A time for giving, or a business model

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I don't always, indeed seldom, agree with much Patsy McGarry writes in the Irish Times but there's definite food for thought in this piece.

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/in-a-word-charity-1.4047489

For instance:

Why does Ireland need seven major charities dealing with homelessness (Focus Ireland,Threshold, St Vincent DePaul, Simon, Crosscare, Peter McVerry Trust, Irish Council for Social Housing), not to mention the smaller ones?
Why does it need 42 overseas development charities, all members of Dochas the Irish Association of Non-Governmental Development Organisations, with a further 13 associate members? Why does it need 48 separate agencies in the area of suicide prevention/bereavement, with 13 doing so exclusively....Each has become its own little empire and must raise funds to supplement what it gets from the state to pay staff, its administration and fund-raising costs.

Have charities just become self sustaining businesses and do we need to become more circumspect when it comes to giving to causes? I'm beginning to believe we need to learn to say no and channel funds to where we believe most benefit accrues.

Don Joe

Homelessness is big business. Some people don't want it resolved because they'll be out of a job... And a soap box.

Salary Negotiator

Absolutely. An ex of mine worked for a charity in London that spent over 50% of their annual budget on UK based employees.

The charity was involved in constructing houses in developing countries but the architects volunteered their time and the salaries went to admin staff.

gifted

Claire Wet Caribou wrote: »

I don't always, indeed seldom, agree with much Patsy McGarry writes in the Irish Times but there's definite food for thought in this piece.

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/in-a-word-charity-1.4047489

For instance:


Have charities just become self sustaining businesses and do we need to become more circumspect when it comes to giving to causes? I'm beginning to believe we need to learn to say no and channel funds to where we believe most benefit accrues.

100% agree.......too many charities fighting for the same money......a lot goes on expenses for its "employees".....

blade1

Anyone know how much the Simon community spends on sending letters out every Christmas?
I think it's 4 letters I've gotten so far from them in the last few weeks.
I got the message with the first one.
Seems like such a waste of money.

IAMAMORON

Most Charities are rackets. I have seen a good few Balance Sheets in my time.

I would be expecting around 13% of your donation to be reaching or even benefitting what you are expecting your money is going towards.

It all goes on admin and wages, believe. You should have a look at some of the wages the CEO's are on. The bigger the charity the bigger the wages.

The worst is when you see the procurement rackets that go on, government printers are miniscule minutia when compared to the " service offering" in charities. Rotten stuff.

If you donated € 100 this year for cancer research, €13 was spent on cancer research etc.

EmmetSpiceland

Time to nationalise the “sector” and set up a massive quango to over see the whole thing?

Padre_Pio

blade1 wrote: »

Anyone know how much the Simon community spends on sending letters out every Christmas?
I think it's 4 letters I've gotten so far from them in the last few weeks.
I got the message with the first one.
Seems like such a waste of money.

You probably got the message last year and the year before that, and every time you walk through any city in the evening.

blade1

Padre_Pio wrote: »

You probably got the message last year and the year before that, and every time you walk through any city in the evening.

I rarely travel through a city unless there's a very good reason to do so.
Fair enough people may need reminding but it seems very excessive with the Simon community.

PhilOssophy

EmmetSpiceland wrote: »

Time to nationalise the “sector” and set up a massive quango to over see the whole thing?

It already is nationalised, the government already spend something close to 100m on funding homeless services. On top of this, we have funding for all these charities/scams.

Where is it all going?

Why doesn't the govt say "We are not funding you in 2020 and we are going to spend 80m on building homes for these people, not for you charlatans". See Peter McVerry and his bleeding heart affiliates squirm then.

Because, there is really no need for these chancers.

IAMAMORON

EmmetSpiceland wrote: »

Time to nationalise the “sector” and set up a massive quango to over see the whole thing?

Never underestimate a governments' ability to squeeze the lemon....

https://www.charitiesregulator.ie/en