A peer who was a charity chief executive has put the spotlight on funders – urging them to “dig deep” to help organisations navigate through the cost-of-living crisis.
Baroness Young of Old Scone issued an “admonition to funders”, calling for greater financial support for charities in the coming months.
In a speech at the NPC House of Lords end-of-year policy reception, Young – who is chair of the Woodland Trust and was chief executive of Diabetes UK, said: “Many charities and not-for-profits will continue to deliver huge amounts of benefit to the public and they need your help to smooth the path to whatever the future holds.”
Orlando Fraser, the chair of the Charity Commission, was also at the event and spoke about the “nightmare of a storm” that charities currently faced.
Fraser reiterated his commitment to facilitating the relationship between charities and funders.
He said: “The commission itself cannot relieve the needs of individuals or plug charities’ funding gaps directly. But our role as regulator is nonetheless crucial.
“I intend to ensure that during my time as chair, we do what we can to promote and encourage giving, especially amongst the well off.”
To do this, he said, the Charity Commission would “take tough action” to deal with wrongdoing and support trustees in making the best decisions for their charities with a new website trustee portal, currently under development.