Annual Conference 2023: Funders Learning from the Impact of the Pandemic

The unprecedented period of the pandemic years led to a swift response by both funders, the VCSE and the wider stakeholders to the crisis that unfolded. As the pandemic years lengthened, the response changed from emergency to recovery. Funders responded by forging various ways of getting money to the VCSE sector quickly, through emergency grant-making, swifter and flexible processes, and collaboration between funders, the VCSE and wider stakeholders. A lot of short-term funding was put in place to aid recovery that is having implications for both funders and VCSE as the cost of living and economic recession impacts on people’s lives, where longer term, focused funding is required.

During the pandemic years many issues continued to be raised: The death of George Floyd in the USA raised subsequent responses in the UK on the systemic racism that continues to exist in key institutions. COVID-19 disproportionately affected people from Black and minoritised ethnic backgrounds, worsening the experience of existing inequalities, with many Black and minoritised ethnic led organisations facing closure. COP 26 raised the discussion on the impact of climate change and environmental issues that particularly impacted on those most socially and economically disadvantaged.

The conference agenda sought to:

1.Understand the context in which we are all operating in.

2.Share positive policy and practice changes by funders and VCSE in response to the social issues and priorities raised during the pandemic years.

3.Explore and consider how together we can build on the positive changes that can be responsive to current trends, impact of the cost of living and issues facing the Third Sector. 

4.Identify what are the key priorities for funders and the VCSE to work on that will embed further positive responses to needs of different communities of interest and place.

A report of the Conference can be found here.

Key reflections from the presentations and workshops:

Grant making can be a powerful part of funding the VCSE, the value of which can be hard to capture in quantitative terms alone. Grant making done well can confer distinctive value and benefits for both funders and funded organisations. It’s clear that some important lessons have been learnt during the pandemic years for both funders and the VCSE, but there is still much to do if there is to be a more effective ways of determining where and how limited resources are directed to those that most need it. IVAR’s 8 Pillars that underpin a trusting and open relationship will be important for funders to consider in their strategic and operational approaches. The cost of living crisis and increased inflation is also negatively impacting on funders’ grant income that raise funding publicly and those with endowments. The VCSE are seeing this through increased operational costs, demand for services and reduced staffing and volunteering capacity to respond. So, what should West Midlands funders consider in the short to medium term? Read the final report to learn more