Accidental Savers into Deliberate Donors?

Accidental Savers into Deliberate Donors? 

The ONS have reported that there are 6m accidental savers as a result of Covid. It is also reported that there are 9m people experiencing financial issues as a result of the pandemic. Trying to steer a course between the two may not be easy but it is a course well worth steering. The experience of food banks, during the pandemic, does indicate a desire to meet need where it is communicated. Can ‘accidental savers’ be encouraged to donate to worthy causes?

How do we communicate need?

Almost certainly the answer is to communicate what a donation will achieve. A shopping list approach raises the horizon of a potential donor. An example list may be

• £5.00 could enable an extended visit for our respite at home service. 

• £20.00 could enable the hire of a hall for an older persons loneliness club.

• £100.00 could enable lunch to be provided for 40 lonely older people. 

Somewhere in the communication needs to have an indication that, in the event of over donation, funds will be used for general charitable purposes. You don’t want a situation arising where the phone lines are staffed but the back up services that enable signposting are not well resourced. 

It is important to be aware that people give to all kinds of causes. Birmingham City Council currently have a  crowd funding campaign to support habitat for slow worms. A four figure sum has been raised in less than three weeks. 

Further, it is vital to be even more aware that not everyone who reads your appeal will be in a position to respond as they would wish. Some will not be in a position to respond at all as shown by the figures in the opening paragraph of this article. So, it is a very good idea to get at least two other people to read what you intend to say before it is communicated to the wider world. 

How do we enable people to give?

By far and away the easiest method is to use an online platform. Just Giving is the most well known. Local Giving is less well known but, from time to time, has match funding challenges where donations can be doubled. This is ideal for encouraging supporters to make a donation. It is also ideal for encouraging accidental savers to give as their money will go further. You must choose your own platform. The following characteristics are helpful: 

• Anonymous donations have to be possible – where the platform knows who has given and you do not. Many people like this option as it removes the fear of follow up mail shots etc.

• Gift Aid is possible on donations with the platform making the claim for you. This saves time for you.

• Whilst there may be suggested donation sums it is important to allow donors to make a choice themselves.

What do we do when people have given? 

The first requirement is to use the money in line with the terms of the donation. If there are limitations imposed on a donation it creates a restricted fund. Otherwise it is important to say thank you – using contact details if provided. If contact details are not provided a general thank you on your website and in your annual report and accounts will have to suffice. This should make reference to the appeal and speak about what it has achieved. For example

“Our older persons appeal resulted in £1,465 and with this money we held :10 older persons lunches; 20 pop up cafes for lonely older people; and 55 extend visits under our respite at home service. Thank you for making this happen”. 

What next? 

Have a look at what your organisation could do with a modest sum of money and try an appeal. If the target is relatively small it has a greater chance of success. You can then communicate that success. 

People respond to positive messages. If you only issue financial communications when it is a crisis (we need £600 by Friday or we have to stop doing X) then it always will be a crisis. If regular (note that the word regular is not the same as frequent) supporter requests are issued which explain what the money will do as well as reinforcing what it has done there should be a greater response and that will lead to greater supporter stakeholder engagement. 

Health Inequalities in Some of the Most Vulnerable Neighbourhoods

Professor Chris Bentley is a Non-Executive Director at Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust and is also the Chair of the Quality and Safety committee. He is a prominent figure in population health and specialises in health inequalities.  

Chris’ recent presentation ‘Place-based approaches to Health Inequalities in the System’s Most Vulnerable Neighbourhoods’ explores how to address some instances of health inequality in Cheshire and Merseyside.

In it’s simplest definition ‘health inequalities’ refers to the health differences across groups and populations which are beyond an individual’s control. However, according to Chris, it is important not to ‘over define’ health inequalities. The current Coronavirus pandemic has accentuated the already prominent disadvantage across certain groups in relation to health, but also housing, food, employment, income etc.  

There are certain ways we can intervene: 

These segments need to work together to have the greatest impact. 

Cheshire and Merseyside have some of the most prolific hospital admissions in its most deprived areas in comparison to the national average. This insight includes admissions that could have been prevented through out of hospital care; this pattern is characteristic of the North West as a region.

Can these emergency admissions be prevented from out of hospital care? And why are some areas able to reduce poor outcomes more successfully than others? 

