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A government demand that lottery distributors cut their overheads could “fundamentally change” the Big Lottery Fund, and might mean smaller causes lose out, sources have warned.
John Downie, director of public affairs at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, was responding after the coalition government at Westminster revealed its policy programme last week. The document calls for distributors of national lottery funds to restrict their administration costs to 5% of their total income to prevent “wasteful” spending. At present at least 8% of the money distributed by the Big Lottery Fund in Scotland is lost to administration costs.
However this includes spending on increased support for charities to ensure applications are more likely to be successful and projects are better able to deliver their goals.
Downie said SCVO believed 100% of lottery money should go to charities and the voluntary sector. However the coalition government’s plans will result in less, not more, reaching the sector. The government plans to cut the amount of National Lottery income awarded to the BLF from 50% to 40%.
“We would like to see running costs as low as possible but this will fundamentally change the Big Lottery Fund,” he added. “Does this mean that because of the cost issue, they will have to go for a smaller number of big grants? If we want lottery money to reach into every corner of Scotland, we have to recognise there will be a cost to that.”
Ben Wittenberg, director of policy and research at the Directory of Social Change, described the government’s target for administration as “ridiculous” because of BLF’s commitment to supporting smaller causes.
“Other distributors give big, single grants. BLF gives thousands of tiny grants – and that’s the role it should be playing. Providing lots of small funds requires more administration. Sticking to 5% is just ridiculous.”
The Big Lottery Fund in Scotland is particularly wedded to the idea of smaller grants and runs a number of programmes unique to Scotland, including Awards for All, Investing in Ideas and 2014 Communities. A BLF spokeswoman said: “Significant parts of our operating costs are not just administration. Consulting stakeholders, supporting grant applicants and holders in their work and conducting evaluation and research are vital.
“We don’t want unnecessary bureaucracy, but we need to ensure that we fund accessibly and fairly, provide a good customer service and ensure that the outcomes we seek are delivered.”
The coalition document includes a pledge to examine the case for an idea proposed by the Liberal Democrats – funding the lottery with the gross tax profits of the lottery operator Camelot, rather than a percentage of ticket sales as at present.
Source: The Herald