In response to the publication last month of A Year of Giving, CAF’s Daniel Ferrell-Schweppenstedde, argues how this new data strengthens the case for investing and engaging with placed-based giving.
The pandemic has hit places and cities across the UK unexpectedly. The socio-economic impacts will be felt for years. London is no exception. While it has resources and benefits from continued investment, it is also home to some of the most deprived areas in the whole country, with the crisis exacerbating existing challenges. But the voluntary sector stepped up to mitigate the harshest impacts, in particular, to help the most disadvantaged Londoners. In its ‘A year of giving’ report, London Funders show how Place-Based Giving (PBG) schemes have been central to the sector’s response.
Place-based giving was essential to London’s Covid-19 response
The numbers presented in the report are impressive. During 2020/21, the 16 schemes covered in the report raised £11m and distributed over £7.9m in grants - with 57% being Covid-related- as well as £300k of in-kind support. This is up from £1.8m and £2.3m respectively in 2017 (this is significant growth over roughly five years, even considering that fewer schemes existed for reporting). Between 2017 and 2021, London’s PBG schemes have raised a total income of £16.6m and given grants totalling £21.1m. Income in 2020/21 came from multiple sources with grants at the top (coming from trusts and foundations 33%, corporate 24% and public funders 12%), but also many private donations from individuals (12%).
The report also shows how PBG has been even more baked into how London’s local councils, businesses and civil society interact in the wider ecosystem of the city. PBG has proliferated in London in a short time with more than half of the 16 schemes established in the last three years.
Volunteer hours were down significantly, not unsurprising given the nation-wide lockdowns. This is something Charities Aid Foundation also saw in the latest UK Giving data. Nevertheless, community members still delivered thousands of volunteering hours, worth almost £110k. Together, the work of the schemes reached almost 200,000 individuals from a range of backgrounds, but particularly those from communities facing multiple disadvantages with limited access to services due to the pandemic.
PBG schemes have not only increased the resources being mobilised, their presence has also increased the impact they have on the ground. Schemes need local expertise in order to deploy their resources in communities. This was a strong asset when speed was imperative to address the rising need at a local targeted level. Schemes also became the ‘go to' partner for different funders trying to reach grass-roots organisations, and for businesses of different sizes that wanted to start working with communities- including larger businesses with a local footprint.
The crisis, which acted like a stress test for many systems and organisations, has strengthened the evidence that the impact of PBG schemes goes far beyond grant-making. They amplify the voices of local people and provide a platform for different stakeholders and communities to connect. As a result, local trust and social cohesion are likely to be maintained or even enhanced.
Where to go from here
Those familiar with the work of PBG schemes might not be surprised by these findings. But the work delivered and documented during the crisis has shown how PBG schemes can act as an impact multiplier and increase local resilience, even under the most trying conditions. This is something we have observed looking at the work of other schemes outside of the capital.
While the report found that Covid-19 has sped up growth and development (e.g. in grant-making and community awareness), for many schemes their strategic and long-term planning was put on hold at the same time. Schemes can build on their achievements during the pandemic and create the space to move from response to recovery and re-organising. Some might be able to generate resources that can go towards growth strategy, but further investment might also be needed.
London Funders is inviting others to help test and embed the principles of place based giving’, to bring in new partners to existing schemes but also increase their presence across the UK. For this to be possible, further investment from public and private funders is required and also ‘a stronger community within the corporate sector to champion and grow place based giving’. The report calls for both of these.
One of the things that could already make a difference in the short-term is building a national network of schemes to exchange best practice and peer support. But new partnerships that were developed during the pandemic could also provide opportunities for further innovation and expansion into new areas. There are already some natural touchpoints between place-based giving and place-based social investment. For instance, CAF Venturesome recently opened its place based SE-Assist Fund for applications for blended finance from early-stage social enterprises in Wales. Locally generated resources could be deployed in similar ways, by combining grant-making and social investment approaches. Many schemes might already work in this space. Efforts would have to be community-led and focussed on the most marginalised members, but it could bring in also new set of partners who do not engage with PBG at this point.
But there are wider messages for government. One final recommendation of the report is to put PBG ‘at the heart of the Covid recovery agenda’ and bring it to the fore when it comes to delivering the Levelling Up agenda. Local authorities could embed PBG as part of a new local philanthropy strategy, and government could build on the previous investment in the Growing Place-Based Giving Programme, which CAF helped to deliver. This also chimes with CAF’s position that local giving and the mobilisation of community resources and knowledge should be central to Levelling Up.
London Funders’ report provides further evidence in favour of place based schemes and clearly shows the increased impact on the ground. This is in addition to the benefits we know about PBG already such as its additionality in comparison to the existing service delivery landscape, community involvement and increased local trust. There are now more partners that could help to develop the model further and make use of it elsewhere in the UK.
To read more about place based giving, visit the London’s Giving website