Urgent Resources Needed to Tackle Increased Deprivation

More than 900,000 are living in enforced deprivation, according to the latest figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO today). This represents a worrying rise of over 200,000 people going without basic necessities since 2021, according to The Wheel, the National Association of Charities.  

Lone parents with children younger than 25, and people unable to work due to long-standing health problems are most likely to be living in enforced deprivation (45.6% and 44.7% respectively), and tenants are more than four times as likely to be going without than people in households where the home is owned. “This is extremely worrying in a country that consistently ranks among the wealthiest in the world”, said Ivan Cooper, CEO of The Wheel. 

“The community and voluntary sector is at the coalface of supporting people on the lowest incomes. One in twelve charities has the specific charitable purpose of the relief of poverty or economic hardship, while charities and community organisations in the health, housing and homelessness, child and family services, and community development sectors are under continued pressure to provide supports to those who are most at risk,” said Mr. Cooper. 

Persistent underfunding of the community and voluntary sector has led to frontline services being asked to do more with less. Many are experiencing a recruitment and retention crisis as salaries fail to keep pace with public sector operators.  

“These services provide a lifeline to those on the margins and must be adequately resourced to do this vital work in the face of increasing demand.” said Mr. Cooper.  

Research by TASC, commissioned by The Wheel and published in 2023, found that the negative disparity in pay for most of the charities average very close to or above 10%, risking the collapse of vital public services. The report also called for funding and other supports to the sector which correspond with the complexity and expansion of needs around housing and homelessness, addiction, disabilities, older people, and the challenges facing young people and low-income families. 

“What today’s figures show is that deprivation has worsened since the publication of our report. The valuable contribution of the sector must be recognised, and adequately funded, if we are to effectively address the impact of poverty” says Ivan Cooper. 

The Wheel make the following proposals to secure the future sustainability of the sector to continue to provide this vital work: 

• Regularise multiannual funding and ensure adequate funding levels generally 
• Provide for the cost of compliance and introduce a Charities Compliance Matching Fund 
• Address economic and geopolitical pressures on the sector.