Seemingly, across Cheshire and Merseyside communitiy preventions are not always successful at supporting residents to avoid crises. Chris suggests three ways this can be addressed: 

1. Unwarranted service variation

2. Community-based interventions and

3. Service engagement with communities

What is imperative to addressing the excessive hospital admissions in the most deprived neighbourhoods and helping avoidance of crises is bridging the gap betweeen services and communities. There is already a lot of work going on in communities and the health services have often not integrated with the already established and trusted organisations in these communities. Perhaps on a place-basis what we need to do is link primary care networks into these already existing structures, thus harnessing them to bridge the gap between health care and communities. 

Systems need to address this issue in order to make a percentage change. Some health systems are already making progress and connecting with communities by working with groups and organisations, however, in others there is still lots of work to be done. This is what the Cheshire and Merseyside partnership will be looking to take forward. 

Please watch Chris Bentley’s full presentation. He eloquently explores the above whilst going into more statisitcal detail regarding specific areas of Cheshire and Merseyside.

The Levelling-up Agenda

Across the UK, there are deep-rooted inequalities reflected in income, skills, living standards and life expectancy. These inequalities are so vast that the UK is recognised as one of the most regionally imbalanced economies in the industrialised world. As the UK embarks on its independence from the EU, tackles climate change and embraces the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0), these trends have the potential to expand divisions further, unless harnessed to provide economic opportunities. 

A systemic change is required to ensure that the North West maximises its potential and the “Levelling up Agenda” provides a pathway to success. The Northern Research Group (NRG) is a group of 50 or so Conservative MPs who have big ideas for a “global Britain”, envisaging the North as an attractive landing pad for foreign investors, new business, highly paid jobs and international trade. The government have recognised this with the levelling up fund – a £4.8 billion investment, across the country.   

To promote investment, cities, towns and surrounding areas need to be attractive places to work and live. The levelling up fund can support smaller towns to revive local business and rejuvenate a sense of community. This is especially important for rural towns and coastal villages considered “left behind”, in comparison to the development we see in major towns and cities. And, this is where the VCFSE sector has a part to play.  

Many community facilities are operated by VCFSE bodies. A large number have suffered from a lack of investment and, in 2020, lacked income to meet day to day expenses – let alone embark on an upgrade. The being a good place to live agenda is one that the sector can lead on. 

The North is home to a strong manufacturing base. The manufacturing sector provides a significant portion of the UK economy, contributing over 10% of domestic product, and totalling 44% of the UK’s exports, which translates to a £273 billion contribution to the UK economy. As the world undergoes a fourth industrial revolution, it is vital that the sector receives supportive policy and financial investment via the levelling up fund, in order to innovate and compete globally. If the North has a world-leading manufacturing industry that has embraced IR4.0, the region will see the creation of jobs, new skills and private investment. Again, this is where the VCFSE sector has a part to play.  

There are reports that suggest that unemployment, in the UK, has not increased at the project rate resulting from Covid. Undoubtably the furlough scheme has assisted in this. But there are indications that a lot of migrant workers, from the EU, have returned to their country of origin if they have been made redundant or furloughed. This will have an effect on the ability of industry and commerce to “bounce back” when the upturn comes. The VCFSE sector is well placed to reach “the hard to reach” who will likely to be crucial to recovery of the economy. Those engaged in training and job readiness sectors are encouraged to ascertain the skills that will be needed, in the main workforce, going forward. The levelling up fund could be a route towards funding premises improvements to enable this.  

The levelling up fund will also support physical connectivity in the North. The region has a number of airports with potential to connect the North on a global scale; however, these airports and surrounding communities require investment to capitalise on their potential. A “hub-and-spoke” approach is being advocated to connect business hubs and demonstrate the ease of connectivity, making the region a more attractive place to do business. There are regular announcements of new logistics parks being planned for the North West. How can sector partners engage with the training requirements for these – or even operate cafes etc for hauliers?  

2020 taught us that we are more adaptable and resilient than we thought and accelerated changes to the way we work and live more in one year than had been the case in the previous five years. The North West has the potential to seize opportunities created from agendas such as increased home-working and online shopping to provide the perfect environment for present and future generations to want to live, work and play in. 

Andrew Rainsford 

VSNW with acknowledgement to Rob Elvin, Squire Patton Boggs,  Manchester.  

