Over half of charity trustees are concerned about the outlook for the sector, according to a survey by asset managers Rathbones.

The company surveyed over 100 charity trustees at their inaugural charity symposium, finding that just 19 per cent would report the outlook as good or very good.

Head of charities at Rathbones, Ivo Clifton said: “Over the next few years many charities will be expected to do more with less – much less in many cases. The government clearly has the charitable sector in its sights as a way of delivering the Big Society and trustees will have to balance the two conflicting demands.”

The Big Society is a coalition government programme to encourage members of the public to volunteer and third sector organisations to take on more work in solving problems or issues facing communities.

In the survey, 61 per cent of trustees said that fundraising activity was now their charity’s first or second priority to protect or grow finances, while 36 per cent said linking up with another charity was a first or second priority for their organisations.

Over 40 per cent of the trustees reported that they were looking into reallocating programmes or resources as a way to save money.

Clifton said: “Charities, like many other organisations in the UK, are facing enormous financial pressures and many of these will only become clear after the October Spending Review. It is understandable that charity trustees are already weighing up priorities for protecting and growing their finances, even though some of the solutions will be as drastic as redundancy.”

© Fair Investment Company Ltd

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