Charity Reform Group

Speak up, we need you!

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Speak up, we need you!

In 2022, the Charity Reform Group first came together to explore an initial question: why are charity CEOs relatively under-represented in the national conversation? 

We first looked at some of the places where that ‘national conversation’ takes place – current affairs programmes like Question Time, Peston, and the Andrew Marr Show. In these three shows, we found just two appearances from civil society guests (1.4% of the total) over six months in 2021. In comparison, academics appeared 16 times (11%), while the arts and business each had nine appearances (6%).

So, why is this? Why are charity leaders relatively under-represented? To find out, we reached out to people from other sectors to understand more about how they view charity leaders and the question in hand. We hosted a series of conversations, under Chatham House rules, between charity CEOs and leaders from the public sector, politics, media, business, and wider civil society. What we heard and learned over the next twelve months was, we felt, worth sharing more widely. We hope this first report will offer perspectives, raise questions, and offer challenges to charity leaders from all parts of the sector. 

Findings from the Speak Up, we need you! report

Figures from other sectors say that:

  • The relative absence of charity CEO voices is a loss to our national debate, and if charities could speak into the issues of the day, they could wield significant positive influence
  • It is charity leaders’ experience of working on critical social issues that is seen to be invaluable – and which confers legitimacy
  • However, to cut through, charity leaders were exhorted to speak into the agenda of the day – not just stick to their core issue
  • Our contributors wanted to see charity leaders speaking collectively and more widely – reaching beyond government and political decision-makers
  • It was recognised that Whitehall is not as open to charities’ contribution to policymaking as it has been in the past. Charities should not simply wait for doors to re-open, they must demonstrate their role and value by engaging with confidence
  • There is a need to re-examine what good leadership and governance should look like today and, at its heart, a re-examination of mission and purpose in the face of those who believe charities should ‘stick to the knitting’
  • More collaboration on shared interests, even establishing shared platforms, would be welcomed
  • People and personalities, not just positions, are important – but public prominence can exact a personal cost, so leaders need support

This positive encouragement to speak up from across different sectors and groups feels new, even surprising, given much of the recent commentary around charity voice and campaigning. At the conclusion of the listening exercise, SMK CEO Sue Tibballs said:

“Trying to read the zeitgeist from social media and think tank reports might tempt charity leaders to conclude that people are not ready for a bolder, more visionary tone. Our discussions revealed quite the opposite; that, if more charities put their heads above the parapet, they might be pleasantly surprised by the unusual allies they find.”

Our discussions show that people outside the sector do want charities to feel free to speak beyond their ‘core’ issues and offer that broader analysis – we just have to create the conditions and provide the support that allows them to do that. 

Speak up, we need you!

SMK Review document

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