Funded by the Baring Foundation, the report Speaking
Truth to Power by Julia Unwin,
examines the sector’s relationship with the government, and argues
that its independence is complex and subject to continual renegotiation.
“Third sector organisations frequently perceive a pressure to be
silent, when in fact evidence suggests otherwise,” she says. “Organisations
that censor themselves, for whatever reason, are failing to articulate
the experience of their members, service users or beneficiaries.
“In the long run, the self-censorship that fears reprisals and
seeks to pre-empt them is as dangerous for the freedom of the sector as
the abuse of position by the powerful seeking to silence dissent.”
Speaking Truth to Power is to be launched at the Association
of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations’ (Acevo) annual conference
on 9 December, where Stephen Bubb, chief executive of Acevo, will defend
the sector’s increasingly close relationship to government.
He will say that working with government has brought real benefits to
the sector: “It is crucial to the core mission of many Acevo members,
enabling them to shape policy and improve service delivery. The gains
for our clients have been striking.
