Cuts hit children's charities hard, finds survey

The latest survey of charity accounts shows income from Government fell by £152.6m for charities that primarily work with children and young people between 2012 and 2013.

The Children's Partnership and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, which are behind the survey, warn that the shortfall in funding is hitting charities working with children hard. It says this is because Government funding accounts for a greater proportion of income for these charities than it does for the voluntary sector as a whole, making them particularly vulnerable to any reductions.

According to The Nature of the Children and Young People's Voluntary Sector in England, Government funding was the second largest source of income to the children and young people sector, with Government contracts and grants accounting for 42 per cent of core income. However, in 2012/13 funding from central Government accounted for less than 30 per cent of the sector's income, while local Government funding accounted for more than 60 per cent of income.

While the survey found charities' income from individuals rose by £26.4m - making it the second largest source of income for the sector, the increase was nowhere near equivalent to the steep reduction in Government income.

Looking at how much children and young people's charities spent in 2012/13, those in the education category spent £596m, compared to £419m by playgroups and nurseries and £307m by those concerned with health.

Anna Feuchtwang, chief executive of the National Children's Bureau, which together with 4Children leads the Children's Partnership, said, 'This data shows how austerity measures are beginning to bite as local and central government purse strings are tightened. This will significantly affect children's charities that have shown that with their good community knowledge they can provide cost-effective and high-quality services at a local level.'

Javed Khan, chief executive of Barnardo's, a charity in collaboration with the Children's Partnership, said, 'The Government needs to ensure investment in children services is prioritised - not only are we investing in our children now, we are investing in their future.

'We put millions of pounds of our own voluntary funds into our services to ensure we can give the best possible support.

'Year after year children's centre funding has been leaking away, often leading to the closure or merging of hundreds of these lifeline services. Without the vital support of children's centres to the poorest children and families, we are simply neglecting the seeds of more costly problems later in the shape of troubled families, crime, substance abuse and unemployment.'