Statutory funding comprises various types of funding, such as grants and contracts, from a number of different sources, such as local authorities, primary care trusts, and central government departments.
In recent years many of the sector’s biggest organisations have become more and more reliant on statutory funding, as the culture of contracting with local and central government agencies to deliver public services becomes more prevalent.
The 2009 Civil Society Almanac, published by the NCVO, states that income from government totalled £11.5bn the latest year for which figures are available, and £7.8bn of this was from public sector contracts. The sector’s total income was £33.2bn, meaning statutory funding now accounts for a third of charities’ total revenue.
Universities may have to raise tuition fees in order to maintain teaching standards, according to research released last week.
Trusts and foundations have lost between 20 and 30 per cent of their value, but there has not been a commensurate drop in grant making, argued the head of a top foundation.
Iain Duncan Smith has expressed support for a statutory funding philosophy based on social return on investment that he says could change the culture of national and local government.
Treasury's delays on introducing international accounting standards for NHS charities can only be welcomed by fundraisers.
Many voluntary adoption agencies are worried they will have to close down as a new report reveals that a fractured relationship with local authorities is resulting in fewer contracts and fewer children being placed in adopted families.
Moving British Waterways out of the public sector and into the voluntary sector would create the 13th-largest charity by income and the fifth-largest fundraising charity, according to a new report outlining the pros and cons of the idea.
A leading Conservative website claims that the voluntary sector’s ‘dependency’ on statutory funding undermines its credibility as ‘voluntary’.
A national security speech made by Conservative leader David Cameron has prompted concerns from charities that a Tory government would have a political approach to development funding.
The most optimistic scenario for the voluntary sector in the next public spending round is overall funding cuts of “hundreds of millions if not billions” of pounds, whichever party gets into power, according to a new report by CFDG.
Donations to the arts fell by 7 per cent last financial year, declining nearly equally across individual, corporate and trust fundraising streams.
A Conservative MP has admitted that there will be “pain across the public sector”, even in areas protected against spending cuts.
Acevo and the NHS Partners Network have successfully lobbied for an inquiry into a Primary Care Trust’s decision to only accept tenders for running its community services from NHS organisations.
The refreshed Compact, outlining commitments for a working partnership between government and the voluntary sector, has launched today following a storm of controversy on the government’s recent breach of Compact guidelines.
Individual giving to overseas development causes is in no way linked to government spending in the area, according to the latest research.
The last month of the Noughties is looking to leave health charities in a high degree of uncertainty, despite positive indications that the recession is unlikely to get any worse.
GamCare, the advice and counselling charity for problem gamblers, is worried that it will be sidelined and have its funding slashed under new proposals from the Responsible Gambling Strategy Board.
Core funding improves outcomes as well as relationships with funders, argues Jessica Sklair.
NAVCA has accused the Office of the Third Sector of breaching the Compact in withdrawing £750,000 in funding from the Campaigning Research Programme, and urged charities minister Angela Smith to reverse the decision.
The Directory of Social Change’s Jay Kennedy offers tips for fundraisers about how to access and evaluate grant terms and conditions One of the areas we’ve recently researched as part of our Great Giving campaign involves the terms and conditions of grant funding – basically, the ‘small print’. Terms and conditions spell out in a formal way what you are obliged to do in order to receive and spend a grant. They will typically cover important requirements like monitoring and reporting schedules, payment terms, what happens if you underspend, issues of intellectual copyright, etc.
A charity affiliated with a political party often threatened with being registered as a terrorist group has received more than £100,000 in government funding.
A Scottish council which “mistakenly” signed a £56,000 contract with a children’s charity after deciding to bring the service in-house has said it will honour its commitment. In June, Moray Council agreed that Aberlour Child Care Trust would continue to provide youth clubs and play schemes for children with disabilities until March 2010 – an arrangement which has been running since 2005. But the new annual contract contravened an agreement made by councillors who had decided to bring the service in-house to cut costs.
Statutory funding could provide a lifeline for charities during the recession. But first, organisations need to hone their campaigning skills to convince funders to part with their money, says Penny Mordaunt With newspaper headline writers preoccupied with political re-shuffles and parliamentary expenses you could be forgiven for thinking that the recession had bottomed out. Likewise, some commentators have accused the sector of “crying wolf” over voicing their concerns that individual and company giving would decrease sharply this year, citing trends during the great depression as evidence for this.
Government funding of £15m for small, local third sector providers which have experienced increased demand as a result of the recession will be given to 50 areas considered ‘most at risk of increased deprivation’ in the coming weeks. The Targeted Support Fund, which forms part of the government’s £42.5m ‘recession fund’ for the voluntary sector, will focus on charities that deal with financial advice, employment support and personal problems such as mental health or substance abuse.
Small print exists for a reason and charities could save precious time by taking note, says Ben Wittenberg, who is calling for a sector-wide debate on problems facing charities when applying for grants Have you ever looked over the guidance for a grant programme and thought “well, I think we’re eligible to apply” and completed an application? Have you ever submitted an application for a different funder without really checking the criteria properly? Have you ever submitted an application for funding knowing absolutely that your project or organisation is ineligible for funding, but though that they might fund you anyway?
Vince Cable MP warned civil society organisations today that they are “in danger of drowning in a bath of warm words” as they face a “scissors crisis” of increasing demand yet shrinking income. Cable (pictured), deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, told the NCVO annual conference that voluntary and community organisations are paid great lip service by politicians from all political persuasions as they all “have an interest in talking you up”. But, he cautioned, there is danger in listening too closely to praise of the sector, as organisations are facing a “scissors crisis” in which increasing need is rubbing up against diminishing income – and potentially diminishing government funding.
When I am in grumpy mode, one of the things I most like to grumble about is the number of people and organisations who, whilst apparently devoid of talent, knowledge or relevant experience, nonetheless consider themselves experts capable of telling charities their business.
The government has created a ‘recession fund’ for the voluntary sector totalling £42.5m – well short of the £500m demanded by acevo last year and the itemised £100m requested by the NCVO last month. The plan comprises a £16.5m ‘modernisation fund’ to help charities looking at mergers and collaborations, a £15.5m ‘community resilience fund’ and a £10m volunteer brokerage scheme.
Individual philanthropy will likely remain strong while statutory and corporate funding could drop off as a result of financial turmoil, according to a new report. Looking at historical indicators from both the UK and US, NCVO has this week produced a report aiming to predict how the voluntary sector will fare during economic downturn, but has warned that “the evidence is mixed and often conflicting”. It suggested also that the predicted coming recession could be of a different kind to those experienced in the past.
A new centre dedicated to research into charitable giving trends and third sector issues has finally opened in London.
Two British galleries have been given the chance to buy a Renaissance masterpiece at half-price – but only if they raise £50m by the end of this year.