The Importance of Being MIND-ful of Workplace Well-being

In December we posted a ‘news’ piece exploring ACEVO’s recent report observing well-being of the workforce int he VCSE sector. Workplace well-being is of paramount importance; so-called ‘burnouts’, are explored by Eleanor Ross in her recent Daily Telegraph article. She recounts her story of striving for success in freelance journalism and how continuous pressure contributed to a decline in performance. This led to poorer wellbeing and, in her case, suicidal thoughts. The author is now slouch – she has a Master’s degree and was generally considered a high achiever.   

One of the traits of working in the Voluntary Sector is that we strive to be the best in what we do. This is seemingly a good thing except that we cannot all be the best in what we do unless we are the only person doing it! That is extremely rare. A more realistic option may be to aim to be the best that we can be – and to seek support and help to enable us to do that in a manner which enables continuous effective performance. We still give ourselves the challenge of development but we also give ourselves permission to slow down the treadmill. 

Stress and pressure can be helpful. Some people work best when there are deadlines. However, when it gets out of control it ceases to be helpful. It can become oppressive. So, please 

• Don’t get to the crisis stage 

• Recognise warning signs 

• Seek help at the earliest stage of recognition.  

MIND has an excellent range of resources that can help. Mental health and well being are important matters and should not be ignored. It also vital to be MIND-ful of our colleagues and those around us and offer to support to those in need.

In future years 2020 may be seen as the “year of the pandemic”. 2021 could be the year of greater awareness of all health issues; visible and invisible – physical and mental.  

Workforce Well-being in the VCSE Sector.

Workforce Well Being – ACEVO 

ACEVO, in conjunction with Mental Health Foundation England, has published a significant report exploring the well being of the workforce in the VCSE sector. The report can be found here.  

The main findings are grouped under four headings:  

What makes it tough: the vulnerability of charity staff where the commitment and pressures brought by lived experience/personal connection or even a drive for social justice all combine to over burden the workforce – who may not realise that they are over burdened. 

The impact on leaders with issues around the need to balance authentic honesty, with taking very difficult organisational decisions that can have an impact on people’s lives. Holding responsibility for workforce wellbeing, and the desire to compensate for the challenges of working in the sector, can be draining for CEOs. The scale of the challenges can feel overwhelming, and it is easy for leaders to feel they are ‘not coping’.  

When the ground shifts which has become apparent as the operating environment for charities suddenly changed. Many teams and communities are experiencing deep sadness, loss, isolation and fear as they witness growing need and falling income as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.  

Governance and strategy which states that the sector will not be able to meet challenges unless the mental health of staff and leadership is prioritised. Boards play an important role in highlighting mental health as an organisational priority if organisations are to do their best work, ensuring that leaders know they are not alone by giving them the permission they need to reach out and share the load.  

The report explores many issues that are too often put into the “too difficult”, “tomorrow” or “to introduce this may imply weakness” piles. 2021 will continue to bring pressures. Trustees and CEO’s are urged to take time out to read this report and consider the impact on their organisation.  

Andrew Rainsford, Policy and Research Officer, VSNW.  

Health & Social Care Funding Reform

Health and Social Care Funding Reform

The Sunday Telegraph, 22nd November, carried an article from Lord Forsyth of Drumlean, chairman of the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee and who’s employment history includes being a minister under Margaret Thatcher’s government. The Telegraph newspaper is a former employer of the current Prime Minister Boris Johnson (he was a columnist in the period immediately prior to winning the election in 2019) and sometimes used as a kite flying venue.  It is worth exploring what the article says.  

There are two main proposals. Firstly, there should be provision of emergency funding now to meet the growing demand for services and give care workers a much needed pay rise. This is vital in ensuring people get the care they need. 

And, then by the end of the parliament there should be a commitment to making care (as opposed to accommodation costs for residential care) ‘free at the point of need’, just like the NHS. 

The author then goes on to say: 

“Crucially, these changes in funding should be made alongside bold reform in how the system works, with steps taken to join up care with the NHS, and to help keep as many people in their homes for as long as possible. 

Of course, all of this will not come cheap. 

To deliver these two big changes we will need to spend over half as much again on care as we do today by the end of the parliament. In time this will undoubtedly require us to find additional tax revenue. 

But, after decades of underinvestment in care, loosening the purse strings was always going to be required. In truth, the cost of these measures by the end of the parliament would amount to £9bn per year, compared to the furlough scheme which is likely to cost about £6bn per month. 

