So, you waited for the Chancellor’s Spring statement, which sent chills through the business and charity sector alike. Now, the Autumn Statement is pending. If, like many charities, you’ve decided to watch this one from behind the safety of your duvet, we at Underwood Consulting certainly wouldn’t blame you.
The sector has undoubtedly had it tough for the last few years, with many charities abandoning their offices, reducing staff, taking difficult decisions to close essential services and looking in every cobwebbed corner to slash costs. All in the name of survival! However, many charities simply have no room left to retreat into.
If this gloomy analogy sums up the point your charity has reached, then, it may be time to consider a bolder, braver, more diverse income generation strategy. Indeed, ACEVO’s 2025 Road Ahead report acknowledged, “What’s clear is that charities must not rely on one revenue source, where possible. Ensuring diverse funding sources will be crucial, especially for smaller charities, which are more reliant on government funding.”
Of course, with so many ghoulish unknowns lurking out there, this is easier said than done but taking the plunge into the unfamiliar doesn’t have to be terrifying. Underwood Consulting has been promoting the diversification mantra for the last decade and has seen considerable success in supporting charities to change the balance of their finances, reducing their reliance on statutory funding and increasing income from other sources.
One of the most common horrors we encounter when charities decide to diversify, however, is the endless pursuit of gleaming yet diminishing opportunities. Often at the bequest of well-intentioned supporters who can’t see the rocks perched perilously above the slippery slope leading to the spiky pit at the bottom of the metaphorical cave, their team has charged into. And alas, the enterprise is doomed to failure.
So, before your fundraising team becomes a frazzled version of Scooby Doo and the gang, let us help you select the right income streams, aligned with your charity’s assets, and develop a strategy for success.
