April/May_2011

By Andrew Holt

Keeping the faith

Andrew Holt investigates the vital and often unique work taken on by faith charities, the part they play in the Big Society, and how they will survive in a testing environment


Faith-based charities form a significant part of the charitable sector,with 30,115 charities in England and Wales focusing on religious activities,equating to a shared income of £6.643 billion. The diverse nature of these faith groups is an impressive representation of civil society organizations embodying multicultural Britain: Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh are all well visible.

Historically, faith-based charities have been the backbone of civil society, providing health care before the welfare state existed. As Sir Stuart Etherington noted in a speech on the issue: “Religious buildings – church, temple, synagogue and mosque – were community anchors centuries before the term was invented. They are often a valuable physical presence, a centre of and for the community, as well as a place of worship. And they symbolise a commitment to serve the community in the long term.”

But, in the twentieth century, with the development of the welfare state, government moved away from supporting faith groups in a growing non-religious age.
Under Gordon Brown’s Labour premiership though, the Department for International Development (DFID) gave £20.9m to religious international faith groups in 2008,
with the aim of raising the profile of the relationship between faith groups and government.

And last year the Coalition Government ringfenced DFID’s foreign aid which involved maintaining monies for many international faith charities such as Christian Aid, Islamic Relief and World Vision.

This was supported again at the beginning of March with DFID’s continued commitment to increasing the aid budget and to ensuring that aid is as focused and effective as possible, concentrating its resources and impact in 27 countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Nigeria, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Pakistan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Programmes in Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Burundi, Cameroon, Cambodia, China, Gambia, Indonesia, Iraq, Kosovo, Lesotho, Moldova, Niger, Russia, Serbia and Vietnam, will come to an end.

Spending on aid is set to rise by £3.3 billion over four years to meet a United Nations target for wealthy nations to spend 0.7 per cent of their GDP on development by 2013.

The agency stressed that aid must go to where the need is greatest. As twenty-two out of the thirty-four countries furthest away from achieving the Millennium Development Goals have been, or are in, conflict there is a good rationale for increasing funding to fragile states.

But, it must support the poorest people, not just perceived UK security interests, and for this reason Tearfund, Christian relief agency which works through local churches because they are part of the community, has welcomed increased aid to countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo.

“It’s right to balance the needs of people living in fragile states with others living in extreme poverty,” says Paul Cook, director of advocacy at Tearfund. “A middle-income country such as India, has more people living in extreme poverty than the whole of sub-Saharan Africa, and these people are in desperate need of development assistance and must also be prioritised.”

Neil Thorns, director of advocacy at CAFOD, the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales, gives another perspective. “The headline figures and information on this is fine, but we need to dig deeper and know more before we can accept it fully.We need to know that the countries and areas chosen are not just an extension of British vested trade or arms trade interest. That will become clearer over the next month.”

Aid and Transparency
Though DFID pointed out the need for real transparency, in terms of aid, a criticism that often comes-up with international aid operations, which draws international faith groups into the argument. The National Audit Office (NAO) said the UK had no clear picture of the "extent, nature and impact" of development funds failing to meet their intended goals because of fraud.

According to a leading anti-corruption body, nine of the countries where spending is due to be increased by more than 50 per cent are among the globe’s worst on that score. All rate a score of less than three out of ten in the most recent table produced by Transparency International – where one is “highly corrupt” and ten is “very clean”.

In its report on financial management at the Department for International Development, the NAO concluded that it was “too reactive and cannot provide parliament and the taxpayer with a clear picture of the extent, nature and impact of leakage”. And it added: “The risk of leakage will potentially increase as the spending increases for those countries with less developed controls and capability.” More work was needed on identifying and investigating fraud, it added.

“We must act against corruption,” Cook accepts. “And we can do this by increasing transparency so that people living in poor communities can see how much money is being spent on things like treatment for HIV or water and sanitation.

This is tax payers’ money, so scrutiny over how it is spent is right. However, real value for money can only be achieved if the delivery of aid is driven by need, and fully involves local people.”

Though Thorns notes: “When you look at the vaccines and education systems that have been introduced in many deprived areas of the world, you see the aid supplied makes a real difference.”

