03.08.11
Charities hit by council cuts
A report today shows that over 2,000 charities are being hit by reductions in local government funding. The cuts exceed £10m over the past year, and the final figure is likely to be much larger.
The results come from the anti-cuts website False Economy, who compiled Freedom of Information responses from 265 councils. They also reported that charities working with children or young people were the most seriously affected.
Clifford Singer, False Economy’s campaign director, said: “These are not just nice-to-have groups but organisations providing vital services for older people trying to maintain independent lives, vulnerable children and abused women.”
Trades Union Congress (TUC) general secretary Brendan Barber said: “These deep cuts to voluntary groups across the UK show that Government claims that charities can replace direct services currently provided by central or local government are false.
“It sounds great, but in practice the Big Society is looking more and more like a big con.”
Birmingham and London councils made the largest cuts – but started from a very high base. Some charities had all of their funding removed, yet other councils actually increased funding for certain charities, like Cheshire West and Chester which set £166,525 for 16 charities.
A spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: “In their approach to budget setting, the best councils are showing that they understand that a strong, thriving voluntary sector is more important now than ever and could be the key to providing high quality, good value services to their residents.
“But this is not the case everywhere. Councils that are failing to recognise the importance of the sector are being short-sighted in their approach.”
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