The mental health of small charity leaders has reached a ‘crisis point’, with experiences of ‘hospitalisation’, ‘panic attacks’ and ‘helplessness’, new research has found.

Breaking Point: The Mental Health Crisis in Small Leadership, a new report launched by social enterprise Fair Collective, in partnership with NCVO, has found that 85% of small charity leaders feel their role has negatively impacted their mental health with 20% describing it as ‘severe’.

The report was funded by the Talent Fund and surveyed over 350 leaders in non-profits with an income of under £1m.

Of those whose mental health was affected, over 90% said it had impacted their work and over a quarter said they felt unsupported.

Those working in health, education, or with children and young people experienced the worst impact on their mental health, the report said.

“I have experienced a burn-out that led me to be hospitalised in the local psychiatric hospital,” one respondent said.

“I was feeling overwhelmed and depressed by the level of need and my inability to make 'enough of a difference’... I even contemplated suicide as the sector has been my entire life for the last 10 years and I didn't know how I would live without it but couldn't also comprehend continuing. It took me several months to recover to a point of stability.”

The research concluded a mix of issues were affecting charity leaders, ranging from internal and organisational challenges to systemic and sector-wide problems.

Juggling multiple roles and responsibilities with limited training was a particular factor for many small charity leaders, against a backdrop of increased demand and a competitive funding landscape.

“Basically being a one stop shop for all professional services that other larger organisations buy in i.e. HR, fundraising, legal, bookkeeping, writing all policies and standard operating procedures, branding, webmaster, IT support, marketing, stewardship, being the project manager of numerous projects and the list goes on,” another respondent said.

The report comes at a time when multiple funders have been forced to close to new applications, due to an unmanageable increase.

This has left many in the sector being forced to compete in an already competitive funding pool, amid a surge in demand for services.

Fair Collective research lead and founder, Vic Hancock Fell said: “We were blown away, but not necessarily surprised, by the honest and raw experiences of the leaders we spoke to for the report.

“Nearly 100% of charity closures in the last 10 years were small organisations, which shows the heavy burden on leaders’ shoulders,” she added.

However, Hancock Fell stressed the importance of the research not contributing to a “them vs us culture” between organisational leaders and funders.

“There are many funders and sector organisations who are meaningfully engaging with, and advocating for, small charities, but this research shows there’s more to be done,” she said.

“Small charities are essential to their communities and to ensure their survival, we need a shared understanding of the unique pressures they, and their leaders face. This must then be combined with a collective commitment to creating fairer processes responsive to their needs and strengths.”

The research highlighted a number of recommendations for leaders, boards of small organisations and funders.

Among these is the request for funders to trust and empower small charities and to increase the availability of unrestricted and multiyear funding.

The research partners call on all those working in small charities to read, share and talk openly about the research so leaders are better equipped and supported to be able to deliver services for their communities.

If you’re struggling with your mental health, you can access 24/7 support from Samaritans by calling free on 116123, or visiting Samaritans.org

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