Moreover, investment in social care will not only cost money but save money too by freeing up capacity in the NHS which can be redeployed to deal with the backlog created by the pandemic.”

Those of us with long memories may recall that we have been somewhere near here before. In the Blair years “local strategic partnerships” were encouraged in which all statutory bodies were encouraged to work together to provide joined up services. So, care beds and care provisions were to be made available which would enable “bed blocking” to be resolved. In turn, this would then mean that hospital beds were available for people who needed them – and not care beds. It will be interesting to see if the second proposal gains traction and, if so, how? It is certainly one for the sector to keep an eye on.  

The first proposal has financial implications. If there is increased funding it will go to commissioning bodies. They will then have the choice to pass on the additional funding, in the form of increased contract prices linked to remuneration of delivery staff or retaining it to use elsewhere. This is something where there does need to be a sector wide approach. Staff remuneration is a key factor in staff retention. Increases at the lower end of pay structures is a good thing in this regard. However, the danger of a flatter pay structure is that there is less willingness to progress, which may affect working experience in key management roles in the future. 

Andrew Rainsford Policy & Research Officer VSNW

To note: The Telegraph operates behind a paywall and therefore access to the article requires membership or signing up for a one month free trial.

Countering Cognitive Decline - Awareness of Social Prescribing and Making Links

John Bews, from U3A Heswall, has been one of a small team concerned with dementia prevention and have been working on an action plan to encourage popular participation in a range of activities, recommended by the experts, that might reduce the risk of future cognitive decline. He has kindly provided this blog article to VSNW to explain further.

“My interest in this subject arises from within U3A where the National Subject Adviser on Memory and I have developed a memory workshop manual in the form of a keynote presentation which we have successfully delivered around the network. It was originally designed to be mainly educational and entertaining, but has recently gained an additional, more vital, dimension in the role of helping to counter cognitive decline. This is not only of importance to U3A members but is worthy of wider circulation to our ageing population.”

Need for action

Our journey to this point follows the increased public awareness of dementia/Alzheimer’s, with an estimated 850,000 confirmed cases in the UK, and this figure likely to increase. As you know, there is currently no cure for this condition and the race is on to find an answer. Some progress is being made and there are claims that there will be a positive solution ‘within the foreseeable future’. Neuroscientist Joseph Jebelli, in his 2017 book ‘In Pursuit of Memory - the fight against Alzheimer’s’ states, “We are closer than ever to the abolition of Alzheimer’s”.

In pursuing this investigative work to find a cure, attention has been given to the origins and cause of the problem from which it has been noted that particular lifestyles have a major influence in minimising cognitive decline. This opens up a second line of offence and introduces self-help measures to tackle the problem. Prevention is now considered to be of major importance.

Prevention

The Alzheimer’s Society says, “Delaying the onset of dementia by five years would cut the number of people affected by a third by 2030” and, “A treatment that could slow a disease like Alzheimer’s by 25% would almost halve the number of people in the severe stages of the disease by 2050.”

Numerous experts (see references below), including Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research, now recognise that engagement in particular lifestyle activities is paramount in countering the risk of cognitive decline. The Global Council on Brain Health have said, “More research is needed on the impacts that cognitively stimulating activities have on the brain, but we have sufficient evidence to conclude that it is beneficial to remain mentally active and to continue learning over the course of your lifespan”.

The range of recommended activities is broadly acknowledged by all parties but does have some variants and there is no definitive list. This is partly because the specific activities have not yet been evaluated for their effectiveness, and disparate research projects continually add their new findings to the growing accumulation of knowledge. In addition, there is a piecemeal flow of random advice in the media (See examples below) which Alzheimer’s and other experts say should be read with caution.

Refining the message

What is needed is an overview of the full range of recommended lifestyles to enable everybody to become engaged. The point here is that we are all different and, just as Dr Dale Bredesen says that there is no ‘one fits all’ solution, so there needs to be a ‘pick and mix’ choice of activities to empower people to accommodate their particular needs.

In order to assist and encourage individuals to engage in suitably effective activities, what is needed is a general understanding of the benefits of the recommended lifestyles.

In the book, ‘The Preservation of Memory’ edited by David Bruno and containing contributions from scholars of cognitive science it says, “In working with older adults, it is extremely useful to present knowledge about how memory works, and in particular, explanations about the ageing process and memory” (Troyer 2001).

