Accidental Savers into Deliberate Donors?
Accidental Savers into Deliberate Donors?
The ONS have reported that there are 6m accidental savers as a result of Covid. It is also reported that there are 9m people experiencing financial issues as a result of the pandemic. Trying to steer a course between the two may not be easy but it is a course well worth steering. The experience of food banks, during the pandemic, does indicate a desire to meet need where it is communicated. Can ‘accidental savers’ be encouraged to donate to worthy causes?
How do we communicate need?
Almost certainly the answer is to communicate what a donation will achieve. A shopping list approach raises the horizon of a potential donor. An example list may be
£5.00 could enable an extended visit for our respite at home service.
£20.00 could enable the hire of a hall for an older persons loneliness club.
£100.00 could enable lunch to be provided for 40 lonely older people.
Somewhere in the communication needs to have an indication that, in the event of over donation, funds will be used for general charitable purposes. You don’t want a situation arising where the phone lines are staffed but the back up services that enable signposting are not well resourced.
It is important to be aware that people give to all kinds of causes. Birmingham City Council currently have a crowd funding campaign to support habitat for slow worms. A four figure sum has been raised in less than three weeks.
Further, it is vital to be even more aware that not everyone who reads your appeal will be in a position to respond as they would wish. Some will not be in a position to respond at all as shown by the figures in the opening paragraph of this article. So, it is a very good idea to get at least two other people to read what you intend to say before it is communicated to the wider world.
How do we enable people to give?
By far and away the easiest method is to use an online platform. Just Giving is the most well known. Local Giving is less well known but, from time to time, has match funding challenges where donations can be doubled. This is ideal for encouraging supporters to make a donation. It is also ideal for encouraging accidental savers to give as their money will go further. You must choose your own platform. The following characteristics are helpful:
Anonymous donations have to be possible – where the platform knows who has given and you do not. Many people like this option as it removes the fear of follow up mail shots etc.
Gift Aid is possible on donations with the platform making the claim for you. This saves time for you.
Whilst there may be suggested donation sums it is important to allow donors to make a choice themselves.
What do we do when people have given?
The first requirement is to use the money in line with the terms of the donation. If there are limitations imposed on a donation it creates a restricted fund. Otherwise it is important to say thank you – using contact details if provided. If contact details are not provided a general thank you on your website and in your annual report and accounts will have to suffice. This should make reference to the appeal and speak about what it has achieved. For example
“Our older persons appeal resulted in £1,465 and with this money we held :10 older persons lunches; 20 pop up cafes for lonely older people; and 55 extend visits under our respite at home service. Thank you for making this happen”.
What next?
Have a look at what your organisation could do with a modest sum of money and try an appeal. If the target is relatively small it has a greater chance of success. You can then communicate that success.
People respond to positive messages. If you only issue financial communications when it is a crisis (we need £600 by Friday or we have to stop doing X) then it always will be a crisis. If regular (note that the word regular is not the same as frequent) supporter requests are issued which explain what the money will do as well as reinforcing what it has done there should be a greater response and that will lead to greater supporter stakeholder engagement.
Community Spaces Facing Crisis
The pandemic has had significant effects on the sustainability of community spaces. The mind pictures bucolic village halls that just tick along – they always have and they always will. But, what of urban spaces? What of those spaces that have resulted from the Community Asset Transfer process that has operated for the past decade? What of those that have moved away from grant funding as they have transitioned into earned income? And, what about the bucolic village hall?
The report How Many Of Us Had Pandemic In Our Risk Register?, published by Community Matters in January shows that the situation for charities and other community groups was made more confusing by “shifting and contradictory guidance” from the government about how public buildings could be used during national and regional lockdowns. The rule of six has caused particular issues with social distancing requirements causing problems for user groups who now have to have fewer people attending – thus affecting the economics of the entire operation.
