Disability in the Workplace: Joanna’s Story

A recent study by healthcare provider Bupa found that two in five (43%) employees with a less visible disability haven’t disclosed it to their employer.

This got us thinking. Half the team at Bamboo have a disability. Have they felt comfortable enough to talk about their disabilities at work?

We asked them to find out.

Seeing as its Clubfoot Awareness Month, we’re kicking off with our Partnerships & Operations Director,  Joanna.

What disability do you have?

I was born with Congenital talipes equinovarus (CTE), also known as club foot. Essentially this means, when I was born, my feet and ankles were turned inwards. My left foot was affected more than my right, but I had treatment on both feet to realign them. This consisted of a combination of The Ponseti Method (a technique used to straighten the feet using manipulation and stretching) and operations. 

I also have Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), a condition in which extra bone grows along one or both of the bones that form the hip joint, giving the bones an irregular shape. Because they don’t fit together properly, the bones rub against each other when I move.

Over time, this friction has damaged my joints, causing hip stiffness and pain. It’s also limited my mobility.  

How does your disability affect you?

I was pretty active during my childhood and teenage years, but I had to put up with excruciating leg spasms. I was also very susceptible to falls - I managed to fracture my Thema bone when I tripped up a kerb.

With regards to the club foot, in 2012, I had to have a major operation on my ankle as it started to collapse to the side. I had metal bolts inserted to realign it. Unsurprisingly, this put me out of action for a while.

Prior to the operation, I was on crutches for months - whizzing about London attending client meetings. It wasn’t ideal, so I knew it needed to be done.

As a result of my condition, my feet are different sizes. I wear size 7/8 on my left and a 5 on my right. It was a nightmare finding shoes until I came across a Facebook group called Jo’s Odd Shoes. I now get fabulous, odd shoes for the cost of postage!

How do you manage your FIA?

I take Naproxen, (an anti-inflammatory), every day, for pain and swelling.

I also self-medicate with cold water swimming. I swim with a national group, The Bluetits. I can honestly say it’s the best medicine!

Have you disclosed your disabilities to employers?

I haven’t discussed my disabilities with previous employers. I was concerned they’d think I was incompetent. I have always overcompensated as a result.

Over the years, my job as a recruitment manager has required me to attend lots of external meetings. Although the travel caused me a lot of pain, I was determined to do it. So, I used to travel around London on crutches. As a result, I’ve got trapped nerves in one of my elbows, which is extremely painful. I’ve lost feeling in part of my hand.

Have you had to take time off work because of your condition? If so, have your colleagues and manager been understanding?

I was unable to walk for two months after an ankle operation. Initially, my employer was unsympathetic. Even though I was still working (and incidentally, was their highest biller) they said they weren’t going to pay me. However, after I told the CEO the operation was the result of a long-term disability, his attitude changed.  

Have you ever been discriminated against because of your disability?

I sometimes struggle on public transport. Because my disability isn't visible, people don't realise I need a seat.

Even if I have my crutches, people are often too busy on their phones to look up!

What can employers do to support people with the same condition as you at work?

It's about being accommodating. I need to be active, but not too active.

At Bamboo, I have ‘Friday wellness time’. I can use it to go for a swim, walk on my treadmill, or attend a physio session.

It’s also about asking employees what they need. For example, I have a walking pad that enables me to keep my hip joint moving. If I sit at my desk all day, my hip gets "locked" which leads to back pain.

What advice would you give someone with your condition when applying for jobs? Should they be open about the condition?

You've got to feel comfortable telling the company you’re joining. The onus is on them to make sure they’re open about being a disability-positive employer.

New Charity Interns project offers internships for over-50’s

The number of people who are economically inactive has risen steeply since the beginning of the pandemic – largely driven by droves of over 50s quitting the workforce.

A new report from the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy select committee blames the exodus on “ageist” organisations that have outdated policies and recruitment processes.

