The Third Sector podcast has continued to probe the key issues in the voluntary sector over the past year.
From the emergence of AI and gaming in charity fundraising to the cost-of-living crisis, an in-depth examination of how the voluntary sector could respond to the climate crisis and interviews with key charity leaders, the podcast has dug into a wealth of topics.
We’ve put together our pick of the top five episodes over the past year, in case you missed any of the stand-out moments.
The problem of pay in the voluntary sector
The cost-of-living crisis has never been far from most charity’s thoughts this year and we spoke to Leann Cross, director of the childcare support charity Home-Start Greenwich, to explore how inflationary pressures are affecting low-earning charity employees.
She discusses multi-year public funding cycles, the often blurred line between Home-Start’s employees and service users and provides insight into effective forms of supplementary support to staff.
A day in the life of a grant-maker
Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at a major grant-making charity? We visited Poonam D’Cruze, head of the poverty and injustice programme at Comic Relief, to find out.
Poonam talks about the charity’s commitment to interrogate what is asked of funding applicants and provides tips for organisations seeking grants from Comic Relief.
Sarah Hughes on Mind, mental health and the role of charities
The chief executive of Mind talks about plans for the mental health charity, her views on the need to reform the voluntary sector, and the state of mental health in charities.
In a wide-ranging conversation, she calls for bravery among third sector leaders in confronting notions of the role and place of charities in society and also discusses some of the challenges facing Mind, including the need to further the charity’s commitment to tackling racism.
How can charities effectively harness artificial intelligence and its associated tools?
Jonathan Chevallier, chief executive of Charity Digital, and Angus Gregory, chief executive of the technology company Biomni discuss how the arrival of low-cost natural language AI tools has opened up opportunities for the voluntary sector.
We delve into the prize draw company that has been running dozens of high-value prize draws in partnership with a range of charities.
James Oakes, chief international officer at Omaze, explains the company’s business model, addresses concerns about how it operates and outlines what the future might hold while Paul McKenzie, director of engagement at the Teenage Cancer Trust describes the experience of being Omaze’s first charity partner in the UK.
To browse all of Third Sector’s podcast episodes, click here.