Groups buoyed by health trust funds

The voluntary sector is turning to the health service for money,
according to a survey.

In 2003, primary care trusts provided core funding for about
one-third of the National Association of Councils for Voluntary
Service’s members in England.

Association chief executive Kevin Curley told the national
conference in Blackpool this week that 107 of the 350 members
received grants from a PCT. “The average grant was about
£15,000, which is 50 per cent higher than in 2002,” he said.
“Although local authorities remain our primary source of core
funding, PCTs are increasingly contributing a significant amount.”

Core funding helps the voluntary councils improve local
infrastructure.

The survey, due out later this year, found that the core funding
provided by local authorities varied. While the average grant was
£49,000, it rose to £78,000 in London, but was as low as
£23,000 in some rural areas.

“More than half NACVS members received less than half the
recommended level of core funding from their local authorities,”
Curley said.