Press Release: Insolvent councils more likely to cut local charity support
The second edition of DSC's Grants for Good report has just been released.
Fresh data released today on local authority grant-making to the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector shows that local councils experiencing financial hardship are more likely to cut grants to local charities and voluntary organisations.
The Grants for Good report, published today by the charity Directory of Social Change, illuminates the latest trends on local authority grant-making to the VCSE sector. With many local governments facing huge financial pressures and increasingly being forced to issue Section 114 notices – the equivalent of bankruptcy – grant funding that supports vital services in communities across the country is under threat.
This new research finds that a significantly higher proportion of councils at risk of financial hardship (71%) reduced their annual grant spending to the VCSE sector in 2023/24, compared to those not at risk (46%).
Since the first edition of DSC’s research on local authority grant-making was published in 2023, more councils have entered financial difficulty, with devastating effects on local communities. The second edition of DSC’s report, published today, includes new analysis on the number of councils in financial crisis, and the effects on their grant-making to VCSE organisations.
Commenting on the release of the report today, DSC’s Director of Policy and Research Jay Kennedy said: “The collateral damage to communities — and to the VCSE organisations that serve them — when councils are in financial crisis can no longer be ignored by central government policymakers and politicians. Decades of cuts and underinvestment in local services have taken a heavy toll. In the upcoming Spending Review it’s critical that the UK government invests more in local government and the ecosystem of vital local services that people depend on, which are often delivered by charities. Otherwise there’s a real risk that people’s health, well-being and social cohesion will deteriorate.”
For more information please contact Jay Kennedy, Directory of Social Change by email ([email protected]) or phone (07989 187 537).
Notes to editors:
- Founded in 1974, the Directory of Social Change (DSC) is a national charity which supports an independent voluntary sector through campaigning, training and publications. DSC is the largest supplier of information and training to the voluntary sector, and its work helps tens of thousands of organisations every year achieve their aims. Learn more at www.dsc.org.uk