The report also warns that some of these charities were already running out of financial reserves by the time the second national lockdown ended late last year. A third lockdown was imposed this month (Jan 2021), which began after the data for the report was collected. This is going to make an already critical situation worse.
The report was compiled by Community Matters who surveyed 20 groups in England and Wales. These groups operate assets in their local communities, including sports halls, libraries and a former police station. The research showed that many charities chose to end some, but not all, of their activities
The report states that, during the first lockdown, charities reached a number of different decisions on how to adapt their work, “from complete closure to full-scale provision of a service to people in need”.
It was not all doom and gloom as the survey showed that “there were those who kept childcare provision open for key workers, those who took the opportunity of an empty building to get maintenance and work done on the property, from decorating to major renovation, and those who kept some services running remotely”. However, some respondents also commented that they had only managed to survive, financially, by raided reserves designated for ongoing repair and maintenance with improvements being kicked well into the long grass.
Plans to reopen were disrupted when new government rules were introduced, often at short notice, the report found. It said: “Shifting and contradictory guidance has created problems for a number of organisations, especially those with no paid staff or where staff have been furloughed. As plans have been made, so restrictions have changed again.”
It also noted that respondents “were particularly concerned about the confusing information about what the restrictions were that they are supposed to abide by, and were trying to keep up with issues around the ‘rule of six’ but also exemptions that applied to educational activities and voluntary and community sector meetings and gatherings”.
The research found that many charities had been “prudent” in using government schemes to maintain income during lockdowns. None had “never envisaged this situation being so long lasting. The data was collected as the second lockdown was in progress. There was some evidence of organisations reaching the near end of their financial reserves”. The situation has been made more acute for some community groups which have in recent years been “persuaded of the wisdom of generating their own income rather than relying on grant income”. In one reported case the number of invoices issued, in a typical month, has changed from approximately 100 to none. Income from community hiring; service delivery; hot desking and workspace and a community café all stopped. Some income has returned but not in the volume required. In some cases the possibility of handing the asset back to the local authority, or transferring it to another community body. The report does question what a new business plan will look like in that situation.
John Wilson, project manager at Community Matters, told Civil Society News: "As the country enters its third lockdown, there is tremendous strain on communities. The potential issue for community spaces is that, having taken the government's advice to heart and set out to generate their own income rather than being reliant on grants, [they] have struggled as they have been forced to close or opened for reduced hours. In normal times community spaces and centres form the beating heart of their locality, and often provide the only opportunity for social interaction amongst some of the older and more vulnerable members of their community. As we seek to return to whatever passes as normal in the future, communities will need to come together. To make this happen communities will need places to gather, and the crisis in funding for community spaces means that many may not reopen."
In the North West we have a huge range of community spaces. This report, at 38 pages, is lengthy but readable. It indicates some trends and data that may help funding applications. It provides reassurance, to trustees, that this is an unprecedented situation, and they must not berate themselves over forward planning. None of us expected this! It foretells a potential major crisis that will be in full flow as the year develops.
Community spaces in well off areas may well be rescued by “the big house in the village”; a medium sized legacy or even a community appeal to rebuild operational reserves. If the government is serious about “levelling up” then it needs to address this issue as a matter of urgency. The fabric of community life is at threat.
Following this report, Community Matters are asking for survey respondents to obtain more information about community spaces and Covid-19.
Mental Health Issues in the Workplace
In current times it is too easy to push on with the “day job” by concentrating on service users/customers/clients/those who we help. Regardless of the nomenclature we focus on outward facing services. Those same outward facing services are delivered by staff or volunteers. How do we reach out to them?
Charities and community bodies pride themselves on support, despite this, there is always scope to learn from others. This article, from Route One magazine, provides some very helpful thoughts on what and why to do. Some highlights:
1. The company director actually has qualifications in the subject
2. The ideas are practical for all.
3. The company director has also created a mental health charity to support others. This is no “lip service” operation. There is commitment.
