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THIRD SECTOR FACES GROWING PRESSURE
Charities across Edinburgh entered the new year facing a complex operating environment, as Scottish Charity Register data reveals more organisations were removed from the register last year than were newly established.
According to the register, 101 charities were registered in Edinburgh during 2025, while 122 were removed from the register.
Removal from the register can include mergers or charities completing their purpose, but the figures highlight the ongoing pressures within the voluntary sector as organisations adapt to rising costs, regulatory demands and changing funding patterns.
This local picture mirrors UK trends. The Status of UK Fundraising 2025 report found that 54% of UK charities saw their fundraising income remain static or fall over the past year, with a substantial majority attributing this to wider economic conditions. While income is not universally declining, many organisations are having to work harder to maintain stability.
Ansvar Insurance, a specialist insurer for charities and not‑for‑profit organisations, says the challenge is less about short-term survival and more about long-term sustainability.
Adam Tier, Head of Underwriting at Ansvar, commented: “Edinburgh has always had an incredibly active charity sector, but these figures show just how challenging the current environment has become.
“Rising operational costs, a more competitive fundraising landscape and increased demand with an average of 27% of Edinburgh residents relying on charitable services mean organisations need to think differently about sustainability.”
To help local organisations strengthen their resilience, Ansvar is encouraging charities to explore less obvious strategies that can make a meaningful difference:
Despite the pressures, the registration of new charities in Edinburgh during 2025 demonstrates the commitment of local communities to addressing social need.
Adam Tier added: “Financial sustainability isn’t just about raising more money. Often, it’s about taking a fresh look at existing processes and asking the right questions.
“The organisations that thrive are those that plan ahead, understand their risks and adapt early, positioning themselves to weather these challenges and continue serving their communities for years to come.”
https://www.cafonline.org/insights/research/uk-local-giving-report-2025#interMap
Scotland’s third sector is the backbone of communities across the country — delivering vital, person-centred support in the face of rising demand and financial uncertainty.
Our newly published Annual Report showcases how, in 2024/25, we worked alongside charities and funders to strengthen resilience and unlock new opportunities for impact.
The organisations we support are often the first to respond to local needs, tackling poverty, inequality, mental health, and social isolation.
Our venture philanthropy model is designed to ease the burden, combining funding with tailored development support to help charities grow and adapt to changing circumstances.
We’ve worked hard to keep funding flowing, championing the sector and demonstrating the difference it makes.
Through new funding collaborations and strategic support, we’ve built new philanthropic partnerships that extend the impact of our model to others.
Recognising volunteering as a powerful force for good, we continued to bring in skills and expertise through our Specialist Volunteer Network. Time, energy, and professional skills are vital forms of philanthropy, and we’ve seen how this generosity strengthens organisations and builds resilience.
We’ve increasingly used the insight gained from our work to inform and influence policy. This year, we’ve done more of this work than ever before — sharing evidence, amplifying voices, and contributing directly to policy discussions. We recognise the responsibility and privilege of our position, which allows us to take messages from the frontline straight to decision-makers.
Our work is rooted in trust, collaboration, and a shared ambition for lasting impact. Whether managing Scottish Government programmes or unlocking new sources of investment, we are committed to building a Scotland where every person has the opportunity to thrive.
Thank you to our partners, funders, volunteers, and the organisations we support. Together, we are making a difference.
The value of charity donations is down by almost a third in the past five years, new research from SCVO finds.
The voluntary sector body’s new report, Individual Giving in Scotland: donations, legacies and fundraising, shows income from individual giving made up 15% of the Scottish charity sector’s income in 2023, down from around 20% in 2018 and previous years.
Individual giving from the general public was worth an estimated £1.2bn to Scottish charities in 2023.
But the value of donations has fallen by 30% in real terms since 2018, while fewer individuals are donating to charity – although many who do donate are giving larger amounts.
Most income streams from the general public were hit hard by Covid, and while many of these income streams have now bounced back, they have generally not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
Data from the Spring 2025 Scottish Third Sector Tracker suggests that a rising number of voluntary organisations saw positive growth in both donations and fundraising income, suggesting some reasons for cautious optimism despite the challenging financial environment.
The voluntary sector body said the falling value of donations underlines the importance of the Scottish Government’s move towards Fair Funding.
SCVO head of policy, Kirsten Hogg, said: “Individual giving is an important part of the complex patchwork of funding sources that Scotland’s voluntary organisations rely on, and these findings are really concerning – especially when combined with what we know about cuts in public sector funding and the increasing costs and demands that voluntary organisations are facing.
“The cost of living crisis has hit individual giving hard, impacting on people’s ability to put their hands in their pockets – including for legacies, donations, fundraising and trading. Over the same period, we saw a reduction in the number of people volunteering their time, and together these paint a worrying picture about the extent to which people are able to support charities and community groups.
“While we remain hopeful that we may see a slight upturn in both donations and volunteering numbers, the resource difficulties that voluntary organisations are facing mean that many will continue to encounter challenges on a scale we’ve not seen before.
“Scotland’s voluntary sector is a fundamental part of Scottish society, and demand for support is rising. Vital support continues to be delivered to every community in Scotland, and we must do everything we can to protect organisations from the pressures they are facing.”
Claire Stanley, director of policy and communications at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, said: “Charities across Scotland are working harder than ever to support the communities and individuals who need them.
“SCVO’s research highlights the difficult reality facing the sector right now, and we are hearing from our members that demand for services is increasing yearly – yet they are working with fewer resources while trying to deliver more.
“And while it is encouraging to see many supporters giving generously, we know the cost-of-living crisis has hit people hard in recent years, and the overall drop in donations presents a significant challenge. That is why fair and reliable funding for charities is so important, to ensure that communities across Scotland can continue to count on the support they need, now and in the future.”
NEW 5-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN FOR EVOC
EVOC (Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations’ Council) has published a new 5-year strategic plan, outlining the organisation’s vision to contribute to an equitable, sustainable and resilient Edinburgh, supported by a thriving third sector.
The new plan is structured around three priorities – advocacy, capacity building and collaboration – with all areas underpinned by data gathering and research that will be used to inform policy and decision-making.
Data and research will also be used to make on-the-ground decisions with and for third sector organisations in the city.
Bruce Crawford, EVOC’s CEO, commented: “I’ve been in post for 6 months now, and since day one, we’ve been working towards the publication of this new strategic plan.
“To help us achieve our vision, we’re focused on supporting organisations to make local community-driven change.
“We want to use our networks and forums, which sit at the heart of the dynamic between the third sector, public sector and private sector, to bring the voices of the sector together to develop policies that meet the needs of the communities we all serve.”
Established in 1868, EVOC has been committed to improving the lives of people and communities for more than 155 years.
Over that time, the organisation’s priorities and activities have adapted in line with the needs of the people in the city and the third sector, but this new plan has the same ethos at its heart.
Bruce Crawford continued: “Over the past few months, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with people from across the sector to help inform what’s gone into our strategic plan.
“In 2025, there have been a series of challenges that the sector has faced, including public sector funding cuts and increased running costs.
“We’re looking to create some stability by going back to basics – EVOC doing what is right for the sector. So, we’ll be covering a broad range of areas that come under our three priorities.”
EVOC’s strategic plan for 2025 to 2030 is available to read here and you can hear more from Bruce Crawford here.
LOCAL organisations, charities and social enterprises have been left homeless due to water damage to the former Centrica building at 1 Waterfront Avenue.
The organisations lease space at Waterfront through Edinburgh Pallette, occupying floors 2 and three of the building.
Karen Black, founder and CEO of SHE Scotland, explained: “We were notified on 3rd January and it is unlikely to be fixed until next month at earliest! We have only today (Wednesday 10 January) been told we can only have limited access to small items and still no full access to our resources.
“You can understand this had impacted negatively on local services, delivery of services, moral of staff and volunteers. At this time when the pressure on funding, staff retention, cost of living impact and now the issue with space is causing a real strain to all of us.”
Among the organisations affected are:
The affected organisations have written to Centrica:
We are writing on behalf of a number of Edinburgh charities and small voluntary sector companies who lease space in one of your sites – 1 Waterfront Avenue, Edinburgh. You may be aware that this site has had to close due to flooding in the basement of the building.
Fortunately, Centrica employees have been very quickly relocated to offices in another part of Edinburgh with little or no business interruption.
Unfortunately, the other businesses who lease the space who form the signatories of this letter – all low-income charities and community interest companies – have not been supported in the same way and many face business-critical disruption. We were advised on Friday 5th January that the building would be closed until the 31st January. No priority was given to ensure access to files or materials essential for continued business operation. In fact, it was not until one week later that we were finally advised that we could enter the building accompanied to collect small items.
This closure will cause all of these voluntary sector organisations considerable business interruption and possible loss of contracts. This will directly impact the support our organisations provide for local communities, as well as risking loss of income and reputation. Not only are there business delivery consequences to this but there is a substantial human cost. The stress on our staff and volunteers of finding out that their place of work has lost its’ operating base literally overnight is considerable.
Every tenant is now scrambling around trying to find alternative premises instead of focusing on core delivery. Delivery which is essential to the well-being of our local communities. The knock-on impacts of this are unmeasurable – businesses have been told they can have accompanied access to the building to collect ‘small items’. Where does that leave the Edinburgh School Uniform Bank, who store hundreds of uniforms to distribute to under-privileged school children or SHE Scotland who run workshops for young girls?
All these organisations have limited resources and rely on funding to survive so it is not a simple task to find alternative premises at short notice. We would like to advise you that we will be seeking compensation for business interruption and breach of lease obligations.
We feel we need to escalate this issue to a speedy resolution, and wish for Centrica to help our organisations, and the children, families and communities we support, to return to our space as quickly as possible.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Tenants of 1 Waterfront Avenue
Waterfront Avenue office accommodation and facilities are advertised on Edinburgh Palette’s website:
Waterfront Avenue provides flexible, open-plan office accommodation in the heart of North Edinburgh’s evolving Waterfront area. The building is located adjacent to the iconic Granton Gasworks, which is due to undergo renovation to be transformed into a tree-lined amphitheatre for cultural events.
Currently occupying floors two and three. Opening hours for the building are between 8:30am and 6pm Monday to Friday and closed on Saturday and Sunday. The building will also be closed on all public holidays.
Facilities include:
Third sector organisations are to be paid a fee for helping provide supporting information for people applying for Child Disability Payment or Adult Disability Payment. The £33.50 fee will be paid when they are asked by Social Security Scotland to complete a supporting information request form.
People who are applying for disability benefits who find it difficult or face barriers gathering supporting information themselves will be able to name organisations to provide this for them.
These can include third sector organisations that are helping them in their day-to-day lives, such as those offering social care or support during an illness. Collecting supporting information on behalf of people is a key difference in how people are encouraged and supported to apply for Scottish Government disability benefits.
Supporting information request forms are completed to help understand how a person’s health condition or disability affects their lives and what support they need. As well as information from health and social care professions, information could also come from charities and third sector organisations who support disabled people.
The process of requesting and giving equal consideration to supporting information from third sector organisations is not offered by the Department for Work and Pensions in England and Wales and is an example of how Social Security Scotland is doing things differently to better support people applying for benefits.
If disabled people need additional help to apply for Scottish Government benefits the free and independent Advocacy Service, provided by VoiceAbility, helps people throughout the whole of the process, from the point of application, through to any request for redetermination and appeal.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “We know that third sector organisations supporting disabled people are often best placed to provide information on their conditions and needs which is why we are introducing this payment.
We recognise the value of the information that organisations supporting disabled people can supply and we want to put it on an equal footing with the information from other professionals, such as social care staff or GPs
“People who are applying for disability benefits often have extra support from charities and third sector organisations. This new system will give people more choice in who can help them provide Social Security Scotland with the information that is needed as part of their application, which will help them apply for Child Disability Payment or Adult Disability Payment.
“We are committed to making sure everyone gets the financial support they are entitled to and we actively work to encourage take-up of Scottish Government social security benefits by promoting our 13 benefits, collaborating with various organisations and removing barriers to access.”
Social Security Scotland pay a fee for the supporting information form when they have requested the completion of a form in writing from an organisation.
