20 April 2021
In this episode we talk to Andy Haldane FAcSS, Chief Economist of the Bank of England about his long-standing interest in civil society, why he thinks it is so important yet undervalued, and what sort of challenges and opportunities the coming years may bring. We also have some analysis and additional insight from CAF Chief Executive Neil Heslop OBE. Our discussions include:
The economy and charitable giving
- If the UK economy is like a “coiled spring”, will the easing of lockdown herald a bounce-back and will that translate into a rise in charitable giving?
- Has the pandemic cost some charities their capacity to fundraise and operate? Does this mean they might not be able to tap into any increase in giving?
The role of civil society
- What differentiates the voluntary sector from either the state or the markets when it comes to the role that it plays in our society?
- As the landscape for doing good appears to be expanding (with the emergence of mutual aid networks, digital social movements, purpose-led businesses, impact investing etc) do we need to make a renewed case for the unique value of charitable organisations? If so, what is that USP?
Measurement
- Many argue that a major challenge facing civil society is that most current systems of measurement do not capture the full value of what charities and other civil society organisations do. What should we be measuring instead?
- Is this more about better measurement within civil society, or about changing the measures government uses (e.g. GDP) so that they capture a wider notion of value? Or is it both? What would this entail in practice?
- Are there potential risks in putting more emphasis on measurement? E.g. that any measures become targets and thus skew activity (a la Goodhart’s Law); or that the decision about who gets to set measures introduces problematic power dynamics?