Blogs
A changing environment
Caveat: things are changing so fast, that some of this may be out of date by the time it is published… The statutory sector is currently going through a huge amount of change (certainly in Devon). Redundancies in many organisations, changes to local government...
Reserves
There’s a really difficult balancing act for small charities and social enterprises when it comes to reserves. Too much, and funders will think you don’t need their grant. Too little, and if anything goes wrong, then you are faced with making hard...
Collaborating
We have recently finished an evaluation report for an organisation we have worked with over a number of years. One of the things they do really well, is to collaborate with a really wide range of people and organisations. They work with private businesses,...
Valuing small organisations
There’s an increasing interest in collaboration and the importance of a range of organisations working together. There’s also a recognition of the importance of including the voices of smaller grassroots organisations and people representing those who are heard...
Tough Times
These are tough times. We speak to, and work with, a lot of organisations - and I have been surprised by the number who are currently facing really tough decisions. I don’t remember a time when things were so challenging for so many organisations in the...
Learning from the past
I have worked in and around the voluntary and community sector in the South West (particularly Devon) for over 30 years. In that time, I have seen the sector grow, change, develop and circle back around depending on the political environment, funding environment...
The Funding Climate
I do a bit of work on applications to Trusts and Foundations. I work with a lot of small charities and social enterprises and I am a member of a number of Facebook groups on fundraising too. The word on the block is definitely how difficult it is to...
Data
We work with a lot of organisations, and often have to get to grips with the data they collect so that we can advise on gaps or to provide an evaluation report. Geek that I am, I find it fascinating to look ‘under the bonnet’. You really can’t tell from...
Complexity
There’s a continuing and expanding discussion around ‘complexity’ both within the sector and in wider society. I’m not convinced. The reality of most people’s situations is actually pretty simple. If someone doesn’t have enough...