Non-profits urged to consider working together
September 2009
New research shows that collaborative work is taking a backseat on charities' agendas
The Charity Commission’s latest report reveals that just 9 per cent of charities have considered merging, collaborating or forming consortia with other non-profits, in response to the downturn.
The Commission’s third Economic Survey of Charities stated that although 52 per cent of charities surveyed have put one or more measures in place to respond to the difficult economic climate (up from 12 per cent in their first survey in September 2008), only a small proportion had put collaboration on the agenda.
Larger charities were more likely to think about collaborative issues than those in the small or medium categories, but 77 per cent of organisations with an income of £1m or more still have not done so.
Andrew Hind, Charity Commission chief executive implored all third sector organisations to consider working with each other to provide greater outreach to their beneficiaries. ‘It is vitally important, particularly at a time when economic uncertainty requires all organisations to work smarter, that charities think regularly and imaginatively about how they can do more for those they help,’ he said.
Issues of brand protection and an increasingly competitive charity environment may put non-profits off collaborative work according to Andy Atkins, executive director of Friends of the Earthand previous policy and campaigns director at Tearfund. ‘Everybody wants to protect their brand, which is perfectly understandable and necessary, he said. ‘But I don’t think we can do that to the extent of excluding collaboration. We’re going to have to figure out how to collaborate much more effectively in certain parts of the charity sector.’
The charity regulator has just published two new toolkits for charities on collaborative working and merging; Choosing to Collaborate [1] and Making Mergers Work [2]. The toolkits are designed to help charities to decide whether collaborative working or merging would help them and their beneficiaries – using tips and case studies to make clear the risks, challenges and opportunities that collaborative working and mergers can bring.
Author: Claire Shropshall
Claire Shropshall is the editorial assistant for Charity Funding Report, Caritas, and Codicil magazines. Claire has a BA in English Literature and Philosophy from Birmingham University and a Postgraduate Certificate in Periodical Journalism from London College of Communication. She previously worked in Central America as a voluntary reporter for an English-language newspaper.
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