“This analysis of charities and their value would be welcome at any time but is especially useful at present with charities facing huge challenges as we emerge from the pandemic.”
Baroness Jill Pitkeathley, President, NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations)
“This timely book describes the interdependent web of charities and civil society organisations and the public good they bring and clearly illuminates a world that is too often misunderstood… it will help those in charities, and those who observe them, to navigate our increasingly uncertain future.”
Dame Julia Unwin, Civil Society Futures
“Journalistic appeal and outstanding expertise combine to provide an impartial, comprehensive understanding of the sector. Perceptive insights into current opportunities suggest even greater future roles for charities.”
Charles Jardine, London South Bank University
“In an age when generalised cynicism extends to charities and their donors, it is important to be reminded of the good achieved by those who set up, run and voluntarily donate their time and money to try and make things better. The charity sector is underappreciated, often patronised and rarely given sufficient credit. I hope this book helps to change that.”
Beth Breeze, Centre for Philanthropy, University of Kent
“Charities are needed, yet threatened right now, and this engaging, exhaustive and passionately argued book offers a corrective to simplistic accounts that serve to marginalise charities’ role in society.”
James Rees, University of Wolverhampton
“This book provides a topical, well-researched and readable account of the invaluable but often controversial role of charities today, with rich detail drawn from the authors’ first-hand experience as leading charity journalists.”
Cathy Pharoah, The Business School (formerly Cass), City, University of London
“A fascinating read about the UK’s vibrant and diverse charity sector’s contribution across various causes, tracing its impressive history and evolution, brilliantly capturing how charities fundamentally transform lives and continue to enjoy support of the British public.”
Girish Menon, STiR Education
First published in Great Britain in 2021 by
Policy Press, an imprint of Bristol University Press
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© Bristol University Press 2021
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-1-4473-5988-3 paperback
ISBN 978-1-4473-5989-0 ePub
ISBN 978-1-4473-5990-6 ePdf
The right of Stephen Cook and Tania Mason to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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Charities are the eyes, ears and conscience of society. They mobilise, they provide, they inspire, they advocate and they unite. From small local organisations run entirely by volunteers to major global organisations with turnover in the hundreds of millions, their work touches almost every facet of British civic life.
(House of Lords Select Committee on Charities, Stronger Charities for a Stronger Society, March 2017)
Contents
| PART I | What are charities, and why do we argue about them? |
| 1 | The many faces of charities |
| 2 | What has gone wrong? |
| 3 | ‘Stick to your knitting’: the curbs on campaigning |
| PART II |
Changing the world
|