4. She also appears to engage with the work that she expects her employees to do which does break down barriers.
The company mentioned in the article is a long established family business operating in a sector of the economy that has been badly hit by Covid lock downs and tiers. They also have to contend with a concerted government campaign which urges people not to use the services offered in the sector in which this company operates. So, just because they are well established and highly respected does not mean that they are immune from the issues that many of us face. If they can find time for staff well being so can we.
Pilotlight Race and the Voluntary Sector Report
Pilotlight have released their new report 'Learning and Listening for Mutual Action: surfacing and building the evidence base to support Black African, Black Caribbean, Asian and other Minoritised Ethnic led voluntary sector organisations', in which they explore and ask what the specific support needs of organisations in BAME communities and led by BAME individuals are. It is authored by Fancy Sinantha, an independent consultant, together with the support of Cornish and Grey.
The pandemic has cast further light on the level of inequality experienced in our society and especially in BAME communities. Thus, it is ever more imperative that we explore what is needed to minimise this inequality, especially across the VCSE sector. The sector itself is plagued with institutional racism, a critical subject explored by many of our speakers at VSNW’s Festival of North West Thinking, and a problem that needs to be triumphed. Pilotlight’s report recognises that ploughing money into these organisations despite being necessary, does not address these systemic issues, thus paving the way for their report questioning: what are the needs of these organisations?
New Trustee Board Member- Circle Steele
We are delighted to welcome Circle Steele as a new trustee board member!
Circle Steele is a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the Wai Yin Society, which provides support to, and has empowered and worked in partnership with, Chinese individuals and families for 30 years (since 1988). She has extensive experience of working with community-based organisations and feels extremely proud to be a part of one of the largest BME community centres in the Greater Manchester.
She was the first Chinese Youth Leader to win the British Diversity Gold Award for involving Chinese young people in employment, in partnership with Halifax Bank. And she was the Chinese female leader to share that experience of diversity and integration at international conferences in countries such as Sweden and Germany.
She was pleased to receive an invitation from Her Majesty to attend a Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace in 2008 to acknowledge the contribution she had made to society.
As an Executive Member of various other boards and organisations, she consistently champions cultural diversity on behalf of, and gives a voice to, Chinese and other ethnic minorities in Greater Manchester.
She was nominated as one of the Strong Manchester Women campaigners in the 100th year anniversary of the suffragette movement in 2018.
She has spoken about Wai Yin innovative delivery model and approach to diversity and diversification of services at the House of Lords in 2019.
Circle is currently nominated for the INSPIRE AWARDS as a Woman in Leadership finalist 2020.
We look very forward to working with her!
Vaccine Scam Info Available in Multiple Languages
Sadly, as the UK leads the way in terms of Coronavirus vaccines, some scam artists are using this opportunity to commit fraud. It is vital that information regarding this is widely published, which includes making sure warnings are available in an array of diffierent languages.
The BBC Asian Network has created some fabulous resources exploring vaccine scams in Urdu, Sylheti, Punjabi, Tamil & Gujarati.
For more information and to watch the videos see here.
A 'Northen Big Bang'
The Northern Research Group (NRG), with the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS), has published a report “A Northern Big Bang”. Authored by Jake Berry MP of the Lancashire seat of Rossendale & Darwen since 2010, and Nick King, who is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies. Both are originally from the North West.
The report highlights the need for investment in the North of England. The challenge that the authors face is to get the legislative changes needed through a parliament where the majority of members are not from the North. It will be a difficult path for party managers to plot. One would hope that, where possible, there would be cross-party co-operation for the benefit of the region. But, that is beyond the remit of this comment piece. This piece is to offer a number of suggestions that may be of benefit to the process.
The first of these is to acknowledge three sectors of the economy. These are the public sector; private sector and community sector. The omission of the third of these, particularly when referencing the area of the UK which saw the foundation of the World Wide Co-Operative movement does seem bizzarre. The UK Social and Community Enterprise movement is an increasing player in local economies and has the advantage of retaining and circulating surplus income within those economies. Indeed, this is referenced and encouraged in the Social Value (Procurement) Act which has been on the stature book since 2013. As far as this report is concerned it may as well not be there!
