With a steady rise in small charities indicating likelihood of closure, sustainability is a growing issue. If governments fail to recognise the real value of the services delivered by small charities, if they continue the momentum to engage with larger private business to deliver wide scale contracts, they will fail to invest sufficiently in the small charity sector. Given that grassroots charities are often at the cutting edge of developing the most creative and innovative solutions to some of the very complex problems facing society today, the lack of investment could impact significantly on the UK’s ability to meet the future needs of an increasing complex set of societal problems.
Over the coming years small charities must take advantage of all support on offer to help build more sustainable organisations. Government can make a difference, the support packages they offer and the policies they make will enable sustainability. But if we have learned anything since 2008 it’s that small charities have to be in charge, take control of their own future and set their own course of action.