A new report from the National Council of Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has seriously criticised the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) for regularly overlooking the Compact.

It claims that the DCMS and its affiliates frequently breached the 1998 agreement by failing to consult properly with the sector, particularly over the merger of the Community Fund and the New Opportunities Fund, which occurred despite substantial opposition from numerous voluntary organisations.

Other criticisms included several complaints from charities about difficulties in securing the recovery of core costs when applying for grants – a breach of the funding code, which states that funding frameworks should recognise core costs and ways in which these can be met. However, it also gives several examples of best practice by the DCMS including praise for its website which it describes as “one of the best government sites in terms of accessibility and accuracy”.

Stuart Etherington, NCVO chief executive, said: “This report, in a honest and robust way, reflects the views, experiences and opinions of our members who work with the DCMS and its affiliate bodies. NCVO hopes its findings can in the long term strengthen the DCMS’ relationship with the voluntary sector. The Compact is the framework for open, transparent relationships where problems can be addressed and improvements made. It is essential that greater awareness of the Compact is forged within the DCMS and all other government departments and that the recommendations of this report are acted upon.”

The DCMS responded by expressing its “surprise and disappointment” in the report, commenting that very little had been mentioned “about the many areas in which there has been fruitful cooperation and good practice”.

This is not the first time the sector has complained about the DCMS and its affiliates breaching the Compact. In the October issue of Charity Times, ACEVO accused The Big Lottery Fund of breaching the Code of Practice by continually giving mixed messages to the sector throughout the consultation process – a claim that the BLF denied.