Councils and charities feeling the squeeze

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/apr/26/councils-and-charities-feeling-the-squeeze

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In areas with both county and district councils, districts are under huge stress (Cuts decimating services, research finds, 25 April). Here in Pendle, in the Lancashire Pennines, our spending ability in the 10 years up to 2020 is being slashed by about half. With a net budget of about £14m, we face another £5m of cuts in the next three years.

In 2010, we employed 450 people, a number that is now down to about 260. We have cut all useful but non-essential jobs, slashed the top management structure and pay, and seen many staff take a voluntary cut in working hours. We have refinanced some of our main buildings, turning dearer rents into cheaper mortgages.

We’ve handed lots of local services to town and parish councils and local groups – community centres, local town halls, children’s play areas, bus shelters, town centre CCTV systems, roadside seats, pieces of amenity land, Christmas decorations, and local events. We are now hoping to hand over our parks.

After seven years we are down to the bone. Basic services we have protected are now at risk. Street sweeping, litter collection, refuse collection and recycling, environmental health, housing standards, planning, and all the operation of local democracy in local communities. It’s a disaster.Cllr Tony Greaves (Lib Dem)Deputy leader, Pendle borough council

• John Harris is right that charity is no substitute for state services, and charitable giving can sometimes seem to “normalise” inadequate state provision (We’re still giving, but our vulnerable should not be so dependent on charity, 21 April). But there are two important points that he misses.

Firstly, campaigning for better services, and showing how they might be improved, is precisely part of what many charities do, with the approval of the Charity Commission. When Harris gets out his credit card for many charities, he is supporting such advocacy, so that the vulnerable are given visibility and voice. In the fields he mentions like international development, education, health and medicine and disability, many leading charities champion, rather than undermine, a rights-based approach.

Secondly, as Beveridge recognised, state services alone will never be sufficient to meet all needs justly, to innovate as society changes, or give sufficient opportunities for participation and influence. Under any scenario of public spending, there will be ample space for a vibrant, assertive voluntary sector. Keep giving, John.Andrew PurkisLondon

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