Cook concludes: “We need to ensure that we invest in the right kind of development – development which is long term and sustainable and focuses on building the capacity of ordinary people around the world, and not just short term targets.”

One real positive for faith groups was Lord Ashdown’s Humanitarian Emergency Response Review in relation to UK aid and disasters highlighted the work of faith groups in the relief sector and their “potential to improve responses through their strong links with and access to local communities.”

Moreover, Tearfund’s report, Investing in Communities, demonstrated that investing in reducing disaster risk shows good returns. In Malawi it demonstrated that for every £1 invested in building resilience, communities saw a benefit equivalent to £24.

Rob Schofield, Tearfund’s disaster management director, says: “If we can work among communities, helping them find their own innovative ways to reduce the risks
of disasters, this will limit aid dependency.

“As the report points out, resilience must be integral to all of DFID’s programmes in the countries most at risk. It must integrate the threat from climate change and other potential hazards into all development planning.We need to include communities in our thinking and decision making. They are a crucial part of any response. And it is important that aid donors are responsible to these communities for delivering results – so we welcome the recommendations relating to beneficiary accountability,” Schofield says.

Matthew Frost, chief executive of Tearfund, adds that the faith approach can reach parts other charities cannot reach. “As a Christian relief and development agency, we know from our 40 years experience of working in the world’s poorest countries that churches can often reach the parts other organisations cannot reach. They are the local community and are often best placed to lead communities to make their own decisions about how to meet the needs of their poorest neighbours.”

There is a unique supporter amongst faith groups to boot. Neil Thorns at CAFOD says: “Our supporters work on three motivational levels: one they give, either financially or their time or both, two, through activity and support, and three, through prayer. Our supporters regularly pray for those in need. The spiritual side sets many faith groups apart.”

Faith fundraising
This feeds through to fundraising. Data from NCVO’s UK Civil Society Almanac 2010 shows that religious and international organisations obtain the greatest share of income from individuals; each receive 40% of their
total income from individual donations, plus further funds from legacies and earned income.

Plus the UK Giving Report shows that the largest median amounts in 2010 were for religious causes (£15) followed by overseas causes (£10). On a finance and
investment level, faith groups have been consistently and innovatively active. The Diocese of London and City business leaders launched a new social investment fund for microfinance in Africa.

Arcubus was launched from the goals of Just Share, a coalition of churches and development agencies based at St Maryle- Bow Church in the City, which aims to engage with the City on issues of global development and justice and encourage positive action. Arcubus raised £1m in 2010 through a combination of donations and investments in a Social Investment Bond issued by Citylife.

Another interesting and innovative finance approach is highlighted by the Nuns at Holy Trinity Monastery, who have launched a charitable bond to raise £2m to purchase a permanent home for the monastery to grow and expand its charitable outreach work. The minimum investment into the bond is £1,000 over a five or ten-year period. The annual rate of interest starts at 1.22 per cent and grows to 1.71 per cent for ten-year
investments over £50,000. The monastery’s nuns plan to fundraise over the next ten years to enable them to repay investors into the bond.

Catherine Wybourne, prioress of Holy Trinity Monastery, says: “We recognise that whilst most of us would like to do more to support charitable work, donating isn’t always a realistic option. By investing in the bond, people will be allowing the Monastery to use the money they would typically put aside for savings and investments, to further our good work.”

Moreover, Islamic finance, through sharia law finance, banking and investing, is one of the fastest growing forms of finance in the world. Most of the major international finance organisations are involved in some way. Islamic scholars note that if such Islamic rules had been followed, the global banking crisis would not have happened.

Local Faiths
Not all faith groups are international by their remit. For example, there are over 2,200 Jewish registered charities in England and Wales, based in a community of just around 275,000 Jews in the UK, indicating, perhaps, that as a faith community it is very structured, perhaps too bureaucratic, but principally a community that is of itself an example of the self-contained Big Society.

Many Jewish charities support causes in the UK and overseas, working to support underprivileged communities and to advance human rights. “It is, in my view, faith values that set these charities apart. Values which are often based on scriptures calling on their members to: respect others’ beliefs and practises, care for the elderly, sick, less fortunate and abused and – critically –being prepared to stand up and be counted,” says Leonie Lewis director of the Jewish Volunteering Network.

