Sector bodies have criticised minister for civil society Rob Wilson for talking "total nonsense" about grant funding, and have said he has lost sight of the purpose of his department.
The comments come after a speech yesterday at the Charity Finance Group annual conference by Wilson, in which he said grant funding was “unsustainable”.
Neil Cleeveley, chief executive of local infrastructure body Navca, said: “I’m astonished that the minister who ought to be charities’ advocate in government could come out with such nonsense.
“If you unpack this comment – what does it actually mean? Is he saying that charities with a substantial grant to support people and communities should reject it? Or that charities doing vital work that does not attract individual donations are bad or failing? Why should grants be any more unsustainable than any other form of funding?
“I challenge the minister to meet with the Grants for Good campaign, led by DSC, to find out how grants can be used to invest in communities. He might then be in a position to speak with a bit more knowledge of the subject.”
Jay Kennedy, head of policy at the Directory of Social Change, said: “Rob Wilson’s comments about grants are total nonsense on many levels. Are these people breathing some sort of funny gas?
“The comments are phenomenally unhelpful. What evidence is he basing his statements on?
“I would urge the minister to meet with the Grants for Good campaign because he really needs to hear some other points of view about the value of grants.”
Asheem Singh, head of policy at Acevo, said: “The minister has got this one wrong. Grants work because they involve charities in the development of outcomes.
“This should be old hat for the Office for Civil Society. The OCS was set up to talk about this sort of thing constructively. It was set up to advise other departments on best practice. On both accounts they are lacking and that’s a severe concern.
Singh said he had worked extensively with Nick Hurd, the last minister but one for the sector.
"He talked extensively about how he needed to be a contrarian voice, and how he spent hours lobbying for the sector and convincing his colleagues, whereas Rob Wilson is blithely going along with them," Singh said.
“I think Rob Wilson has got carried away with the rhetoric of austerity and lost sight of the purpose of his department.”