U3A Memory Presentation

Our presentation endeavours to meet this need by first explaining in simple, layperson terms how the brain works in managing memory, including its strengths and weaknesses. It then utilises this information to refresh the memory process itself and make recommendations for its continued maintenance.

We have drawn on a wide collection of recommended lifestyle activities and have categorised them into recognisable groups, which we have then matched with the earlier, simple explanations as to their cause and effect on memory maintenance. This not only helps individuals understand their importance and benefit, but also empowers them to pick and mix their own selection of activities to help counter cognitive decline. “Ballroom dancing or learning a new language may be beneficial - but why is that and couldn’t I do something else instead?”

To answer this question, we have produced an action plan to help individuals identify and select their preferences. This can be used to assess an individual’s current performance level; plan for future improvement and review and monitor subsequent effectiveness. This would not only regularise and encourage a popular uptake but could provide a valuable source of data in assessing effectiveness.

Further Development

Two further elements are required:

• The extensive dissemination of the message to encourage self-help participants; and

• The comprehensive listing of organised activities and events to attract the more reticent. This would include an expansion of provision to fill gaps

Conclusion

We are not medical experts and recommend anyone with concerns about their memory to consult their GP. We are lay students (75 years plus) with a strong shared interest in cognitive matters stretching back over many years. We believe that our presentation is different from any other work on the subject, is easy to understand and could benefit a wider audience in pursuit of the ‘prevention’ target.

References and Sources

David Bruno’s book, ‘The Preservation of Memory’ says, “In working with older adults, it is extremely useful to present knowledge about how memory works, and in particular, explanations about the ageing process and memory” (Troyer 2001)

Both Dr Dale Bredesen, ‘The End of Alzheimer’s’, and Joseph Jebelli, ‘In Pursuit of Memory’ recommend these lifestyle activities as being of benefit in postponing cognitive decline.

In his book, ‘The Brain’ and TV series, neuroscientist David Eagleman concludes that the key to postponing cognitive loss is to adopt a lifestyle to include cognitive exercise such as crosswords, learning new skills, social and physical activity.

The Global Council on Brain Health - (a collaborative of scientists, professionals, scholars and experts from around the world) in their March 2017 meeting ‘Engage Your Brain’ concluded with a recommendation to, “incorporate enjoyable, cognitively stimulating activities (CSA) as part of a healthy lifestyle to help maintain your brain health and reduce the risk of cognitive decline as you get older”. Also - Knowledge Gaps - “More research needed to better understand the underlying mechanisms involved in cognitive stimulation. One major problem is how to measure the benefits.”

And - Conclusion - “More research needed on impacts that CSA have on the brain, but we have sufficient evidence to conclude that it is beneficial to remain mentally active and to continue learning over the course of your life span”.

Michael Mosley on TV’s ‘Trust Me I’m a Doctor’ undertook, ‘The big brain maintenance experiment’ in which he tested and recommended three lifestyles to help maintain, and even improve, cognitive skills.

Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research have publications on ‘Reducing the Risk’ which list recommended lifestyle activities.

Public Health for England PHE Report 16 June 2018:

People over 40 in England will be given advice on how to reduce the risk of dementia as part of their free NHS health check.

Daily Mail news items:

Even slightly higher blood pressure raises the risk of dementia. DM Jun 13 2018

Sleep, exercise and a wee tipple … how to ward off Alzheimer’s. DM Jun 7 2018

Eat healthily ‘to have a bigger brain and stave off dementia”. DM May 17 2018

How learning a language helps ward off dementia DM Feb 8 2018

Drug to slow dementia “just three years away’. DM March 21 2018

Now that’s clever … Being bright helps you to live longer. DM March 13 2018

What to eat to beat dementia. DM January 30 2018

Jog Your Memory With Exercise DM 30 2018

How to make sure you never forget your brolly again. Dm 12 August 2017

How to never forget where you left your keys. Dm 2 December 2017

Listening? Now you can prove it. DM 23 February 2018

Why women are not dreaming enough DM 21 February 2018

GP’s urged to prescribe coffee mornings to lonely patients. DM 21 February 2018

The Alzheimer’s Solution: DM 2 October 2017

1. How to eat to beat dementia.

2. Warning; sitting down could give you dementia.

3. How stress can shrink your brain.

4. Why a good night’s sleep is your best defence against dementia.

5. Why your BRAIN wants to be challenged.

Jim McMahon MP - The voluntary and community sector has a key role to play in devolution

Jim McMahon MP, Shadow Minister for Local Government and Devolution

Labour & Cooperative Member of Parliament for Oldham West and Royton

It was a pleasure to address Voluntary Sector North West’s annual conference earlier this month at the People’s History Museum in Manchester. In thirteen years as a councillor and a year now as an MP, I have seen firsthand the difference that can be made by local people coming together to make their area a better place. The voluntary and community sector plays a vital role in making that happen.

