Policy blog

A week may be a long time in politics, as the saying goes, but a week during a global pandemic is even longer. Like many, I’ve found the pace of change, and the pace of work that accompanied it, difficult to keep up with. As a sector we have done a phenomenal job to respond at... Read more

The voluntary sector's contribution during the coronavirus pandemic in Scotland has been extraordinary, as to has the shock, uncertainty and pain felt by so many. Thousands of our colleagues continue to play a vital role in the national response to the virus, and they have all... Read more

What is ‘sustainable development’? Not as simple a question as it may seem – the emphasis on what needs to develop and what needs to be sustainable often shifts depending on who or where you ask... Rarely do you get an answer which doesn’t give precedence to one economic, social... Read more

Scotland’s third sector can play a huge role in working towards trans equality, and now is the time to act. We’ve come a long way towards LGBT equality in the last few decades. But now more than ever, we need to unite for trans rights. Trans people are facing huge levels of abuse... Read more

The Manifesto for the Future, produced by the SCVO Policy Forum, outlines a number of future-focused recommendations which aim to address some of the most profound social, economic, political and environmental changes in living memory. Scotland’s voluntary sector is already... Read more

Last August, SCVO's Chief Executive Anna Fowlie called on the voluntary sector to embrace Scotland's National Performance Framework (NPF). Referring to it as a 'beacon of hope', she explained that the framework must be more than an aspirational rallying call. We must measure our... Read more

Many organisations across the charity and wider voluntary sector are gearing up for Scotland’s largest voluntary sector event - The Gathering -organised by SCVO. This year Scottish Government, OSCR and SCVO are holding a joint event to consider how each can strengthen charities... Read more

You're never standing still in a policy role at SCVO. One minute, you're getting to grips with charity law or the voluntary sector's contribution to Scotland's National Outcomes. Then you're asked to get your head around state investment banks. SCVO and Social Enterprise Scotland... Read more

Well, well, well! While there was a feeling in the air that Boris Johnson would be returned as Prime Minister, few expected the result would be quite so stonking. Despite appearing to be personally unpopular in opinion polls, Mr Johnson delivered the most successful Conservative... Read more

Yesterday, SCVO joined over 100 other bodies on Human Rights Day calling for political leaders to ensure hard won rights are protected. People of good conscience from across the political spectrum would find it difficult to challenge the view that we should all live with equal... Read more