“Within the Jewish Community some charities have diversified their income streams, whilst others remain dependent on government funding schemes. However, Government cuts and an unstable economic environment, together with a reduction in private philanthropic giving, has seriously impacted on all charities.”

She adds that many faith communities may seem more protected, but her information shows less money is available and several charities are now choosing volunteers and primarily interns to fulfil roles once done by paid staff. The last few years have also given rise to a proliferation of interfaith charities, and creative opportunities for collaborative thinking, regarding challenges posed by cuts and policy changes.

“Charities here could do well by considering how they can better work together and share resources, as a sense of goodwill pervades their action. It may be the case that the Charity Commission has a role in promoting and guiding more efficient mergers, partnerships and collaboration,” says Lewis.

The Jewish Community has structures that are representative and valued by civil society and is willing to develop these within the faith sector and beyond, in order to enhance the Big Society. “The Jewish Volunteering Network is already bringing diverse charities together, working in partnership on a variety of vital volunteer involved projects, is well placed to support these initiatives” she adds.

Daniel Singleton, national executive director of Faith Action, an umbrella group which represents over 1,200 faith groups from across the religious spectrum, including a good share of them minority religions, notes that many local faith groups are in a strong position to take advantage of the Big Society.

“Faith groups have the local intelligence that is needed to build the Big Society. This can happen via social action built often through worship centres, or through contracts where faith groups can show their expertise and value for money in the community.”

Singleton adds: “Faith Groups are like the mums of society, they are often unseen, but they make things happen, and get on with helping people without needing thanks. Faith is about helping others.”

Charity faith groups are now free to open new schools funded by the state, but independent of local authorities: a central plank of the government’s plans for improving education in England. The enthusiasm thus far from faith groups has seemed somewhat muted, though. But secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove is a believer. “Faith schools make a fantastic contribution to our education,” he said.

Though some accuse faith schools of creating social division. An interesting retort to such a view, comes from Vincent Cable, in his 2005 Demos Paper, Multiple Identities, he wrote: “Faith-based schooling does not necessarily lead to deep social division, let alone violent conflict.The experience of Catholic schooling has been that it has given immigrant minorities – overwhelmingly Irish – the opportunity gradually to develop a British identity while retaining the confidence which derives frpm a sense of community, tradition and belief.

There is no reason why Muslims, and others should not enjoy a parallel experience.” Though one issue that cannot be escaped here is there has been much publicity over some faith groups linked to extremism and terrorism. The suicide bombers of 7/7 were British born Muslims.

Has this been overblown or is it a real problem? “The media focuses a great deal on it, but of course, the media is a reflection of us as a people, but when you
look at the number of charities connected to extremism, it is Islam the media concentrates on,” notes Singleton.

And Etherington notes going forward faith groups are as much part of the solution, as any perceived problem. “We need to build a more cohesive society, creating real opportunities for people from different communities – and different faiths – to engage with each other. To come together to further their common interests – whether that is a passion for the arts or a concern for the local environment. And we need to ensure that people have a say in decisions that affect their lives and the life of their community.”

One fascinating perspective comes from Dr Hany EL-Banna founder of Islamic Relief, who says there is another take on the issue of faith. “Some people use faith to divide. Faith in the community can still divide the community because they are defining faith as they understand it, that is why there are many Christian groups under Christianity, many Muslim groups under Islam. But Christianity, Islam and Judaism can engulf all this, because the teachings of Jesus and Muhammad are an everlasting message. So to interpret it differently is according to our understanding. It should be recognized to unite, not divide.

"That is why I would like to drop faith-based organizations and call it ‘value-based organizations’.We have common agreed value across all communities. Bring the Jews, Muslim, Christian, Rastafarian, the Sikh, the Hindu to the table and ask all of them to give their common core value; and the value of each of these groups would be commonly shared by others. This is our call, stop dividing us by calling us faith-based. Let’s all become value-based organisations to become more inclusive and share one value: humanity.”

And while the testing economic environment will put many charities in a difficult position, faith charities have a constituency that will support them throughout. Neil Thorns notes: “It is going to be a very challenging time ahead for faith charities and non-faith charities. We are fortunate that we have supporters who fiercely and deeply support us through their faith.”