Letter to the First Minister: Challenges facing the voluntary sector

Dear First Minister,  

On behalf of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), I want to offer my congratulations to you on your re-appointment as First Minister of Scotland. We look forward to working constructively with you and your government in the new Parliament.   

We welcome the commitments you made during the election campaign, including a formal partnership agreement with the voluntary sector, delivery of funding on a multi-year basis, rationalisation of reporting requirements for voluntary organisations, and the introduction of legislation to tackle the use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. We look forward to working with you to deliver this agenda, to the benefit of Scotland’s voluntary sector and the people and causes it supports.   

As you are aware, the voluntary sector is operating in an increasingly challenging environment. Throughout the last parliamentary term, the Scottish Third Sector Tracker consistently documented organisations struggling with significant financial pressures. These include short-term funding that falls short of the true cost of delivery, as well as rising and more complex demand. Voluntary organisations also reported unequal and transactional relationships with public bodies. In addition, voluntary organisations – collectively a significant employer in Scotland - face ongoing challenges in recruiting and retaining staff and volunteers. Taken together, these systemic pressures continue to undermine the sector’s long-term stability, workforce wellbeing, and capacity to plan and deliver effectively for communities.  

As you set your priorities for the Scottish Government, we urge early progress on the priorities set out in SCVO’s 2026 Scottish Parliament election manifesto, Scotland’s Essential Sector. These include:   

• Delivering fair funding – reforming public sector funding to be multi-year, flexible, sustainable, and accessible.  

• Creating a partnership of equals – establishing a formal, long-term partnership between government and the sector that is set in statute.  

• Commissioning with communities – embedding ethical commissioning and ending default to commercial procurement.  

• Modernising regulation – launching a comprehensive, independent review of charity regulation.  

• Securing the future of volunteering – reversing the long-term decline in participation through targeted action.  

• Protecting the sector’s voice – introducing anti-SLAPP legislation and safeguarding public interest advocacy.  

Progress on these issues is essential to ensure a sustainable voluntary sector that can support people and communities across Scotland and contribute to the ambitions of your government. SCVO looks forward to working with you and your ministers to ensure action is taken on these issues to support the voluntary sector, our staff and volunteers, and the communities we work with over the course of this parliamentary term.  

I look forward to your response.   

Yours sincerely,   
Anna Fowlie
Chief Executive  
Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations