Latest Sector's role in the economy briefings & policy papers

Our position Voluntary organisations are at the heart of Scotland’s response to the biggest challenges we face — tackling poverty, improving health and wellbeing, supporting children and families, strengthening local economies, advancing climate action, building skills for the... Read more

Our position Voluntary organisations are at the heart of Scotland’s response to the biggest challenges we face — tackling poverty, improving health and wellbeing, supporting children and families, strengthening local economies, advancing climate action, building skills for the... Read more

SCVO The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) is the national membership organisation for the voluntary sector in Scotland. Our mission is to champion the role of voluntary organisations in building a flourishing society and support them to do work that has a... Read more

A Vision for Rural Scotland The purpose of this vision is to clarify the long-term goal and the overarching purpose of the Rural Delivery Plan. Scottish Government want this to provide direction towards a shared future for rural Scotland. Draft vision for rural Scotland: "Our... Read more

SCVO will be engaging with political parties ahead of the next Scottish Parliament election, scheduled to take place in May 2026. This is our response to the Scottish Labour Party's Scottish Policy Forum's initial consultation - part of its policy development process, ahead of... Read more

Summary Across the UK, the voluntary sector is a significant employer, employing over 1 million people, including 136,000 people in Scotland - 5% of Scotland’s workforce. This workforce makes a huge contribution to people and communities across Scotland, providing a diverse range... Read more

In September we welcomed the publication of the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture (CEEAC) Committee’s report on Barriers to trade in goods and opportunities to improve the UK/EU trading relationship. The Scottish Advisory Forum on Europe (SAFE) was pleased to... Read more

Following the Spring Statement in which the Chancellor announced over £100 million to support charities and community organisations in England, SCVO has written to Deputy First Minister, John Swinney MSP, for clarity on how the full Barnett consequentials will be used to support... Read more

Summary and Calls to Action The Covid-19 pandemic and cost-of-living crisis are the latest chapters in a longer story of instability and unpredictability in voluntary sector funding. The cost-of-living crisis has, for many organisations, increased demand for the essential... Read more

Summary Over the past 18 months SCVO has worked with its members, as well as partners across local and national governments, to gather information and data on collaboration and partnership working across sectors. Evidence from these reports can be found throughout our submission... Read more