A group of 50 charities and civil society organisations are urging Prime Minister Andy Burnham to ensure the sector is “at the heart of his plans to rewire the British state”.

Burnham’s ‘rewiring the state’ policy was released during the summer and aims to shift power and funding away from Whitehall and Westminster and towards local areas and regional mayors.

But in an open letter to the PM, the group of charities is urging Burnham not to overlook civil society in developing the policy, as it is “one of our country’s greatest untapped assets”.

“We would welcome the opportunity to continue that conversation with you, your ministers or your officials in the months ahead, and to explore how the expertise represented by the signatories to this letter might best contribute to your Government’s ambitions,” they have told the PM.

The letter has been coordinated by Fair Vote UK and has been signed by the leaders of charities including Amnesty International UK, Asylum Matters, Fairness Foundation, Refugee Action and the Jo Cox Foundation.

Critical friend

It adds: "A government committed to genuine, systemic change should see civil society not as an external pressure or noisy irritant, but as a critical friend and enabler in delivery.

"The relationship should not be transactional or occasional. It should be ongoing, collaborative and rooted in mutual respect.

"Government brings democratic legitimacy and the authority to act. Civil society brings expertise, lived experience, trusted relationships and long institutional memory.

"Together, those strengths are far greater than either can achieve alone."

Opportunity for stronger links

They warn that currently “too often” engagement with government, such as when charities support ministers and civil servants with research, remains "episodic rather than strategic”.

Instead, the charities believe “there is an opportunity to build something much stronger”

They also say that attendance by ministers at their stakeholder events “is fleeting” and while “good for their PR and social media feeds, or to bank for inclusion in their quarterly meeting returns” these are “far from equating to meaningful, respectful engagement with the sectors they are supposed to represent”.

Fair Vote UK says that the letter has been sent as the government looks to reset its relationship with charities through its Civil Society Covenant.

“Andy Burnham says he wants to do politics differently. Fifty organisations from across civil society are saying we're ready to help,” said Fair Vote UK founder and executive director Kyle Taylor.

“Britain has an extraordinary wealth of expertise outside Whitehall, but too often organisations are consulted after decisions have already been made.

“If this government wants lasting change, it should treat civil society as a genuine partner, not an afterthought.”

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