Having interviewed over 100 third sector chief executives in 2008, I can confirm that the campaigning role of the sector is alive and well. Ever since I can remember, there have been two persistent worries on this front. One is that increased government funding could end up muzzling the sector’s voice. The other is that an increasing emphasis on the public service delivery role of the sector could result in less capacity for other work. Neither of these concerns has been proved right, although achieving an appropriate balance in each case is a constant management challenge for most chief executives.
Successes
The last 10 years have seen unprecedented campaign successes. In health, the focus on patient involvement, and increased priority for people with chronic conditions, is a tribute to the efforts of the Long Term Conditions Alliance and its members. Self management is now a core theme of NHS policy; the Expert Patient Programme, based on the pioneering efforts of Arthritis Care, is being rolled out by a Community Interest Company with £16.5m start up funding from the Government.
Recent mental health legislation and the commitment to spend £170m on Talking Therapies have both been influenced by Mind and Rethink. Recognition of the need to improve the care system to cope with the needs of an ageing population is welcomed by Counsel and Care and the publication of a Carers Strategy signals that carers, according to Crossroads National Association’s chief executive, Anne Roberts, are ‘higher up the policy agenda than ever before.’
‘Every Child Matters’, and the accompanying investment in 3500 children’s centres, were heavily influenced by the sector. Those working with young people welcomed ‘Aiming High’ and the ‘My Place’ youth centre programme. More specifically initiatives like the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy, the HIV Sexual Health Strategy and the increased focus on those leaving the care system were all influenced by the sector.
Significant progress is being made on disability rights since the Disability Discrimination Act, which resulted from continued pressure from the disability movement. Over £400m new funding has been achieved for services for disabled children and their families through the efforts of the Every Disabled Child Matters Campaign.
The biggest development of all, welcomed across the sector, is the personalisation of health and care services and the introduction of individual budgets, which brings the promise of truly independent living. The National Centre for Independent Living are also delighted at the recognition being given to the importance of having a user led organisation in every district.
Continuing Challenges
There are, of course, continuing campaign challenges to address. Jon Sparkes from Scope feels there is still a long way to go before we will see a more fundamental change in attitudes to disability and Liz Sayce from Radar highlights the difficulty of getting hidden impairments better recognised.
Those working on cross cutting issues still struggle to get Government to respond in a joined up way. Claire Tyler from Relate has to work with eight different government departments to try and achieve a coordinated response to supporting family relationships, although, more recently, she has been encouraged by the government’s positive response to the Kids in the Middle campaign in which Relate are a leading player. Then there are battles that have not yet been won like Carers UK’s campaign to secure improvements to carers benefits and, of course, the recession can only add to the campaigning challenges facing the sector in the coming months.
The User Voice
The strongest campaigning card in the sector’s hand is its ability to connect directly with service users and enable them to get their voice heard. Sometimes, this is reflected in the structures organisations have developed, like Mencap who always have at least one board member with a learning disability, elected by a Members Assembly. These structures provide added credibility to Mencap’s campaigning voice.
Some organisations like Changemakers are all about encouraging participation of young people in their case, and developing effective structures for ensuring they get their voice heard. They then use the experience of their work with young people to inform their policy influencing work. This gives them credibility with politicians in a field where everyone is agreed it is vital to listen to what young people are saying.
Involving users as staff members can also help ensure the user’s voice runs throughout the organisation. One third of St Giles Trust’s staff are ex-offenders, which Rob Owen feels makes a real difference to the organisation’s approach to its work and to its credibility with commissioners and especially its clients.
Being able to bring users into direct contact with policymakers and opinion formers is one of the sector’s greatest strengths. This can either be done in a high profile way- for example, by Martin Narey of Barnardos bringing children with him onto the Today programme, or by Anne Longfield of 4Children arranging a Youth Cabinet meeting at No 10. Alternatively, it can be done behind the scenes, for example by the MS Society involving people with MS in developing service specifications with commissioners.
Structures and tactics
Effective campaigning depends on good homework, good contacts and appropriate structures. It is no coincidence that some of the sector’s greatest achievements have been with the DCSF, where Francine Bates, former chief executive of Contact a Family, is now one of Ed Balls’ advisers. Indeed, Paul Ennals from the National Childrens Bureau, is concerned that, if there were a change of government, some of those who have enjoyed unparalleled access to ministers in recent years may be regarded with suspicion by a new administration.
The possibility of a change of government is being taken seriously by the sector and everyone I spoke to was busy developing contacts with the relevant shadow ministers and other key figures. They all see the opportunities in a situation where rival parties are vying for the sector’s support and are seeking to raise the stakes accordingly.
Devolution also brings opportunities. Action for Children have established country committees so they have the flexibility to respond to the differing political and legal circumstances in each country. Policy changes which may not be possible in England initially, can sometimes be achieved in one of the other countries, thus providing useful leverage for similar changes elsewhere over time.
At the local level, Local Strategic Partnerships and Local Area Agreements are providing unparalleled access and opportunities for the sector. National Indicators for a thriving third sector and for the promotion of volunteering have been prioritised in two thirds of areas, which provides an important platform to build on. Now one of the biggest challenges for local infrastructure organisations like councils for voluntary service, is how to develop the capacity to engage effectively with increasingly complex participatory structures.
There have also been widespread changes of political control at the local level, which mean that the local third sector has had to get used to coping with the kind of political changes which we may soon be seeing nationally. Some of those I spoke to admitted that they had not prepared enough for these changes. Others had been anxious about their new conservative administration’s lack of awareness about the sector, but had been able to turn this to their advantage through organising an extensive induction programme for the new councillors.
Funding
Most campaigning has to be funded through unrestricted voluntary income or surpluses on contracts. This is why many of those I interviewed were seeking to increase their voluntary income and thus create the capacity to undertake more development and campaigning work.
Some funders, like the Baring Foundation, will fund charities directly to undertake activities, like campaigning, which will help increase their independence. Others, like the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, will identify issues which they feel have been neglected by government, like the educational needs of looked after children, and then develop a programme for addressing this need, for example through innovative uses of the library system; they then successfully used the experience of these projects to influence the government’s green paper. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation take this approach a step further by commissioning research on specific issues like lifetime homes, and, in this case, also pioneering new building forms through their Housing Trust; then, by keeping up the pressure for a long time, they were able to campaign successfully to get the building regulations changed so that all new housing has to be fully accessible eg with no door sills, thus making it easier for wheelchairs or pushchairs.
Generally, however, as highlighted in New Philanthropy Capital’s recent report ‘Critical masses: social campaigning, a guide for donors and funders’, many donors and funders hesitate to provide funding for campaigning work, despite the fact that campaigning can deliver tangible results and doesn’t have to take decades to do it.
Changes Ahead
Having completed my final interview in November 2008, it already feels like the end of an era. The financial situation, possible government changes and new lessons to be learned from the US election, all point to potential changes ahead. Whatever the outcome, I feel confident that the third sector’s voice will be coming through loud and clear.
Richard Gutch
Prospectus Associate
14 January 2009
