Our strategic partners
Background
In October 2005, following a public consultation, the former Active Communities Directorate of the Home Office (whose responsibilties are now part of those in the Office of the Third Sector in the Cabinet Office), launched an application process for organisations or partnerships to receive strategic funding from April 2006 onwards.
There were three types of grant available:
- ‘voice of the voluntary and community sector’ for organisations that could demonstrate an ability to provide representative ‘voice’ for the voluntary and community sector, or an element of sector activity, at national level.
- ‘volunteering’ for organisations best able to promote the national debate on volunteering.
- ‘charitable giving’ for organisations able to promote philanthropy
In June 2007 the Office of the Third Sector announced the addition of seven social enterprise strategic partners to make the programme representative of the third sector and Office of the Third Sector business.
Strategic funding
Strategic partnerships represent long-term cooperation and support between government and the sector. It is grant funding, and these grants are managed by Memoranda of Understanding. They are reviewed annually, as well as throughout the year. The relationships are subject to review and were initially for a minimum of three years. In August 2008 the OTS confirmed that it has extended the strategic funding programme until 2011.
The Office of the Third Sector wants the concerns and priorities of the third sector be clearly expressed to and heard by government, and the strategic partners programme aims to ensure there are organisations that are empowered to help make this happen.
The Office of the Third Sector third sector strategic partner organisations are funded to enable them to fairly reflect the views of their members to government, through activities including events, conferences, research or consultation. For its part, the Office of the Third Sector will consult and involve partners in policy development, taking into account the evidence, advice and opinion they provide.
Providing an effective ‘voice’
Strategic partners were selected for their ability to provide an effective voice in relation to the strategic objectives of the Office of the Third Sector.
This includes being able to:
- act as an advocate for the sector
- highlight the common experiences of organisations working across related policy areas
- influence national policy through particular experience or expertise, either directly or through the experience of members
- act as a conduit for communication between government and the sector, and providing leadership to the sector in how to respond to new opportunities and challenges
Influencing the national policy debate on volunteering and charitable giving
Strategic partners were selected for their ability to influence the national debate on volunteering or charitable giving.
This includes being able to:
- contribute to policy development work, submitting ideas and debating issues
- work collaboratively with government and other strategic partners on the development and implementation of policy initiatives
- disseminate information on volunteering and charitable giving within the sector, and demonstrate the value of volunteering with regards to social inclusion and building social cohesion
- work on and with particular government priority areas and groups, for example with younger volunteers, and public sector volunteering opportunities
Social enterprise partners
Strategic partners were selected for their ability to:
- use their membership or constituency to ensure that the views and experience of the social enterprise sector are heard, raising awareness of social enterprise to a wide range of audiences and spreading best practice
- impart sector experience and expertise at a national level to influence government policy and help remove barriers to social enterprise growth
The Office of the Third Sector now has 45 strategic partners:
