CEO Blog: Reflection, Resilience, and Action in 2025
By Stephen Craker, Chief Executive of Communities 1st
As we enter 2025, I find myself reflecting on the immense challenges and opportunities facing the local VCFSE sector, Communities 1st, and the public sector as a whole. This is likely to be a year of significant change, with discussions about devolution, health system reforms, and tackling entrenched inequalities taking centre stage. These changes have the potential to transform lives, but I can’t help but worry about a growing tension - how do we balance the need for deep reflection and strategic realignment with the urgency to deliver tangible impact for those we serve?
The Cost of Living Crisis and Escalating Pressures
For too many, the cost of living crisis has not abated. Rising inflation, increasing energy costs, and stagnant incomes have left families and individuals struggling to make ends meet. Charities like ours remain on the frontlines, providing essential support. Yet, we are facing our own financial constraints.
The Autumn Budget 2024 introduced increases to employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs), placing an additional £1.4 billion burden on the charity sector annually. While public sector organisations will be reimbursed, no such provision has been made for charities. This comes at a time when demand for services has skyrocketed, and resources are stretched thinner than ever.
We joined thousands of others in urging the Chancellor to reconsider this decision, highlighting the critical role charities play in bridging gaps left by underfunded public services. Without relief, many organisations will face difficult choices—reducing staff, scaling back services, or even closing their doors.
Public Sector Finances: Balancing Reform with Delivery
The Autumn Budget highlighted the government’s intent to address public sector challenges, including increased funding for local government and social care. However, this falls short of what is needed to tackle systemic issues. Local authorities continue to face financial uncertainty, exacerbated by reliance on council tax increases that disproportionately impact low-income communities.
For our sector, this uncertainty poses significant risks. Charities often step in where public services falter, yet our contributions are undervalued in financial planning. The government’s focus on shifting from treatment to prevention is welcome, but it must come with investment in the VCFSE sector’s capacity to deliver long-term, preventative solutions.
Change and the Risk of Paralysis
Ambitious plans in the English Devolution White Paper and the NHS Ten-Year Plan promise to bring decision-making closer to communities. However, change at this scale often comes with prolonged introspection. While the public sector reorganises and refines strategies, we must not lose sight of the immediate needs of those we serve.
Striving for perfection in systems and processes risks neglecting the core reason for our existence: improving lives. For the VCFSE sector, this is a critical moment. We must not only continue delivering but also remind public sector partners that true impact is measured in lives improved, not just frameworks implemented.
A Role for the VCFSE Sector
In this period of introspection and transformation, the VCFSE sector must position itself as both a critical partner and a driver of action. We bring agility, local knowledge, and a deep understanding of communities that public sector systems often struggle to replicate. But this also means we have a responsibility to advocate for the needs of those we serve, ensuring that their voices are heard in the planning and delivery of services.
We must also hold ourselves accountable. While it’s easy to criticise slow-moving systems, we must ensure that we’re maximising our own impact. This means working collaboratively, building capacity within our organisations, and being proactive about the future challenges we’ll face—from climate change to economic inequality.
Delivering Amidst Complexity
The NHS is grappling with the aftermath of the pandemic, resource constraints, and shifting public expectations. Devolution, while promising, has its own complexities - balancing local empowerment with consistency across regions and ensuring devolved power leads to better outcomes rather than new layers of governance.
Amid this, I am encouraged by the growing recognition of prevention and the social determinants of health. Issues like housing, employment, and social connection directly impact health outcomes and economic prosperity. For our sector, this is not new - it’s a truth we live every day. Improving health and wellbeing isn’t just about medical interventions; it’s about supporting people where they live, work, and connect.
The Civil Society Covenant: A Step Towards Collaboration
The proposed Civil Society Covenant offers a chance to redefine our relationship with public bodies. A genuine partnership requires recognising the unique strengths of charities and community organisations - our grassroots connections, adaptability, and ability to innovate. However, the Covenant must move beyond words to enforceable commitments that embed equity, transparency, and sustainability into these relationships.
Public sector introspection, driven by financial pressures and reform, risks delaying action at a time when swift responses are vital. The Covenant must ensure the VCFSE sector’s voices are heard and valued in shaping policies and solutions - not as an afterthought but as equal partners.
Social Value: A Missed Opportunity
The Public Services (Social Value) Act aimed to embed broader societal benefits into procurement but has often fallen short. Social value is too frequently treated as a tick-box exercise rather than a meaningful framework for lasting impact. Charities and social enterprises, whose missions inherently align with social value principles, are often disadvantaged in procurement processes that prioritise metrics over substance. We must advocate for a strategic, place-based approach that recognises the inherent value we bring.
Bridging Reflection and Delivery
Balancing reflection and delivery requires intentionality. Systems thinking is critical, but so is acting decisively when opportunities arise. My biggest concern is that we may spend so long perfecting systems that we forget the urgent needs of those navigating them right now. People facing poverty, housing insecurity, or mental health challenges cannot wait for perfect systems; they need support today.
Looking Ahead: Resilience in the Face of Challenges
Despite my concerns, I remain hopeful. I’ve seen what can be achieved when the public sector, VCFSE organisations, and communities work together. I’ve seen the resilience of our sector and the creativity we bring to tackling challenges. These are the qualities that will see us through the changes ahead.
2025 must be a year of action, not just introspection. At Communities 1st, we will focus on:
- Advocating for Fair Funding: Pushing for reimbursement of NIC increases and more equitable support for the sector.
- Strengthening Collaboration: Building partnerships that treat the VCFSE sector as an equal and indispensable partner.
- Emphasising Prevention: Championing preventative approaches to health, wellbeing, and social care, supported by sustainable funding.
- Demonstrating Value: Articulating the transformative impact of our work in ways that resonate with funders, partners, and policymakers.
Amidst all the strategy sessions and reforms, let’s ensure we keep our focus on the people and communities who rely on us. Every small action we take can create ripples of change - because, at the heart of it all, that’s what really matters.
Stephen Craker,
Chief Executive, Communities 1st.
