Paul Emery, Head of Community and Social Organisations at Zurich speaking at the event said “Zurich is proud to support NAVCA and its members and we are delighted to be associated with the launch of this important manifesto. We share NAVCA’s view that a strong and vibrant local voluntary sector leads to stronger, vibrant and more resilient communities. And I’m always keen to pay tribute to the role that Kevin Curley and his team play in helping Local Infrastructure Organisations serve their members – in the often complex world of funding, local authority commissioning and legal services it is good to know that someone is there to help smaller organisations function efficiently, whilst also keeping a focus on delivering their own charitable outcomes.”
He added, “Zurich understands the reality outlined in Strong Independent Roots - that the funding relationship between local authorities and local groups is a vitally important one. Whichever party forms the next Government the funding situation facing local authorities will be acute – and there is an obvious danger that partners of local authorities will be put under even greater financial pressure. Alongside a continued squeeze of grant funding there will be increased pressure from commissioners to secure ‘best value’, often narrowly defined as ‘cheapest is best’. So, as government strives to deliver more for less and give greater choice to individual service users, it’s imperative that this is done well to ensure we retain and encourage a diverse and thriving local voluntary sector at the heart of local service delivery. We take our role as a partner to the sector seriously and continue to work with policy makers to ensure that the vital area of partnership working is not skewed in favour of one group or another. It is important that all partners appreciate that the real value of a service and the benefit to communities cannot always be measured by how cheaply it is delivered.”
He concluded by saying “We wish the Strong Independent Roots paper every success and we look forward to working with NAVCA, and its members, in the coming months and years. We are proud to play our part in encouraging and supporting a diverse voluntary sector, which we believe is vital for the health of the country and its communities.”
For the full version of Strong Independent Roots go to: www.navca.org.uk/roots
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