Key challenges
The voluntary sector as a whole faces a number of general challenges that those working in voluntary organisations will need to consider if they are to try to overcome them in their specific context and carry out their work effectively. Some challenges have always been an issue for voluntary organisations, by nature of their place in society and their access to resources. Others change over time with new governments, technology and environmental or economic fluctuations.
Activity 3
Watch Karl Wilding, Director of Public Policy and Volunteering at NCVO, talk about some key challenges that the voluntary sector currently faces.
Transcript: Karl Wilding on voluntary sector challenges
While you are listening, note down the challenges that he raises. Once you have finished, note down two more challenges that you think the voluntary sector might face.
Discussion
The challenges that Karl Wilding raises are:
squeeze on income for the voluntary sector. Since 2008, after adjusting for inflation, the voluntary sector’s income has remained relatively static. Because the sector is delivering more and more public services through contracts, it is not able to build an asset base, meaning it can’t save and invest money that it can then use in the future.
increasing demand for services. Following the withdrawal of the government from providing services and support to those who need it, such as raising eligibility for services and reducing available benefits, there are more people who need support and they are coming to charities.
the blurring of the boundaries between sectors. The fact that people can be organised through social media, or make a difference in their day job or through corporate companies, leads people to question why we still need charities.
Some other challenges that the sector currently faces:
changes in government policy and law often affect the voluntary sector both directly, through their relationship with government, and indirectly, through the public’s relationship with the sector. For example, the Big Society ideology in 2010 had a big impact by increasing volunteer numbers and interest in voluntary organisations, but also by reducing investment in the structured voluntary sector. In another example, a Lobbying Act was introduced in 2014 which had implications for the voluntary sector as it placed some legal restrictions on their campaigning activity.
new technology offers a great opportunity to the voluntary sector in campaigning, organising people, marketing and providing services. However, it also presents a great challenge for organisations that don’t have the resources to invest in the equipment or training needed and so might get left behind.
demonstrating the difference they make is a key challenge for all voluntary organisations. Funders and donors are increasingly asking for evidence of the change that their money creates or will create. It is much harder for voluntary organisations to measure these changes than it is for private sector organisations to measure the profit they make.
voluntary organisations sometimes face criticism for not seeming ‘business-like’ enough and the risk is that they won’t be taken seriously. In 2014 a government minister, when faced with concern from charities about legal restrictions on their campaigning, famously suggested that charities should ‘stick to their knitting and keep out of politics’. The voluntary sector often works with some of society’s most serious issues and the challenge is for organisations to engage effectively with the private and public sectors and with the wider public whilst still retaining their values.
public trust and confidence in the voluntary sector is essential for maintaining donation levels, volunteer levels and engagement from those who need support. This trust and confidence was severely challenged in 2015 with public and media reports of inappropriate fundraising techniques by a small number of charities. This led to a call for more regulation around fundraising.
as more and more government services are being contracted out to independent providers, the voluntary sector is challenged to both collaborate and compete with private sector companies to deliver these services. Sometimes voluntary organisations are brilliantly placed to deliver these services, with their knowledge and contacts with those in need. But voluntary organisations often find it hard to navigate the complex systems that are set up to bid to deliver the contracts.
You may have thought of other challenges as well and this is by no means an exhaustive list.
All of the challenges raised in Activity 3 affect the voluntary sector generally, but different parts of the sector are affected more or less by each and also by their own specific challenges: for example, larger organisations are particularly affected by changes in public trust, and arts organisations are particularly affected by changes to government cultural policy. It is down to the people within those organisations to consider which are most pertinent and how to try to overcome them.
Voluntary sector workforce