The Law Family Commission on Civil Society has recommended the appointment of a ‘Philanthropy Champion’ within government to act as a “gateway” between the Civil Service and the philanthropy sector. This recommendation comes from the report “Seizing the philanthropic prize: The role of the UK government in growing philanthropy” which discusses how better collaboration between the private sector, government, and the philanthropy sector would not only strength and support the charity sector but also “actively help” the government to achieve its goals.
The Civil Service has been criticised for not having a coordinated approach across departments to utilise philanthropy on a national scale. The report recommends the appointment of a senior civil servant as ‘Philanthropy Champion’ who would have responsibility for “driving forwards the UK’s approach to philanthropy” and envisages knowledge sharing (at lunch and learn” sessions as well as by using staff secondments), guidance, and training as essential next steps for both government and the charity sector.
This call comes as charities minister Nigel Huddleston has suggested that the safeguarding process for volunteers needs to be simplified in order to encourage volunteering. Acknowledging that there are complaints with how safeguarding is currently managed, Huddleston encouraged charities to “take safeguarding seriously” at a recent all-party parliamentary group event. He commented that the government is trying to simplify the process in order to encourage volunteering across society and embed it more firmly across all government departments.
For the full text of the report “Seizing the philanthropic prize: The role of the UK government in growing philanthropy” see here.