This rings true for Maya Bhose, Founder of Charity Interns – a project that will explore new routes into third sector employment for the over 50’s.

In an article in the ‘i paper’, Maya said, “at the age of 61, I am struggling to get a job. I have great skills, and I’ve held very senior roles in the commercial sector but still, somehow, I am struggling. In the past year, I have applied for over 40 jobs, and I have received just one interview. My CV hasn’t changed. My experience hasn’t changed. I am simply 61”.

Rather than accept the status quo, Maya turned her frustration into a solution. She continued, “the main motivation behind Charity Interns is to stop the waste of talent that is happening across all sectors and do something practical to make older people visible to employers, help them extend their careers, and allow charities to benefit from their skills, knowledge and unique perspectives.”

The project, which is being incubated by the NCVO, aims to help address the sector’s ongoing recruitment and skills shortage by tapping into the 50+ market - an often overlookedand under-utilised talent pool, while countering negative stereotypes around older workers.

The initial pilot programme will run for six months, from October 2023, and will see up to six candidates aged 50 and over, placed on a six-month paid internship with a charity.

The project will formally launch on 29 June 2023 with a live-streamed event. Internship applications for the pilot programme will also open on this date.

Opinion

Internships are generally seen as pathways for younger people to enter work or retrain. However, older workers also need supported routes into the sector. And there’s an abundance of over 50’s with relevant transferable skills and knowledge Looking for meaningful employment.

Charity Interns is a win-win.  It will enable over-50’s to gain valuable third-sector experience (without the worry of age being a barrier), and charities will fill vacancies and benefit from the sharing of ideas across co-generational teams.

Get involved!

The Alzheimer’s Society has been announced as the first of four internship partners. But Charity Interns is looking for three further organisations to take part.

To express your interest in hiring a skilled intern, or to find out more about the project,  visit the Charity Interns website or email maya@charityinterns.com.

Looking for a skilled fundraiser to complement your team? We can help. We’ve got talented candidates of every age looking for their next third-sector challenge. Contact us on 020 3750 3111 or info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get started.

How is the third sector tackling the volunteer shortage?

New research has revealed that volunteering has fallen to a historic low in England post-Covid.

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) surveyed 7,000 adults for its Time Well Spent report and found that those raising money or taking part in sponsored events was down from 11% to 6% since 2018. Meanwhile, the Charities Aid Foundation's UK Giving report found there were 1.6 million fewer people volunteering compared to five years ago.

The decline is also evident from the government’s latest annual Community Life survey.

The survey found that in 2021/22, around seven million people volunteered for a charity or local group at least once a month, down from 11 million in 2019/20.

The figures mark the lowest ever participation recorded by the survey, which has been running for a decade.

What’s caused the decrease?

The pandemic is a major factor. People who were lifelong volunteers broke their habit during the pandemic and haven’t gone back to it.

Since the end of lockdown, enthusiasm among volunteers – particularly professionals – has plummeted, while the cost-of-living crisis has made it harder for people on lower incomes to help.

Some of the drop off can also be attributed to spending cuts on voluntary infrastructure.

Impact

Charities are suffering as a result. For example, the Scouts has 90,000 young people on their waiting list, but they’re struggling to recruit volunteers to run the groups.

Meanwhile, the Charity Retail Association, (which represents charity shops), said its volunteer numbers have dropped from 230,000 to 186,000 since the pandemic.

Some charities are being forced to pause operations due to the double whammy of the recruitment crisis and volunteer shortage.

How is the volunteer shortage being addressed?

Over the past year-18 months, various initiatives have been developed by voluntary sector organisations and the government to address the problem:

Vision for Volunteering

Last December, the government committed to investing £600,000 into Vision for Volunteering - a ten-year strategic plan to create a better future for volunteering.

Led by a coalition of voluntary organisations including NAVCA, NCVO, Volunteering Matters, and the Association of Volunteer Managers, the Vision for Volunteering launched in May 2022.