I have also heard firsthand on the doorstep, ahead of the Brexit vote and the election of Donald Trump, the sense that many ordinary people consider established politics to be an elite, distant and disempowering affair to which they cannot relate. People want and need a stake and a say in the way their society is organised. Too many people feel that they lack that voice. We need to address, not dismiss, this profound and prevailing sense of democratic deficit. Our centralist settlement currently leaves people feeling powerless. The voluntary and community sector, properly supported and mobilised, can help to fill that gap.

For devolution to be meaningful, it can’t just mean power passed down from Whitehall to the Town Hall: it needs to be passed down further still to communities themselves. Those communities can better exercise that power if they are well organised. The voluntary and community sector organises communities on the ground better than anyone else. So, part of the point of devolution must be to empower civil society, rather than hoarding power in the market or the state. Accordingly, the voluntary sector is absolutely right to look to harness devolution to give communities more of a say in the decisions that affect the lives of them and their families. The sector should be insistent in its demands to help shape devolution deals as they are struck and as they then unfold.

We all want to tackle poverty and reduce inequality. The best way to do that is to support more people into decent work. But a national, one-size-fits-all approach to helping people from welfare into work has failed. Devolution offers the best hope of a skills and employment offer that is tailored to the local job market and there is growing evidence that such an approach delivers results. In Oldham, the council has stepped in to fill the gap created by national contracted providers, supporting people into work. The council don’t receive any central government funding for this but they decided they weren’t willing to sit back while so many fell through the net. In just two years, over 3,000 people have been helped into work and a genuine partnership has been created with businesses, community organisations and the public services working together. When BHS closed and the shutters came down, as Sir Philip Green sailed off into the sunset, it was thanks to Get Oldham Working that every employee who wanted a new job had one lined up.

But Oldham also knows when to let go to, as was evident in the establishment of the Oldham Action Fund which benefited from a transfer of charitable trusts and historic dowries which brought together almost £1m of funding together for local voluntary and community sector groups to invest in long-term, sustainable funding.

It is true though that much of the discussion of devolution to date has been primarily economistic in character. That, to be honest, is a failing in our current politics in general. The voluntary and community sector is well placed to highlight the social dimension of devolution, deploying as it can the testimony of community members’ lived experience. People need to hear the stories and understand the relationships that matter, rather than forever merely looking at the graphs.

We rightly hear a lot about the pressing challenge of economic inequality in the world around us today. But the challenge posed by democratic inequality is no less stark. People do need money in their pockets, but they also need to feel that they have some influence over the environments in which they lead their lives. A cooperative approach to devolution, supporting the voluntary and community sector, offers the opportunity to level the playing field of our democracy.

We need to agree a compelling new settlement and give a greater voice to the people we came into politics to represent. And so, with any discussion on devolution, we must be open to new partnerships and, rather than see it simply as a transfer of responsibilities, we ought to see it as an opportunity to redefine how we govern, how we grow our economies and how we deliver the best possible public services. Devolution ought to mean politics done with people, not just for them. And that means we need you and the communities you help organise and empower together with us in the driving seat.

Autumn Statement 2015 - CEO Overview and Briefing

Warren Escadale, VSNW CEO, gives his early thoughts on the meaning of the Autumn Statement.

"I'm not giving credence to the newspapers' 'phew, it's a scorcher/end of austerity' description, as clearly that is just nonsense. I've reflected on the following:

• Devolution and the future of councils;
• Concern about the Office for Civil Society;
• The charity coin; and
• Investment in early intervention.

Devolution and the future of local councils Deal or no deal: devolution, and the expansion of the growth/reform formula, are coming to you! My recent presentation to One East Midlands is attached below and gives our thoughts on devolution.

