and don’t expect to.

Judy Robinson, CEO of Involve Yorkshire & Humber, described the situation as a “worrying sign that charities are struggling to cope”.

She added: “We need the government to listen to what is happening in the voluntary sector, value what we do and invest in us.”

Jo Meagher, project manager of the Young Women’s Housing Project in Sheffield, said that the charity had lost large chunks of income from its main sources of funding.

Meagher said: “Everybody is in the same boat, so they are all applying to the big trusts at the same time; there’s lots of competition. By all accounts we have a good reputation and we have really positive outcomes for clients. Because of that we are very motivated to keeping the project going.”

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