Last week, Sir Ronald Cohen, the creator of the Big Society Bank and one of this country’s richest men, spent an hour and a half explaining to a committee of Parliamentarians all the ramifications of the bank and of social impact bonds (which he also had a hand in – his consultancy, Social Finance dreamt… Read more »
Posts By: David Ainsworth
Valuing unsold charity shop stock won’t work
“Strategies are okayed in boardrooms that even a child would say are bound to fail. The problem is there is never a child in the boardroom” Victor Palmieri, American corporate turnaround specialist A while ago an article on this site by Ray Jones of the Charity Commission observed that sometimes, in the pursuit of… Read more »
There’s a long road ahead for social impact bonds
Will the social impact bond ever attract commercial capital? At least one professional investor believes it eventually will – although he doesn’t think it will be quick or easy. The social impact bond was introduced last year as a means of funding early interventions on reducing reoffending, drug use, the number of children in care…. Read more »
If charities are so bad, are they really worth saving?
Kevin Carey, chair of the RNIB, didn’t hold back yesterday at the CFDG conference. He gave the sector both barrels, in fact. At close range. He told audiences that the sector was cripplingly undercapitalised, focused on helping too few people, and too often prioritised preserving the organisation instead of helping the beneficiaries. The sector, he… Read more »
Most charities do not use their investment capital as a tool to do good
Recently, there have been several instances of charitable investors using their large portfolios as weapons to promote their beliefs. This week, a group of major investors including CCLA, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, Lankelly Chase and the Sigrid Rausing Trust have written to all of the FTSE 100 asking them to pay the Living Wage… Read more »
Cold climate and a government charm offensive at Voice11
At the start of Voice11, the biggest event in the social enterprise calendar, the chief executive of the organisers, the Social Enterprise Coalition stood up and said this was completely different from any event that had gone before. He was right, too. It was the first time the event had been held in London, the… Read more »
The 2011 Budget looks like a tale of two sectors
It’s good news to see the charity sector feature more prominently in a budget speech, as well as a raft of new tax reliefs. It looks like a tale of two sectors, however. Those which rely on donations will profit from new tax reliefs estimated to be worth over £500m a year. But those who… Read more »
Social impact bonds are hot topics
The social impact bond seems flavour of the month. The US budget on 14 February was sprinkled with references to the concept, there known as a “pay for success” bond, and as much as $100m could be spent on them in the next few years. Other countries are also interested. Everyone seems to like the… Read more »
Just how useful is the Big Society Bank going to be?
The announcement that the Big Society Bank was to receive £200m funding “on a commercial basis”, rather than £1bn as a gift, surprised a lot of people, including, it appeared from some conversations I had yesterday, some people in the banks and the Treasury themselves. It leaves the third sector in a different, less useful… Read more »
I’d love it if Sue Ryder won the VAT battle but I don’t hold out much hope
Recently, the government has been veritably pelted with questions, largely from its own back benches, asking it about the VAT burden it is placing on charities. In both the Lords and the Commons, on both sides of the aisle, our political representatives clearly don’t think much of charities’ current tax bill. It’s also pretty clear… Read more »