The Law Family Commission on Civil Society has launched its call for evidence and wants to hear from charities and others.
Think tank Pro Bono Economics began the project, chaired by former Cabinet Secretary Lord Gus O’Donnell, last year. It now wants to hear from charities community groups, social enterprises, volunteers, policymakers, business leaders and academics.
The Commission is seeking insights, data and examples to help it better understand the current landscape for civil society and start developing ideas to achieve its ambitions.
It aims to be able to put forward practical policy proposals and needs to find out what currently prevents organisations achieving as much as they possibly could – from funding to capacity building to how volunteers are used – and working with practitioners to develop solutions.
It also wants to understand exactly how civil society and government interact currently, where this relationship is working well and where there are opportunities to do better.
Anoushka Kenley, research and policy director at Pro Bono Economics, said: “We want this Commission to be a dialogue across organisations and across sectors because that’s the only way to achieve real progress. Civil society knows better than anyone that change rarely comes from one organisation alone making the case.
She added: “We want to hear examples, good or bad, of civil society working with government and with business. We want to know what holds civil society back from unleashing its full potential and what existing evidence we need to build on. And we want to know what you’d most like us to achieve over the next two years.”
Theresa Shearer, CEO of ENABLE Scotland and a Commissioner, said: “Never has the value of civil society been more apparent than over the past year, during which it provided much of the vital support that has kept our country going through the pandemic. But Covid has created significant challenges, with many organisations trying to meet increased demand for support with fewer resources.
“The Law Family Commission on Civil Society wants to look for practical solutions that will help civil society organisations make the best possible use of existing resources, as well as looking for opportunities to increase the amount of resource flowing into the sector.”
The deadline for submissions is 10 May 2021.
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