The sector needs to re-educate the public about what it does, a report published by the Clore Social Leadership Programme has said.

The paper’s author, Diarmuid O'Neill, said he wrote it to look at how much has changed in the charity sector and the impact of the negative press the sector has received in the last 18 months. Is the charity sector fit for purpose? set out to question whether or not the sector had a role to play in the future and if it did then was it adequately prepared.

From the report: key findings

• “We need to bring beneficiaries closer to our sector, whether that is in governance or in being accountable to them for our funding decisions or listening to them and engaging with them in order that we can be better advocates on their behalf.

• “The conclusion that the sector needs to be the voice of socially disadvantaged communities and not only has the mandate to do this but an obligation to speak on their behalf is, perhaps, the most interesting. It may imply that as leaders of the sector we feel we are not doing this enough presently or perhaps we need to rediscover our campaigning voice again and speak out.”

• “There is agreement that the charity sector needs to continue professionalizing at all levels. To do that we must engage as wide a stakeholder audience as possible. We need to re-educate the public on what professionalisation means and why it is essential, if we are to be fit for purpose and able to meet the challenges over the next 30 years. Public opinion of charities is very low at present and therefore this needs addressing. This has to be done with confidence and without being defensive. Public support for charities is vital and we cannot afford to lose any more of that support.”

• “If leaders’ passion and courage dissipate then all that remains is the energy to chase the funding to keep an organisation afloat. Being jaded cannot be dismissed as merely ‘the cost of doing business’ in the sector. People do not become leaders in the charity world to become jaded, they become leaders to see social justice become reality.”

Conclusions

• The core of the charity sector’s purpose should be advocacy on social justice.
• We need to re-educate the general public about who charities are and what charities do.
• We need to redefine the sector’s relationship with government.
• Full Cost Recovery must be implemented by all donors.
• We must replace the ‘short-termism’ model of funding and programming that pervades the sector.
• It is vital that the sector’s leaders possess the requisite passion and courage to deliver their organisation’s mission.

Methodology

O'Neill undertook semi-structured interviews with eight charity leaders to ask if they felt the sector is fit for purpose in the next 20 to 30 years.