BCT presents ‘Beyond Essentials’ at annual WISERD conference

Earlier in summer we were pleased to attend and contribute to WISERD’s annual conference, which took place in a very sunny Aberystwyth. The focus of the conference was ‘Participation and partnership in a time of precarity and polarisation’   a theme which we had plenty to contribute to.

The conference, an annual gathering of the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research and Data, brings together academics and researchers from Wales and further afield.  WISERD is a national, interdisciplinary, social science research institute and collaborative venture between the universities of Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, South Wales and Swansea.  

The keynote speaker was Professor Irene Hardill from Northumbria University.

Professor Hardill’s keynote address explored how the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the crucial role of civil society and charities in addressing inequality and unmet needs through a comparative lens. It also explored research examining voluntary and community action across the UK and the historical evolution of civil society in England.

Her address also highlighted the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration to understand and support community action during times of crisis.

BCT’s Policy and Research Advisor, Eleri, presented the findings from Beyond Essentials, our pivotal research examining community responses to the cost-of-living crisis. As one of only four non-academic contributions to the conference agenda, we were particularly pleased to be able to provide robust research findings grounded in reality to a Wales-wide audience of academics and researchers.

Our contribution provided an overview of the research methodology and questions, as well as the key findings. To the best of our knowledge, this remains the only research examining the ways in which community organisations have and continue to respond to the cost-of-living crisis, exploring the challenges they face as organisations and the types of support they feel they need to continue their vital work across communities in Wales.

We found that:

·        84% of respondents told us that the Cost-of-Living Crisis had affected the work of their organisation markedly.

·        Over 50% of respondents reported that demand on their services had increased, whilst their income decreased.

·        51% of respondents consider their organisation to be providing support which was previously the responsibility of the state. 54% said this had increased since the start of the Cost-of-Living Crisis.

·        Close to 80% of respondents told us that the Cost-of-Living Crisis has had a marked effect on staff and volunteers, with significant concerns over mental health and work pressures.

·        54% of community organisations told us they had set up new services, including ten organisations which were established in response to the crisis.

·        46% of respondents reported that new opportunities had arisen for their organisation during the Cost-of-Living Crisis, including new funding sources and new partnerships.

The research also makes it clear that community groups and organisations are responding to the Cost-of-Living Crisis in ways that go beyond meeting essential needs.

For many organisations the Cost-of-Living Crisis has changed the focus of their work; to meet the needs of a new crisis immediately following the pandemic. In some cases, they feel this has led to a concerning drift away from their core values and objectives.

The actions of community groups and organisations contribute significantly to peoples’ overall sense of wellbeing as well as supporting governmental policy ambitions, perhaps more implicitly than by deliberate design.

However, community groups and organisations are fragile and urgent support to enable them to continue their vital work is required.

Whilst the research was published in May 2024, it is abundantly clear from our programme work that the cost-of-living crisis and its impacts on people and organisations is far from over, instead it is the new reality for many people and community groups across Wales.

You can download the presentation slides here.