The report makes a case for the re-instatement of capital allowances. These were abolished in 1982 yet do have a place for encouraging investment. The report makes it clear that these allowances will need to be geographic specific to have the desired effect in the North. They will encourage investment but, as the overwhelming majority of the community sector does not pay corporation tax (due to governance structures) this proposal will have minimal impact on sector investment. It may be possible to attract investment via leasing agreements where the lessor claims the allowances and discounts the rentals (as was the case when capital allowances were previously in force) but the VAT levied on lease agreements will negate much of the benefit. As the change in capital allowances will require legislation we suggest that the same legislation allows a zero rating of VAT for registered charities; companies limited by guarantee; CIO and CIC operating within the qualifying geographic area.
There is no reference to training and employment readiness – an area of the economy where the community sector has, historically, had great success. There are reports that some 750,000 EU citizens have left the UK during the pandemic. This will leave a huge gap in the workforce. Many of the issues highlighted in the report have led to multi-generational household worklessness. Investment, to tackle this, will be needed in order to address the work force gap. Yes, there will some benefit from internal UK migration. Where this has taken place in the past the effect is less than anticipated.
Finally, there is a reference to potential investment that can be unlocked from DC pension schemes. If this strategy is seen as contrary to well established risk strategies within the pension industry, how will this impact on the personal liability of charity trustees in the event of a pension scheme becoming under funded? Whilst one would hope that this is a hypothetical question it will have to appear on the risk register for community bodies that employ people and introduce an extra layer of professional advice that is currently not needed. The NEST pension scheme is seen as a sensible default option and more than adequate for needs. Care needs to be taken to ensure that this government created scheme delivers the risk level option desired by community directors/trustees. We live and employ in the communities that will be affected by complications arising from this matter.
We have invited Rt Hon Jake Berry, to speak at a to be arranged seminar and hope that he will accept the invitation. In the meantime please read the report and let Mr Berry know of your views.
LOCAL: the Lancashire VCFSE sector vision
VSNW are helping to faciliate a conversation across the sector in Lancashire, including Blackpool and Blackburn & Darwen. This year will see significant changes across the region from NHS reconfiguration, withdrawal of EU sibsidies and the ongoing pandemic. LOCAL has been set up with the help of a representative group of Lancashire VCFSE leaders to create a shared vision in time for the upcoming local elections.
LOCAL wants to encourage the input of as many organisations as possibe across the Lancashire 14; this can be done through the online comment forum, or by organisations running their own. The idea is to understand what is important to the sector and how these visions can be achieved. To help kick start the conversation, the leaders have devised some suggested priorities; it is then up to those who want to get involved to discuss what this looks like and if anything has been missed.
Ideally, this 10-week conversation will lead to a significant mandate & the vision can be presented to the hopeful candidates in time for May’s election.
For more information and to participate in the conversation, find tools to run your own events, comms and more, please take a look at the website: www.locallancashire.org.uk
Any queries can be emailed to: vision@locallancashire.org.uk
Follow LOCAL on Twitter to help make some noise about this fantastic opportunity.
Covid-19 Vaccine Comms Pack & Webinar
The Department for Digital, Culture Media & Sport have produced a Covid-19 vaccine comms pack to support VCSE sector organisations communicate correct information about the vaccines.
The pack includes:
Guidance and basic explanations answering “what is a vaccine?”
Comms assets and resources on vaccines they can use and share
Vaccine resources for British Sign Language users
Key messages on Covid-19 Vaccine Scams
Misinformation- assets and copy they can use to tackle misinformation on vaccines
You may also re-watch the recording of the ‘Facts about the Covid vaccines: Live webinar’ from 30th Jan.
Follow @HMGNorth for updates.
