Time to Shout and Sing

The first six months of the year has continued to be a challenging time for the charity sector. Bad publicity continued, local government funding cuts really kicked in and public confidence in the sector fell. The latter is probably the direct result of the first point, which tends to relate to activities of the bigger charities. The majority of charities have an income of less than £1,000,000 and do incredible work often on a regional basis. As a nation we have to moan – dare I say the weather is too wet or too hot ☺.

At our recent annual charity conference, I talked about doing things differently, be it fundraising or delivery of services.

The public need to understand what we do and how their money, be it a donation or through taxes, is used. They want to know that it is not going into a bottomless pit. They need to understand that we have to employ staff to provide the quality services that they would expect to receive. Volunteers are an incredible charity resource, but with increasing regulation and size, charities need to employ people to help deliver services on a regular basis. Do not be ashamed to say you need this resource and it needs to be funded.

When I was younger the 10 O’clock News always ended on a good news story which sent you to bed on a happier note. As a sector we have some incredible good news stories often arising from very difficult experiences and situations. We need to tell people about these stories and the fantastic impact it has on people’s lives. SHOUT AND SING about what you do. If you don’t no one else will.

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