Sir Howard Bernstein

Sir Howard Bernstein

Speech to NCVO/GMCVO Autumn Conference
18thNovember2010

I would like to start by welcoming you to Manchester and thanking you for asking me to speak to you today. I hope you have enjoyed the conference so far. I know many of you will have concerns about funding and the future. But it's clear that there are also great opportunities for empowerment and motivation.

I know that this conference follows hugely challenging financial announcements of the Comprehensive Spending Review. Although we don't know enough of the detail yet, manyknew these cuts were coming and the public sector, alongside the voluntary and community sectors should havebeen planning for this – planning how wewill weather the storm. And weather the storm we will.

In Greater Manchester in particular we have positioned ourselves to grow the City's economy, led by the private sector. We believe that it is this growth that will improve the lives of Mancunians across the entire city. By contributing to, and benefiting from the economy, local people can achieve their aspirations for their families and contribute to their communities.

But to help local people help themselves, we need you. Of course we will need to make cuts, but we will not be'cutting' services because they are funded from certain pots of money or because they are delivered by a certain sector. We must save money by becoming more efficient, by using all of our resources better and by working more closely with our partners. We will decommission services only where they don't contribute to Greater Manchester's priorities.

So let me tell you how I believe how together we can minimise the impact of these financial pressures and how you can take more control of your destiny.

I would suggest that you start from a privileged position. The Government clearly believes in you and the contribution you make. In fact, it wants to see itself (Govt) get smaller and for you to grow.

And I can tell you that in the City Council local Members are passionate-about you too. I have Members telling me on a daily basis that they do not want to see frontlinevoluntary and community services unequally and unfairly affected.
Beyond that, our Members have plans to support the development of the sector, finding ways to connect volunteers to you and to each other, supporting what we call a Community Force that is how we better co-ordinate support to the huge force of volunteers that already exists out there.

Members also want to see us commission more from your sector and to help you be better prepared to take advantage of the opportunities ahead. So, there will be opportunities, but you may find them in different places than you have in the past.

Manchester City Council alone, commissions about £63m of services from the community, voluntary and faith sectors. While that amount will inevitably change, it will remain a substantial amount.

But public money will be devolved to other people too. GPs and Head Teachers will receive very significant amounts of money directly. They will be looking to commission many of the services they will be responsible for. They will need your support and experience. They will listen if you talk to them about the things that matter to them. Some examples: they will want to know how you can help young children be ready for school at the age of 5; how you can help young inexperienced mothers and fathers; how you can help people lead healthier lives; and how you can help make sure teenagers make the most out of school.

Sound familiar? Of course these are things you have been doing for years. This is your reason for being. It is still needed, but it will be commissioned by other organisations.

And it goes on. The Work Programme, intended to help people who are unemployed get back to work will be delivered by new primary contractors. They will be looking to commission services from people who have experience in teaching English, training, working with offenders and mentoring young people. You are the ones with that experience. You are the ones they will be looking for.

Local authorities in Greater Manchester have been working hard to create the conditions for investment in the city. We have set up a Local Enterprise Partnerships, led by the private sector, who will be driving the economy. In the past couple of weeks, Ministers have signed off the creation of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. The first of its kind in the country, this will give us new powers to co-ordinate policies on transport, planning, regeneration and economic development.

These are essential steps to secure growth. The absolute priority alongside that is public sector reform to connect more Manchester people to that growth. We are working with our partners on Community Budgets, whichwillhelp usfocus on families that are, or are at risk of becoming, detached from the city's wealth. The government call these 'complex', that's their way of saying they are expensive. And we know that they are. Some families, who are dependant and deprived, cost many agencies hundreds of thousands of pounds in benefits, prison places, anti-social behaviour, children in care, drug and alcohol treatments and the list goes on. There is a clear financial reason for working with these families to improve their prospects and their lives, to help them get back on track and ensure their future generations are active members of the community. You have a central role to play in this vision, and you have the experience.

The private sector too is of course a major player. In Manchester, as you know, we have many socially motivated companies. One of these, the Co-op, is sponsoring this event and we have many other examples. These companies set money aside to give something back to the community and are delighted to support local and voluntary groups like yours.

I have outlined some of the opportunities that you will have but I don't want to leave you will an illusion that no change is required. You too will have to change to take advantage of these opportunities.

The danger of periods like this is that we each become introspective; our organisations look in on themselves. We need the opposite, to look outwards to support each other. First of all as well as your own priorities, you must focus on the priorities of the organisations you want to work with. As I've said, you should listen to them and understand what is concerning them most. GPs will want to see people taking more responsibility for their health so they avoid using expensive health services until they have to. Head teachers will want their pupils to do well, because they will be competing with the school next door. Employment agencies will want to see their clients apply for work and sustain their employment because that is when they will get paid.

Secondly, you will have to become more business savvy. This is because the organisations that commission from you will be focused on value for money more than ever. You can and must help them by being accountable for the money you spend and providing the evidence that you are making a difference. Do that well, and it will be easy to commission from you. Now, I know that it isn't easy for small organisations but collectively you are a big sector and there is plenty of scope to join forces, for organisations in the sector to work together, to bid together and to help each other out.
Thirdly, take advantage of the untapped workforce out there. I know there is a lot of debate on whether it is morally right or wrong to ask people to volunteer in order to retain their benefits but regardless of the debate, this is going to happen. So there are thousands of people in Manchester who will be looking for unpaid work and you have so much to offer.

I don't know if all this amounts to aBig Society or not. Many people don't really know what that means. But we do know that the voluntary and community sectors have an incredibly important role to play in delivering a better society. In addition to the service provision roles that I have listed already, you are pillars of our communities and I'm sure you will continue to fight for what you believe in.

I know so many voluntary organisations based in Manchester which have core values and which are led by people with values which align with the values of Manchester as a city. These organisations, these people are part of what makes Manchester the great place it is. We should not let these relationships be damaged by short-term spending issues.

I know that many of you raise funds for so many charitable organisations and good causes. The way that you do that contributes so much to our communities not only in the money that is raised but in the fantastic events that you organise to raise those funds. The City Council will continue to support you in every way we can by providing the settings you need – the parks, community centres and even closed streets in the city centre.

The volunteering you organise and the money you raise help places like Manchester to be at the forefront of scientific development. It is clear thatcancer research for example would not be possible without your hard work.

But the work that is done by very small organisations is equally important. You promote community cohesion, you help us all to really value the contribution older and younger people make to Manchester, make our neighbourhoods welcoming and safe places and stop people from becoming isolated and lonely. You run services like children's centres, hostels and caring services for the elderly. These are-the reasons you are an integral part of our partnerships, and quite frankly, why we can't do without you.

Through our work together society in Manchester is already Big. I think it can grow more and be better. It is big enough to take advantage of the changes ahead and big enough to adapt and come out the other end stronger.

Thank you.