Speaking in a parliamentary debate on the voluntary sector, not long after Labour’s huge election victory, the party’s former MP Jeff Rooker evoked the many ways charities hold Britain’s social fabric together. Every week in his local area, he told fellow peers, a group named Hands Together Ludlow gives food and support to dozens of desperate people, enables others to access benefit entitlements, runs a “shed” workspace that doubles as a place to meet and talk, and rescues individuals overlooked by agencies delivering social services. Volunteers such as these, Lord Rooker observed, “keep society going”.
Few would disagree. The Guardian’s Christmas charity appeal showcases similarly vital work being undertaken up and down the country. Yet heading into 2026, this vast network of voluntary organisations faces formidable headwinds and an ominous financial crunch. The prolonged impact of austerity, the pandemic and an ongoing cost of living crisis mean that demand for their services continues to rise. But state funding – both from central government and hollowed-out local authorities – has become more and more inadequate, and charitable giving has declined to the lowest level since tracking began. Fewer people are volunteering, and costs are dramatically up – not least as a result of the rise in employers’ national insurance contributions, which kicked in last April.
