The Chancellor’s choice

Preparing the charity sector for the Spending Review

We are increasingly witnessing a new conception of public services, one in which the third sector—rather than the state—helps the most vulnerable in society. This means that now, more than ever, civil society matters. Yet the 2015 autumn Spending Review will inevitably see more cuts to public spending, putting further strain on this already struggling sector.

The charity sector will need to be alert to these changes—considering how the new economic and policy environment will affect them and, crucially, their beneficiaries. We have put together this short paper to help charities prepare for what is coming. Here we discuss:

  • how changes in welfare spend are contributing to a new environment for a wide range of charities;
  • how new structures of local authority funding and new commissioning constraints will have a profound influence on the overall structure of the charity sector;
  • why, despite the ‘protected’ status of the education and health budgets, organisations working in these sectors will be affected by the Spending Review; and
  • how the cuts will affect the housing and homelessness sector.

Read media commentary about our analysis via the links below:

 

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