Public sector cutbacks prompt Mencap redundancies

Governance | Celina Ribeiro | 9 Mar 2012

Mencap is expecting to make up to 30 staff redundant as it faces a reduction of income due to a drop in public sector work and the inability of fundraising to plug the gap.

The learning disability charity has undergone a structural review and is in consultation with staff about cutting positions in order to ensure it can “operate within our resources for the next two years”, according to chief executive Mark Goldring.

The Mencap chief said that the redundancies have become necessary in an environment in which government was funding less of the work that the charity delivers.

“The consultation is part of our long-term planning for an environment in which the value and volume of public sector work is falling,” he said.

Mencap has a heavy reliance on public sector contracts for revenue. The last available records on the Charity Commission website, for the year ending 31 March 2011, show that of total income of £193.6m, £179.2m came from charitable activities and just £12.5m from fundraising. While some charities have been affected in particular by local government’s already tightened budgets, many predict that the real pain is yet to come as councils are forced to cut back further.

Goldring said: “As a result of the difficult economic climate, like many charities and organisations we have had to look at how we can reduce our costs. It is regrettable that this will likely lead to a number of redundancies across the organisation.”

The majority of the redundancies are expected to fall in the campaigns and policy and communications team, the teams working in the community and some from fundraising.

“Our fundraising income is meeting existing targets, but cannot compensate for the reduced income from public service delivery.”

Goldring said that the changes to the fundraising department are designed to ensure that the charity is able to “generate income as effectively as possible within a new challenging environment”.

Directory: Mencap
Who's Who: Mark Goldring CBE

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