Devolution - VSNW's perspective

Looking back on the Autumn Statement, I thought there was little mention of devolution. After all, we'd seen 38 devolution deal submissions in the build-up, and only news about Liverpool City Region and the West Midlands. I was wrong. In confirming the shift from grants to business rate retention for councils, it really couldn't have been a bigger Devolution Spending Review!

Self-financing councils, underpinned by council tax income (which is generally a far lower proportion of budgets in areas of deprivation e.g. 17% in Liverpool versus a national average of 40%), will mean local authorities will be necessarily focused on increasing business rates. Councils will be, and will have to be, the leading local economic agencies.

In turn, and alongside the additional 24% of cuts facing councils over the next four years, this will inevitably mean widespread roll out of large Combined Authorities (CA). Councils will need to formally take control of their local economies and learn how to juggle the effective geographies of economic strategy and of neighbourhood implementation necessary for increasing growth and reducing welfare cost (while continuing to be effective local leaders, supporting local communities).

The brackets are intentional. This is a fundamental shift for councils and if TS Eliot or Foucault had been interested in such things, they may well have described it as a disassociation of civic identity. Or... In Greater Manchester, because of the 10 local areas (assuming alignment of councils and CCGs), this is called the 10 + 1 model (of thinking, principle and delivery). The interests of the CA alongside those of the 10 localities.

The missing element in devolution, to date, is a coherent, connected, community strategy. A devolution strategy with devolution in its heart! And this is very much what we need, as a sector, to develop and what we, as VSNW and Regional Voices, intend to help develop.

Office for Civil Society

So, there are big challenges and opportunities facing our sector. A chance to redefine our purpose, show our worth and create something truly functional, community-centred, beautiful and life changing. Given this, we need a clear plan of investment in the sector's role championing communities, developing delivery models, facilitating greater community participation in health and social care, and connecting communities to effective economic development opportunities.

Amazing as the National Citizen Service and social investment can be, these are not investment strategies built around harnessing and catalysing sector potential, but about building from scratch. These are not sector-owned strategies or strategies that reflect what we could and must achieve on behalf of communities. From these strategies, you very well might not realise that there's a significant sector in the UK, that could provide big answers (like putting communities at the heart of devolution). The trouble is, it has gotten to the point where we're beginning to believe this too! I'm sorry to say this, but Office for Civil Society (OCS) policy around our sector has reached an all time low in investment, imagination, and practicality. There's lots of good reasons, and no doubt many our own fault, that outline how we got here, but this - right now - just can't be right.

We very much need an OCS with an effective third sector strategy and funding available for it! And we need to create the political space around OCS in order to help create this change.

Political capital

I think, linked to defining "devolution", that there's a vitally important case for developing a newer, more emergent strategy for the sector that better fits what we, and our beneficiaries, need.

Sometimes it is hard to credit but we seem to have political capital; I won't say 'influence' as that would suggest that we control our own political capital. There were a number of things that were allowed to influence the Chancellor. IDS, tax credits, the state of social services, the views of the leader of Oxfordshire County Council and possibly the charitable sector: no lottery fund transfer, relatively minor effective cuts to the Charity Commission, lots of mentions for charities in the Chancellor's speech etc.

There is an emerging new take on our role in compassionate conservatism which means there's an opportunity, nationally, for us to make a new case for the future of our sector. I think a campaign based on getting simple messages to MPs based on the lessons from the VCSE Review should be a collective priority.

Early intervention

Where is the investment in early intervention? We've all talked a really good game on prevention and early intervention. Scientists, politicians, voluntary and public sector experts, neurologists, psychologists, parents, one and all. We did really well. We all agreed with one voice. And yet, not only are we not investing in this in any coherent tangible way, we're cutting any chance of it.

I know there are a number of really significant pilot programmes (new models of care vanguards, Well North, NHS England's social movement call), but these are relatively small scale. Even the Better Care Fund, with its upstream integration intentions, does not represent substantial investment. In contrast, the disinvestment in public health - the closest we have to early intervention, with its embedded understanding of community-centred approaches - makes it difficult to see how we can shift to medium and long term answers.

If the Office for Budgetary Responsibility anticipates significant further funding due to better than expected economic growth, please let's spend a good portion of it on early intervention, prevention and genuine demand management strategies and services."

Briefing

We have also produced a briefing on the main Autumn Statement headlines for the voluntary and community sector and for local government