You cannot drink from an empty well. We need action

It’s never easy running a charity and just as we emerge from the impact of the pandemic, we are now hit by an even harder blow in the shape of rising costs.

Charities come in all shapes and sizes – from big, national service providers and campaigners to small, local, community-run projects. They provide lifeline support for the most vulnerable in our society, and they also look after animal welfare, protect our environment and run the majority of arts and culture venues. What they have in common is precarious income, constant uncertainty and rising costs not matched by rising income. Cuts to public services leave gaps which charities are expected to fill, with no thought to who is going to pay for them.

Research to be published next week shows that over 90% of voluntary organisations are experiencing rising costs. Goods and services, energy and staffing are the most significant.

We have seen energy costs for some charities rising by 500%. How can you cope with that if you’re reliant on public donations or fundraising? As the people charities serve are hit with increasing mental health challenges, are unable to afford food or energy, demand goes up. And the public’s capacity to donate money or time falls. It’s a vicious circle that shows no sign of letting up.

Around half of charities get income from public sector contracts or grants. You would expect that to be more reliable than public donations. But delays, cuts and short-termism mean that charities are issuing redundancy notices, are struggling to pay their staff what they need to deal with the cost of living crisis, and some are even having to close their doors.

So what can be done? We have seen some charitable trusts increasing their grants to recognise the challenges faced by the charities they fund, but many more should follow suit. There’s no silver bullet, but longer-term funding, timely funding decisions, and annual uplifts from Scottish Government and councils to keep funding in line with inflation would at least mitigate some of the problems. The rhetoric around how vital the sector is needs to be matched with urgent action. You can’t drink from an empty well.