The Giving Summit
One of the most interesting proposals in the Government’s White Paper on Giving is its plan to channel the energy and creativity of multiple partners across society, including businesses, charities, faith groups, social enterprises, academia, philanthropists and others, by providing funding for game-changing ideas and a Giving Summit in the Autumn of 2011. Government is [...]
Hats off to the new Education Endowment Fund
In November 2010 Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, announced the Government’s allocation of £110 million to establish the Education Endowment Fund (EEF). Drawing upon President Barack Obama and Secretary Duncan’s ‘Race to the Top’ programme, which invites states to apply for funding to encourage bold approaches in schools across the country, the EEF [...]
What now for Arts fundraisers?
In December 2010, when Jeremy Hunt announced plans to promote philanthropy amongst the arts, including his £80m matched fund scheme and ‘year of corporate giving’, two-thirds of arts companies welcomed the government’s plans, with 85% of the music and opera sectors strongly favouring the initiative. So, four months on – how are developments unfolding? Research [...]
Budget it or fudge it?
Last week, George Osbourne announced the second budget of his chancellorship, introducing new changes to benefit the charity sector: • From April 2013, changes to Gift Aid will allow charities to claim Gift Aid on £5,000 worth of donations without the need for signed declarations. • By April 2012, there is to be a 4% drop in [...]
2011 – desperation in corporate philanthropy?
The Financial Times informs us that Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt is to send handwritten letters to a number of FTSE 100 chief executives in a bid to coax corporate investment into the arts and ‘offset culture budget cuts’. As part of his drive to make 2011 the Year of Corporate Giving, Mr Hunt wishes to [...]
Nudge towards philanthropy
‘Nudge Theory’, established by the behavioural economists Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein in their book ‘Nudge’, is currently fashionable amongst the new coalition Government. Its underpinning principle is that ‘bad choices and laziness are a large part of what makes people human’. Nudge Theory, a strand of behavioural theory, pre-supposes that individuals can be ‘nudged’ [...]
Making the case to Whitehall
The Think Tank New Philanthropy Capital (NPC) has published a paper called ‘Proving your worth to Whitehall’. It is aimed at charities; strongly advising them to think seriously about their answers to the questions that the Treasury has posed to all Government departments in advance of what we know is going to be a brutal [...]
More for Less?
Last week Nick Hurd and Francis Maud published an open letter to the Third Sector asking for ideas about reducing the deficit. Nick Hurd explained, ‘We want to identify ways of doing things better and more efficiently.’ With funding cuts more apparent by the day, the most pertinent question for charities is how they can [...]
To merge or not to merge?
Last week Westminster and Hammersmith and Fulham Councils released plans to merge their education departments in ‘what they admit is a high-risk attempt to shave millions from their budgets.’ It is a move which has been welcomed by Eric Pickles, the Government’s Community Secretary and new co-chair of the Big Society Ministerial Group. It also [...]
Civil servants for civil society?
This week Greg Clark, Decentralisation Minister, (is this title something of a contradiction?) put forward plans to offer community groups the support of senior civil servants to help them in their discussions with local authorities over support for grassroots projects. The move is part of the wider ‘Big Society’ plan to enable communities to “shape [...]
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