By Caron Bradshaw, CEO of CFG
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1.0.0.20
The Charity Commission and Frontier Economics recently published ‘the value of the charity sector’. As many recent events, reports and initiatives I have engaged with have, it has left me with mixed feelings.
Take the recent appointment of the new Minister Baroness Barran, who has a lot of experience of the sector, and the initiative she has embarked upon to engage with the sector around the civil society strategy. When I met her and participated in one round table I heard a lot of things that encouraged me and I perceived a genuine desire to engage. But in those discussions, particularly with civil servants present, I noticed I felt discomfort.
I loved much of Julia Unwin’s report into the future of civil society. Particularly, the encouragement to relinquish power to our beneficiaries, to ground what we do locally, in community, and the importance of having trusting collaborative relationships, all resonate with me. At first glance there is little for me to disagree with. But still, I notice my sense of discomfort.
I also find that there is much in what Baroness Stowell says and in the actions of the Charity Commission, to encourage charities to be true to their purpose, very positive. And yet I feel that prick of discomfort again.
So I’ve been reflecting. Why do I feel uncomfortable? Have I just slipped into a negative and closed mindset? Has the febrile atmosphere of Brexit finally worn me down? I don’t think so. There is good reason to not brush aside these feelings, or to settle down and get comfortable, just yet.
We all know that the value to society which flows from charity is so much more than financial. There is recognition that charities play an important role in social cohesion, wellbeing and civic engagement. In the current environment, thinking about charity as a solution to the deep economic and social divides that exist in our society is a must. There are many saying good things about localism, appreciating charities provide expertise and that they have a right to speak out for their beneficiaries. Charity is at the heart of society. All good.
So the cause of my discomfort? The narrative, which lurks in the background, like a saboteur, threatening to undermine these warm words and clearly good intents; public ‘trust’.
Let me stress I wholeheartedly agree that charities should be trustworthy. It’s in my charity’s vision statement after all! We should aim for the highest standards of conduct and behaviour. We should act in the public interest and deliver public benefit. We should do no harm. However, I have a real problem with the continued focus on trust driven by what the public say they want and how much they say they trust charities in any given moment.
It assumes that what the public wants is in the public interest and will deliver public benefit. It assumes that if we are not trusted it is because we are not trustworthy.
But who should set the standards against which we are marked? Do we fully understand what creates and withdraws trust? Do we know whether it has any bearing on how charities raise and spend income or on the delivery of their charitable activities? Do we perpetuate the problem by continuously asking the public who they trust in a climate where trust as a concept is a diminishing commodity?
I believe instead we should be focussing on public interest (and the inherent relevant charitable obligation of ‘public benefit’). The public interest is something that transcends popularist opinions. It is about the good of society, the welfare and well-being of the general public.
The ICAEW in its publication ‘Acting in the public interest’ says, “The public interest is an abstract notion. Asserting that an action is in the public interest involves setting oneself up in judgement as to whether the action or requirement to change behaviour will benefit the public overall – a far greater set of people than can be interacted with directly. It involves interference in people’s ability to go about their business or sometimes, as a positive policy decision, non-interference in the face of alternative actions.”
We can no longer ‘…count on being given the benefit of the doubt.’ And we shouldn’t. Because trusting blindly is a fools’ game. We should stay on our toes and constantly ask whether we’re delivering public benefit and challenge ourselves to deliver the best outcomes. But is our ability to meet growing demand really dependent on ‘retaining the confidence of the public’ or, more worryingly, meeting the public’s ‘view’ of the value of the sector’?
We need to answer more fundamental questions; what kind of society do we want and what role does charitable activity play in that? What structure, funding and operating environment delivers public benefit and supports a sector which acts in the public interest?
It’s a simplistic notion that we should respond to want the public wants and the assertion that they alone should be able to set the parameters of what it should mean to be a charity, is flawed. The demand that we deliver more for less and that we can provide ‘low cost or no cost’ ways of tackling the wicked problems society faces, rather than accepting that a fundamental shift is required which will needs investment and radical change, is unrealistic. And we shouldn’t kid ourselves these are entirely dependent on this subjective notion of trust either.
So I welcome the warm words and the genuine good intent but I have concluded that my discomfort comes from whether there is any truth in the saying that the ‘road to hell is paved with good intentions’.
Originally published in Charity Times
1.0.0.20
1.0.0.20