NCVO chief executive Kate Lee has apologised to the umbrella body’s members over “uncertainty and confusion” caused by recent staff changes.
Last week, some in the sector criticised NCVO’s advertisements for six new associate director positions, following the organisation’s recent cuts to other roles, including in its practical support team.
Concerns were raised over NCVO’s support for smaller charities after the restructure and the membership body’s description of itself as “small but mighty”, despite being a larger organisation than most in the sector.
More than 150 people have signed an open letter urging NCVO to reflect on the language of its job adverts and provide clarity on how its support for small charities will change, ahead of the umbrella body’s upcoming strategy.
In a letter sent this morning to NCVO’s members, Lee said that while the organisation plans to “evolve” its helpline for small charities, the service remains open.
She also said NCVO has not made its “small charities team” redundant and that supporting small charities “is part of everyone’s role at NCVO”.
“NCVO needs to build a new culture, underpinned by a dynamic, diverse team of highly-experienced staff,” she said.
“We will therefore have fewer staff but will invest where we don’t have the skills and knowledge.
“This is why we have made some redundancies and also advertised for six new associate directors, to drive change and complement the outstanding existing NCVO team, providing a new focus on quality and sector innovation.
“For some this feels radical – but we cannot meet the level of change needed without making brave decisions.
“I fully appreciate your disappointment with how some perceive we have handled these changes and recognise it has caused uncertainty and confusion.
“I am genuinely sorry; it was not my intention. Transformation is not for the faint-hearted and your support and challenge will help keep NCVO on track in the coming years.
“Please stick with us through these months whilst we refocus, and together we will build a stronger civil society for now, and for future generations.”
‘Small but mighty’ criticism
NCVO is recruiting six associate directors to lead on different specialisms, five of which are full-time roles paying £85,000 a year. The other position, leading on risk and assurance, is part-time.
The new recruits will join NCVO’s current six-strong executive leadership team, formed last year shortly after Lee’s appointment.
Civil Society understands that NCVO consulted its staff on the plans to appoint associate directors and make some practical support roles redundant at the same time.
To advertise the newly created associate director vacancies, NCVO published a video, in which Lee says: “We might be quite a small organisation but we are mighty”.
A written description of the roles also says: “We may be a small organisation but our potential is mighty.”
The open letter to NCVO’s chair Priya Singh, published on Friday by sector consultants Felicia Willow and Esther Ardagh-Ptolomey, points out that NCVO would be classed as a large charity under its own Civil Society Almanac income bands.
A registered charity itself with an annual income of £9.48m, 75 employees and more than 17,000 members according to its latest accounts, NCVO is accused in the letter of causing “widespread and genuine hurt across the sector” by describing itself in this way.
“The phrase ‘small but mighty’ has been used for years by small charities, by Small Charity Week, and by those who support them, to describe their own resilience and distinctiveness,” the letter reads.
“Using it as a recruitment tagline, in the same period that dedicated small charity support has been removed, has caused widespread and genuine hurt across the sector. The board should be aware of the scale and nature of that reaction.”
NCVO declined to comment on the “small but mighty” phrasing used in its associate director adverts.