Independent GPs, and those employed by independent GP practices, also get a fee when they are asked to provide information.
Clients can approach third sector organisations to provide supporting information on their behalf. Organisations will not be paid a fee unless Social Security Scotland directly request the information.
Third sector organisations who have already been asked to provide supporting information for clients receiving Child Disability Payment or Adult Disability Payment before the fee payments process was in place will be able to have their payments backdated.
Guidance will be provided to any third sector organisation who is asked by to provide supporting information, with information also available on Social Security Scotland’s website.
If someone applying for disability benefits has supporting information available, they are encouraged provide it with their application, Examples of supporting information are medical reports, a social care assessment, a prescription list or test results.
Third sector representatives have warned the Scottish Government that work done by charities and voluntary organisations cannot continue without multi-year funding.
Key public services could be at risk as new research shows a significant number of voluntary organisations across Scotland are seeing rising costs affect their ability to operate.
Research published as part of the Third Sector Tracker, a partnership project on behalf of groups including the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations’ (SCVO), shows the growing challenges facing charities and voluntary groups.
Data gathered in March and April this year shows that Spring 2022 saw the cost of operating increase for most organisations, impacting their ability to deliver core services.
Voluntary sector services are essential to the wellbeing of people in Scotland – particularly during trying times such as the cost of living crisis, just as they did during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the past two years the importance of Scotland’s voluntary sector has been underlined throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, with the co-ordination of food and grocery support, alleviating mental health and wellbeing issues, such as befriending, and digital inclusion work to reduce isolation all carried out by the sector.
A large majority (86 per cent) of organisations also reported rising costs since December 2021, with the most common rises being:
Of organisations seeing rising costs of any kind, 42 per cent felt this affected their ability to deliver their core services or activities.
With groups across Scotland facing challenges, the three months to April 2022 saw just half (50 per cent) of organisations able to meet or exceed their planned programmes or services. A further 43 per cent were able to meet them partially.
Although many remain confident of continuing, SCVO believes that planned, multi-year funding is key to ensuring that vital public services provided by charities and voluntary groups can continue.
Kirsten Hogg, Head of Policy Research & Campaigns at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), said: “Far too many voluntary organisations are left wondering what, if any, funding they’ll receive to continue programmes and services from year-to-year.
“Voluntary organisations need to see the funding they receive from the public sector keep pace with inflation. Without this, large swathes of charities will be left with shrinking budgets at a time of rising demand, putting services at risk and leaving them unable to pay staff fairly.
“We cannot continue to see unnecessary expectations being placed on voluntary organisations that are not felt by their public sector equivalents. If the third sector is expected to continue providing lifeline services, this cannot be done without an ability to plan for the future.
“Core funding must be expanded to ensure that organisations can meet running costs. It is not possible for a service to exist without an organisation to deliver it. Organisations need flexible investment to keep the lights on, to innovate and to continue their critical contribution to Scottish society.”
Community and voluntary organisations are invited to hear about the work going on to support people from Ukraine arriving in Edinburgh.
Find out about the strategic and operational work that the community and voluntary sector is involved in to ensure a warm welcome to Edinburgh for the people of Ukraine, hosted by Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations’ Council.
Find out about the strategic and operational work that the community and voluntary sector is involved in to ensure a warm welcome to Edinburgh (and Scotland) for the people of Ukraine.
For several weeks Volunteer Edinburgh and EVOC have been involved in daily meetings with statutory partners to ensure we are helping the sector develop a strategic role and offer support on every level for the people arriving in our city.
The Ukrainian community and many community partners are also doing amazing work, as you would expect.
This online event will include representatives from:
Programme:
If your organisation would like to play a part, please get in touch: olga.wojciechowska@evoc.org.uk
Find out about other support available for people from Ukraine here.
EVENT LINK: This event will take place on MS teams and the link will be sent out after registration closes.
Thursday 28 November
9:30am-12pm, Quaker Meeting House
EVOC are hosting a workshop to explore the best way for the voluntary sector’s voice to be heard in local community planning from 2020. Continue reading Discussion: Third Sector voices in Community Planning
