The concept of ‘voluntary sector funding’ from government could disappear as the new open public services agenda takes hold, a submission to the Independence Panel suggests.

The submission, from former Charity Commission policy chief Rosie Chapman (pictured) and ex-NCVO policy head Belinda Pratten, aims to “identify some of the potential challenges and threats that we think will emerge over the next five years”.

It says it will be "interesting to see" what impact the government’s drive to reform public services will have on public perceptions of charities’ independence, as sector bodies are forced to compete for funding with “all other players, including major private sector companies”.

The pair, who are now consultants, also warn that proposals to encourage public sector employees to establish charities or social enterprises to deliver services might also affect perceptions of independence.

They say too that certain charities, those with government-appointed trustees or other links to government, face particular pressures in terms of their independence. One example is the recent government decision that the accounts of NHS charities with corporate trustees should be consolidated on NHS balance sheets from April 2013.

The authors point out, however, that public trust in the sector remains higher than most other institutions.  

“It has not had a systemic failure such as that witnessed in the banking sector, nor has it suffered a crisis such as the MPs expenses scandal or ‘Hackgate’ in the print media.  We therefore remain optimistic about the sector’s future prospects.”

The consultation run by the Panel on the Independence of the Voluntary Sector closes today.  At the time of writing, around 30 written and face-to-face submissions have been made with more expected by the end of the day.