Knowing Our Communities - State of the Sector 2025

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CVS Cheshire East, on behalf of the Growing Our Communities Commission*, would like to invite voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) organisations that are based in or working in Cheshire East to contribute to our research into the sector’s current capacity and resilience. We exist to support and advocate for local VCFSE groups, and will use this information to develop our services; raise awareness of challenges with local decision-making bodies and funders; and to create a set of recommendations that could inform future support to the sector.

This survey may be completed anonymously if you like, as we strongly encourage organisations to be honest about any challenges you are facing. However, if you choose to share limited information about your organisation this will help us to get the most from the data. If you would like further support from CVSCE you will have the option to leave your contact details, but this is optional. No individual organisation will be named or identified in any report arising from this research. The survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

1. I confirm that I am an authorised representative (trustee, director, CEO or senior manager) of a VCFSE organisation based in or working in Cheshire East Borough.

Yes

· * Growing Our Communities is a collaborative endeavour between four partners, aiming to grow the Cheshire East Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) Sector and Town and Parish Council (LC) offer to meet the needs of vulnerable residents, creating Healthy Households, Healthy Neighbourhoods and enhancing Health & Care Services.

Funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund through Cheshire East Council, the commission began in April 2024 and will continue until 31^st March 2026. Key aims for the commission include:

o Growing the Market – supporting the VCFSE and local council (LC) sectors to secure funding, work collaboratively, and demonstrate impact for the benefit of local communities.

o Growing Communication Channels – facilitating alliances between and across the VCFSE and local council sectors to share resources, minimize duplication and capitalise on opportunities provided by collaboration

o Growing Influence on Public Sector Decisions – championing the voice of the VCFSE and LC sector in key decision-making bodies across Cheshire East Place, ensuring the sector is influencing key strategic decisions and commissioning intentions.

Connections

We want to know how you find working with other agencies.

2. How well connected does your organisation feel to the following?
(Scale from 1 to 5, where 1 is not at all connected and 5 is extremely well connected)

	1	2	3	4	5
Other VCFSE organisations local to my town or village
Other VCFSE organisations across Cheshire East
Local infrastructure organisation (CVS Cheshire East)
Local authority (Cheshire East Council)
Local councils (Town and Parish)
NHS Place-based Partnership Board
Local NHS Trusts
Primary Care Networks (PCNs) or Care Communities
Local decision-making bodies, generally
Funders

3. Please feel free to comment on the reasons for your answers.

Finances

We want to know about your financial pressures and the ways you are managing those pressures.

4. What was your organisation's income for the last financial year (2024/25)?

6. How has your organisation's income changed over the last financial year (2024/25)?

7. What, if anything, has negatively impacted your income over the last financial year? Please select all that apply.

Other

8. How has your organisation's expenditure changed in the last financial year (2024/25)?

9. How have your organisation's reserves levels changed over the last financial year (2024/25)?

10. How do you think your income will change over the next financial year (2025-26) and beyond?

11. How challenging do you think each of the following will be to your financial position in 2025-26? (1 to 5 scale, where 1 is not at all challenging and 5 extremely challenging).

	1	2	3	4	5	N/A
Local authority cuts
Access to trust and foundation funding
Decommissioning services
Reduction in donations
Volunteer recruitment and retention
Not enough capacity
Employer National Insurance contributions
Increased National Minimum Wage
Increased costs of delivery
Increased demand for services

12. Looking forward, how confident are you in your organisation’s financial sustainability?

(1 to 5 scale where 1 is not at all confident, and 5 is completely confident).

13. Please feel free to comment on the reasons for your answers, and any other comments you have relating to finances.

Capacity

We want to know about the demand for your services.

14. How has demand for your services changed over the last financial year (2024/25)?

15. Where does your organisation receive the highest number of referrals to your services from? Please select at least one, and up to three.

16. How have referrals from the following organisations changed over the last financial year (2024/25)?

	Significantly decreased	Decreased	Stayed the same	Increased	Significantly increased	Not applicable
Direct/self-referral
NHS
Local authority
Police
Local infrastructure organisation
Other VCFSE organisations
Other referrals

17. How confident are you that you have the relevant skills and experience within your Board, staff and volunteer team to deliver your charitable aims?

18. If you feel that you have skills gaps in your team, what are the areas you would find most valuable to add to your organisation?

19. How well do you feel your organisation’s skills and expertise are valued and respected by the following? (1 to 5 where 1 is not at all valued and respected, 5 highly valued and respected)

	1	2	3	4	5	N/A
Service users/ members/beneficiaries
Other VCFSE organisations local to my town or village
Other VCFSE organisations across Cheshire East
Local infrastructure organisation
Local authority (Cheshire East Council)
NHS Place-based Partnership Board
Local NHS trusts
Primary Care Networks (PCNs) or Care Communities
Local decision-making bodies, generally
Funders

Final thoughts

20. What one change across the system in Cheshire East (VCFSE, local authority, NHS, funders) would make the most positive difference to your organisation?

21. Please feel free to add any further comments.

	1	2	3	4	5
The next 6 months
The next 12 months
The next 3 years
The next 5 years