Office for Civil Society maintains annual budget

The Office for Civil Society escaped cuts in the new Spending Round, with the government pledging to maintain its annual budget at £56million.

The Spending Round report, published after Chancellor George Osborne finished his speech in the House of Commons on Wednesday 26 June, stated that the Cabinet Office settlement includes continued funding of £56million to support government programmes, which encourage social action and help voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations play a bigger role in communities and public services.

It also committed further expenditure to grow the National Citizen Service volunteering programme. On top of the 90,000 places already funded in 2014, the government will provide enough money for 120,000 places in 2015 and 150,000 places in 2016.

The report stated that by maintaining expenditure on wider civil society programmes, the government will continue to support the development of the social investment and social action agendas, strengthening those charities and social enterprises that assist the most vulnerable in society.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport budget will be reduced by 7 percent but its settlement includes new operational freedoms for national museums and funding cuts limited to 5 percent for museums, the arts and community sport. This means that Arts Council England, which has already sustained cuts of more than 30 percent, will see another 5 percent shaved off its funding settlement.