A think-tank report examined the state of the voluntary and community sector in Britain. It said that reductions in government funding, low levels of charitable giving, and the ongoing concentration of wealth in the larger, professionalized organizations characterized the decline of the sector in recent years. The report said that contracting procedures were bureaucratic (and favoured larger organizations), and coverage by the sector was geographically uneven. It discussed a range of new initiatives and said that a further report would be published in 2014 to outline proposals for the sector.
Source: Something's Got to Give: The state of Britain s voluntary and community sector, Centre for Social Justice
Links: Report | Summary | CSJ press release
Date: 2013-Dec
A government report set out measures to tackle extremism in the United Kingdom. Proposals included: to consider the case for new civil powers to prevent those with radical views from radicalizing others; to consider the case for new types of order to ban radical groups; to consult on strengthening the powers of the Charity Commission; to work towards restricting access to online terrorist material; to improve the online process for public reporting of extremist content; to mandate the delivery of the preventive Channel programme in England and Wales; and to provide intervention and support on release from prison for those who had demonstrated extremist views.
Source: Tackling Extremism in the UK: Report from the Prime Minister s Task Force on Tackling Radicalisation and Extremism, Cabinet Office
Links: Report | Press release | Hansard
Date: 2013-Dec
A think-tank report examined the role of charity shops in communities in Britain. It said that, in addition to fundraising for parent charities, the shops: provided recycling services; maintained a supply of affordable goods; provided social and economic benefits to customers, donors and volunteers; and supported the economic viability of local communities. It recommended making greater use of charities in maintaining the health and well-being of volunteers, and a more explicit involvement for shops in local economic planning.
Source: Ally Paget and Jonathan Birdwell, Giving Something Back, Demos
Links: Report | Summary | Demos press release
Date: 2013-Nov
A new book examined the social role of volunteering and voluntary organizations. It said that conventional wisdom about how voluntary action was understood and undertaken ignored a variety of important activities that had contributed greatly to people's quality of life and living conditions.
Source: Colin Rochester, Rediscovering Voluntary Action: The beat of a different drum, Palgrave Macmillan
Links: Summary
Date: 2013-Nov
A report examined the role of the voluntary sector in providing support to commissioners in the National Health Service in England. It said that the sector could offer particular expertise, such as needs assessment, business intelligence, service re-design, and public and patient engagement. The report said that organizations needed to demonstrate how they could support wider commissioning agendas, such as efficiency gains and integration, alongside improving patient outcomes and experience. Geographical variation had left the voluntary sector in some areas unsure of what opportunities were available. Much work was offered free of charge, but there were opportunities for this to become an income generator for the sector. A support role was identified for umbrella organizations. The report made recommendations for the voluntary sector, clinical commissioning groups, commissioning support units, and National Health Service England.
Source: Holly Holder, Role of the Voluntary Sector in Providing Commissioning Support, Nuffield Trust
Links: Report
Date: 2013-Nov
A report examined the voluntary and community sector's experience of Work Programme provision, and recommended ways in which the government could promote and enhance the involvement of the sector in the future.
Source: Refinement or Reinvention? The future of the work programme and the role of the voluntary sector, Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations
Links: Report | ACEVO press release
Date: 2013-Oct
An article examined the impact of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 on the not-for-profit sector's involvement in legally aided welfare advice in England and Wales. Whereas Legal Services Commission funding had transformed organizational practices and ethos, the Act (together with the coalition government's austerity programme) represented a critical watershed for the sector and its capacity to fulfil its mission.
Source: Hilary Sommerlad and Peter Sanderson, 'Social justice on the margins: the future of the not for profit sector as providers of legal advice in England and Wales', Journal of Social Welfare & Family Law, Volume 35 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Sep
A think-tank report critically examined the capacity of voluntary organizations to play an effective role in the coalition government's strategy for contracting out probation services. It called for smaller organizations to be exempted from 'payment by results' contract terms.
Source: The New Probation Landscape: Why the voluntary sector matters if we are going to reduce reoffending, Centre for Social Justice
Links: Report
Date: 2013-Sep
A new book examined the social and political role of non-governmental organizations, using case studies that included the homelessness and environment sectors.
Source: Matthew Hilton, James McKay, Nicholas Crowson, and Jean-Francois Mouhot, The Politics of Expertise: How NGOs shaped modern Britain, Oxford University Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2013-Sep
A paper set out the third sector's vision and ambitions for the future of welfare services in Scotland. It considered how Scotland might recreate a collective commitment to a refreshed and perhaps radically different welfare system.
Source: Third Sector Visions for a Scotland of the Future: A better state – Inclusive principles for Scottish welfare, Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations
Links: Paper
Date: 2013-Sep
An article examined the rise of third sector agencies as providers of criminal justice services. It traced the 'creeping discourse of economic risk', exemplified by the commodification of provision, increased contractualization of services, and the application of cost-benefit measures. Government policy was being driven by a behavioural economics of risk that attempted to 'nudge' the sector through market incentives and competition – in the process consigning high-risk and 'at-risk' groups to further exclusion.
