The minister for civil society Tracey Crouch has committed to giving a government response to recommendations made by the House of Lords Committee on Charities, Baroness Pitkeathley has said.
Pitkeathley, a Labour peer and chair of the committee, was speaking at a lecture organised by the Manor Gardens Welfare Trust in Islington last night.
She said that she will meet with Crouch on 18 October and that the minister has said the government will respond by end of that month.
“Usually you present a report and the government must respond within three months,” she said, “but the election threw the whole timetable into disarray".
She added that she had been “hopeful of a response before the summer recess”, but things were delayed by the appointment of a new minister and the fact that the recommendations relate to a number of areas of government.
‘Disappointed by rejection of proposed changes to Lobbying Act’
One of the report’s recommendations for government was that it accept changes to the Lobbying Act that were proposed by Lord Hodgson.
“My committee very much supported Lord Hodgson’s proposals”, she said, adding that it is a “great disappointment” that the Cabinet Office recently indicated it had no immediate plans to amend the Act.
“I will be watching this space intently", she added.
Devolution and Brexit
Pitkeathley highlighted devolution and Brexit as issues that were likely to have a big impact on the charity sector, but which have been “largely ignored” so far.
On the former, she said that when the committee visited Manchester and spoke to local officials, they described the relationship with local charities as “wonderful”. However: “When we got the voluntary sector on their own it was quite a different story.”
As for Brexit, she said the impact is still unknown, but called on the government to explain how the “large amount of money” the sector gets from European Union sources is going to be replaced.
‘Better relationships’
Pitkeathley also urged the government to consult the sector sooner on changes to the law that will affect charities.
“We need much better consultation with the sector,” she said, adding that charities have “got to be consulted at a much earlier stage".
She said that commissioning should be improved, with social value taken into consideration and an understanding that “consortia and partnerships take time to develop”.
Pitkeathley also stressed the importance of grants, particularly for smaller charities.
“We must continue to urge local authorities not to turn their backs on grants", she said.
Trustee boards must become more diverse
“Good governance is essential to a strong charity sector”, she said, calling for better training and support for trustees.
She urged charities to encourage more diversity on trustee boards, and said part of the problem is that “the most common way of becoming a trustee is because someone asks you”.
She suggested charities be “much more frank” about the benefits of being a trustee.
“You give something but you get something back”, she said, arguing that charities should understand what the different motivations are.
“If people are giving time and getting nothing back”, they will “vote with their feet”.
Overall, Pitkeathley said she was pleased that the committee’s report has been “well received by the sector”, and that there is “widespread enthusiasm for our work", with NCVO and Acevo setting up working parties to make progress on recommendations for the sector.
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