The Small Charities Coalition have been running a survey into the health and wellbeing needs of those that work for and volunteer within small charities.
Over 713 organisations have responded to the survey.
Key findings
- One third of respondents described their mental health as either fair or poor
- 69% felt that COVID had a significant impact on their mental well being
- 31% described their mental wellbeing having a significant impact on personal
relationships
- 90% felt there was not sufficient support for staff and volunteers in small charities
around mental health and only 43% felt sufficiently supported in the workplace at
the moment, with only 22% feeling confident enough to talk about the issue with
their manager
- 58% would like to see more information and support for trustees especially in
dealing with the issue
The results of the survey demonstrate that there is a clear lack of resources and support available specifically to small charities on how to manage mental wellbeing. Rita Chadha, CEO of Small Charities Coalition said “The fact that so many small charities and Small Charities Coalition members want to talk about the emotional and mental wellbeing of the staff and volunteers in their organisation, is indicative of the pressure charities in general, and small charities in particular are under.
The results demonstrate that the pressures within the not for profit sector, the changes in working patterns, the continual changing nature of relationships and the overall lack of certainty over funding, should act as a wakeup call to how much stress charities are under. To not act on these results would be to ignore the wellbeing of the sector's workforce. At SCC we are determined to make sure that people understand that mental health and wellbeing are essential to the delivery of quality services and long term sustainability”.
SCC will be working to develop support and resources to help those in need of assistance
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