Source: Gabe Mythen, Sandra Walklate, and Hazel Kemshall, 'Decentralizing risk: the role of the voluntary and community sector in the management of offenders', Criminology and Criminal Justice, Volume 13 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Aug
An article examined different understandings of the concept of civil society, and their implications for service provision by the third sector.
Source: Adalbert Evers, 'The concept of "civil society": different understandings and their implications for third sector policies', Voluntary Sector Review, Volume 4 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Aug
An article examined what the 'Big Society' project might mean for the third sector. The previous Labour government's approach had been characterized as the development of a closer 'partnership' between state and the third sector. However, a partial decoupling might now be under way – signalling a shift away from the idea of interdependence between the state and the third sector, and towards a model involving separate spheres.
Source: Rob Macmillan, 'Decoupling the state and the third sector? The "Big Society" as a spontaneous order ', Voluntary Sector Review, Volume 4 Number 2
Links: Abstract
See also: Rob Macmillan, Decoupling the State and the Third Sector? The 'Big Society' as a spontaneous order, Working Paper 101, Third Sector Research Centre
Date: 2013-Aug
A paper examined the issues created by personalization for third sector organizations who worked with carers. The move towards more personalized support was seen as a positive development for carers, and the third sector was seen by most as being well placed to implement personalized services and respond to carers' needs: but there were concerns that it might struggle to compete financially with other providers, due to their emphasis on quality and fair wages for staff. Others, however, viewed many third sector organizations as having became complacent, and argued that competition was necessary to ensure that they responded to carers' needs. Third sector organizations needed to develop new funding streams, and to 'mainstream' services embracing the needs of carers alongside those being cared for.
Source: Robin Miller and Mary Larkin, Personalisation: A New Dawn or the End of the Road for Third Sector Support for Carers?, Working Paper 104, Third Sector Research Centre
Links: Paper | Briefing | De Montfort University press release
Date: 2013-Jul
A new book examined the extensive growth and re-shaping of the voluntary sector following sweeping changes to social and welfare policy over 30 years. It considered whether surviving in the voluntary sector had come to depend on re-aligning activities and compromising independent goals and values.
Source: Linda Milbourne, Voluntary Sector in Transition: Hard times or new opportunities?, Policy Press
Links: Summary
Date: 2013-Jun
An article examined the role of voluntary sector advice agencies in translating personal grievances into matters of public concern.
Source: Morag McDermont, 'Acts of translation: UK advice agencies and the creation of matters-of-public-concern', Critical Social Policy, Volume 33 Issue 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Apr
A study examined the third sector's involvement in the delivery of learning and skills. It identified some of the major challenges that prevent the sector from making a greater contribution, including: the introduction of minimum contract levels; high management fees charged by lead providers; a lack of funding for overhead costs; and a shortage of support for some of the wider activities essential to the engagement of learners outside mainstream provision.
Source: Third Sector Engagement and Participation in the Learning and Skills Sector: Quantitative research report, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills | Literature Review and Baseline Report, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Links: Quantitative report | Literature review/baseline report | Summary
Date: 2013-Apr
An article examined whether regional patterns of uneven charity distribution were replicated at a local neighbourhood level. A 'clear distinction' was found between affluent and deprived case study areas. Charities in the affluent area were more numerous, run by volunteers, and met a broad range of social, community, and cultural needs. Charities in the deprived area were less numerous, met urgent needs related to deprivation, and were more likely to be larger charities run by professionals with statutory funding.
Source: Rose Lindsey, 'Exploring local hotspots and deserts: investigating the local distribution of charitable resources', Voluntary Sector Review, Volume 4 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2013-Apr
A study examined charities' experiences of both receiving and making social investments (investment that provided a social as well as a financial return). It said that the major drivers for successful social investment by charities were a shared sense of mission, good governance, skilled management, and strong relationships between investors and investees. The main barriers were concerns about financial risk and reputational damage.
Source: Leila Baker and Niamh Goggin, Charities and Social Investment, Charity Commission
Links: Report | Charity Commission press release | IVAR press release | Charity Times report
Date: 2013-Mar
A study examined the impact of the crisis on civil society organizations in the European Union. It said that there was an opportunity to revitalize civil society and enable it to take up different, and potentially, more productive and co-operative roles in decision-making processes.
Source: Jamal Shahin, Alison Woodward, and Georgios Terzis, The Impact of the Crisis on Civil Society Organisations in the EU: Risks and opportunities, European Economic and Social Committee
Links: Report | EESC press release | EPHA press release
Date: 2013-Feb
A paper said that leadership in the third sector might need to play an increasing role in protecting the voice of voluntary organizations and of those they represented. The sector's huge diversity made it difficult to speak for the sector as a whole, and 'field specific' leadership was important: but there was still an important role for national level leadership in influencing policy and public debate.
Source: Rob Macmillan and Heather Buckingham, A Strategic Lead for the Third Sector? Some may lead, but not all will ever follow, Third Sector Research Centre
Links: Paper | TSRC press release
Date: 2013-Feb