Paul Bradley spoke to the Scottish Parliament’s Social Justice Committee. 

MSPs in Holyrood have been told of the dire need for regular funding for organisations across Scotland as the government is urged to back calls for Fair Funding. 

Paul Bradley, policy and public affairs manager at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), gave evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Social Justice and Social Security Committee, underlining the need for a better funding deal for third sector groups in Scotland.

Mr Bradley highlighted SCVO’s Fair Funding asks, which make up a swathe of reforms which would bring about a long-term, flexible, sustainable, and accessible approach to funding.  

These include longer-term funding of three years or more, flexible, unrestricted core funding, which enables organisations to provide security, plan effectively, and fulfil good governance requirements, sustainable funding that includes inflation-based uplifts and full costs, including core operating costs. SCVO also say funding should accommodate paying staff at least the Real Living Wage, as well as being accessible, streamlined, proportionate, and consistent approaches to applications and reporting, timely process and payments, and partnership between the funder and fundee. 

The SCVO policy and public affairs manager was speaking ahead of Poverty Alliance’s Challenge Child Poverty Week, which begins on October 2. Poverty Alliance have come up with five key asks, including backing SCVO’s calls for Fair Funding. 

Speaking to MSPs, he said: “They (Poverty Alliance) recognise their members, ahead of the anti-poverty summit that the First Minister held wanted Fair Funding to be a key item on the agenda and I think that it reflects what the Poverty Alliance are hearing from their members about the dire need for longer-term funding and more support for grassroots organisations. I think those organisations play a crucial role.”

The need for consistent funding was also brought up by Alison Davis from mental health group Saheliya, who spoke about the positive knock on impact that long term funding would have on her organisation. 

She added that this had been brought up in the past but that with more than 30 years experience in the sector, she saw Fair Funding as crucial to allow organisations to forward-plan and grow.