More than 350 people from over 300 organisations - both big and small - contributed to its first phase in a year-long engagement exercise.

Five key areas were identified from the exercise, in which volunteering needs to evolve over the next decade:

• Awareness and appreciation

• Power

• Equity and inclusion

• Collaboration

• Experimentation

You can read more about the five themes here.

The next phase of the project will focus on turning the vision into reality.

Over the next 18 months, a newly established Vision for Volunteering team will engage with partners and stakeholders to raise awareness of the Vision, build a community to champion the Vision, share stories of positive change, collect evidence, and share learnings.

The ultimate aim of the Vision is to see volunteering ingrained in our national psyche, and to be accessible and welcoming to everyone everywhere, so the benefits of volunteering are equally distributed.

The Big Help Out

To inspire people to start volunteering, the Scouts, the Royal Voluntary Service and the Together Coalition, teamed up to organise the Big Help Out on Monday 8 May.

Promoted as a National Day of Volunteering, the aim of the initiative was to bring communities together and create a lasting volunteering legacy from the Coronation weekend.

Over 30,000 charities seized the opportunity to issue a call for support, and an estimated 6.5 million people answered.

Following the event, 7.81 million people said they’re more likely to volunteer after taking part.

While the public response is encouraging, as Matt Hyde, chief executive of the Scouts, pointed out: “we don’t want this to stop just because the coronation is over. It cannot be a one-off. We need to build on today’s momentum to keep inspiring the next generation of volunteers.”

The organisers are planning to make the Big Help Out an annual event, and they’ll be drawing on its success to promote volunteering during Volunteers’ Week, which is taking place from 1-7 June.

Final Word

The voluntary sector contributes around £20bn to the UK's economy each year. Given how important volunteering is to our social fabric, re-engaging lapsed volunteers and attracting new ones needs to be high on the third sector (and the Government’s) agenda.

Charities can play their part by reviewing and re-working their volunteer strategies to make their proposition more appealing and addressing the areas of focus outlined in the Vision for Volunteering strategy.

Looking for a talented fundraiser to focus on volunteer engagement? We can help. Call us on 020 3750 3111 or email info@bamboofundraising.co.uk for an informal chat.

The lowdown on CRM systems

Let's kick things off with a question. How do you manage your donor data? Excel spreadsheets? Word documents? Post-it notes strewn across your desk?

If you answered yes to any of the above, it’s time for an upgrade.

Enter the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.

What’s a CRM system?

 A CRM system is a software solution that enables charities to store and manage information relating to current and prospective donors, volunteers, suppliers, and other charity stakeholders in a single, centralised database. Think of it as a sophisticated, modern-day Rolodex.

What are the benefits of a charity CRM system?

There are loads of reasons to swap your Excel sheets for a CRM. Namely:

Speed: The beauty of a centralised database is donor information can be quickly accessed and updated by any member of staff. 

Say, for example, a donor calls and asks to be removed from your mailing list. Rather than scribbling a reminder on your hand to wade through your spreadsheets later, you can retrieve and amend their donor record during the call, at the click of a button.

Eliminates manual admin: Excel is labour intensive. It requires a lot of manual input and editing. CRM systems can automate much of the admin for you, from data entry and donation processing to donor communication (i.e., thank you letters) and your fundraising campaigns.

Makes GDPR compliance easier: CRM systems have built-in features to help you adhere to GDPR regulations. For example:

Consent: Fields can be set up to provide granular opt-in options based on communication type (newsletters, appeal letters) and communication channel (phone, email, SMS, post).

Security: Excel offers very little in terms of security. Access can be easily granted, and files can be saved to personal computers and shared outside of your organisation.

However, CRM systems come equipped with robust security features such as data encryption, multilevel security, and anti-hacking tools, to keep your data safe.

Reporting: Most CRM systems have inbuilt reporting features, which you can use to track everything from donor acquisition rates, to fundraising income (by campaign).

This can help you identify what’s working/not working and easily pull-out key data for trustees/grant makers/other stakeholders.

