The US-Iran War is about to enter its sixth week. Although a temporary ceasefire is in place at the time of writing, concerns as to how it will impact the lives of the people and communities we serve and love have not gone away. The only ‘known’ is that the global socioeconomic picture will remain uncertain for some time.
For charitable and social change organisations based in the UK and overseas – in particular, those in the Middle East – there are numerous financial and operational complexities to manage. These will include increases in operating costs and balancing those against a rise in demand for charitable services.
There is also concern for the wellbeing of the people we work with and alongside, whether they are our colleagues, service users, members, partners or suppliers. And, of course, there is the potential impact on income, including donations and grants.
Our sector has faced numerous crises this past decade, and every time we’ve seen how resilient we are. When we come together in support of one another, we can weather storms and renew our sense of purpose.
Taking a pessimistic but pragmatic approach, we’re writing to you today to ask how the US-Iran war and wider Middle East crises might affect your organisation.
We know this is a difficult and uncertain time, but we would like to ask:
- What are your biggest concerns for your organisation as the situation remains unstable?
- Have you already taken any steps to manage or mitigate the impact of the war on your organisation, work, teams and/or the people you support? For example, budgeting and forecasting, workforce planning, scenario planning, changes to the way you work or services you offer, advice and guidance you’ve shared etc.
- What practical steps or changes are you considering to safeguard your operations, manage and reduce risk, and plan ahead?
- How can CFG best support you right now? Are there specific types of help, guidance or representation that would make a difference to you and/or the sector as a whole?
If you would like to respond to any or all of these questions, please do so by emailing our Policy Team directly: policy@cfg.org.uk.
Your comments will be treated in the strictest of confidence and all information you provide will be anonymised. You will not be identifiable unless you expressly grant permission to name you and/or your organisation.
By sharing your insights and actions, we can better understand how our sector is affected. Your responses will inform any future conversations we might have with policymakers and ministers and could be used in future communications with our members, partners and the wider sector.