CRM picks:

Those are just a few of the benefits of investing in a CRM system.

Now let’s turn our attention to what’s on the market.

Here are our top picks for small, mid-level and large charities: 

Small charities

Donorfy is an entry level donation management tool, designed to help small charities automate their fundraising admin and understand donor behaviour.

Easy to learn and simple to use, it’s a great option for non-tech-savvy fundraisers.

The cloud-based system comes with a range of basic features for data import, fundraising, gift entries, prospect tracking, event management, and campaign management. 

On the downside, it lacks the more sophisticated features you’ll find in the likes of Salesforce.

With regards to pricing, there’s a free plan (Donorfy Essentials), for charities with fewer than 500 constituents. This has all the basic features you need to move away from spreadsheets. 

The paid version (Donorfy Professional) enables you to access all the features. It starts at £65 a month for 500 constituents.

You can see a comparison of the features here.

Medium-sized charities

Designed for growing organisations, Blackbaud’s eTapestry helps charities be smarter with their donor data management.

This user-friendly solution comes with a series of tools to help you optimise your donor data, manage your fundraising activities, and manage your communication strategy, so you can engage with supporters more effectively.

The CRM can consolidate payment processing, email automation, social media, and event management. There are also functions for membership management.

You’ll need to contact eTapestry for a customised quote. But, as a rough guide, prices start at $99 per month for up to 1,000 records and 25,000 emails a year.

Note: Some of eTapestry’s features cost extra, so check you’ll get everything you need before diving in.

Large Charities

Salesforce is a major player in the CRM space, with a 19.8% share of the corporate market.

In 2018, they launched a cloud-based version of the software, specifically for charities.

Ideal for charities with a big budget and complex requirements, Salesforce for Nonprofits comes with a wide range of features for retaining and engaging donors, monitoring resources and funding, and campaign tracking.

One of the most sophisticated systems on the market, it’s highly customisable and the technology integrates seamlessly with other Salesforce products and third-party applications.

The best bit? Registered charities can apply for ten free licenses through Salesforce’s Power of Us programme. For additional subscriptions, you’ll need to get a bespoke quote from a Salesforce Account Manager.

Note: Salesforce can be difficult to set up and use, especially for small charities with limited IT resources and expertise.

Final Word

Streamlining donor management is important if you’re looking to scale-up your fundraising efforts. The CRMs covered in this post are designed to help you do just that.

Looking to hire a CRM expert to level up your donor management? We can help. Call us on 020 3750 3111 to find out how.

New platform launched for grantseeker feedback

In 2022, the Charity Commission published a report titled Making it Count: Overcoming the barriers to better grant-making.

The report acknowledges the value of grant-giving foundations but says the way some funders disperse grants creates problems for charities and is holding the sector back from achieving its full potential.

The Commission suggests there are three key issues:

Short-termism: i.e. the length of time for which grants are offered, leads to uncertainty and inefficiency among grant-seekers, alongside a tendency to prioritise narrowly conceived projects in the present over investment in an organisation’s ability to develop and deliver its mission in the longer term.

Sub-optimal processes: these include expensive and cumbersome application and monitoring processes that directly reduce the value of funds, but also more strategic factors such as determining where and how to direct funds, meaning that funding does not always go to where it can have the most impact.

Reproduction of wider social inequalities: meaning that some groups disproportionately suffer the consequences of problems in the system, resulting in funding not always getting to those that most need it.

GrantAdvisor UK

In an attempt to improve the grant-making process, CAST, in partnership with the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits has rolled out GrantAdvisor UK - a platform that enables grant seekers to share their positive and negative experiences of working with funders.

How does it work?

Charities are invited to leave a review on the platform. It’s free to do and reviews can be left for any UK funder (even if it’s not yet listed), for any period over the past ten years. The review process takes around five minutes to complete, although reviewers can leave more comprehensive feedback if they wish. 

Funders are alerted when a new review is posted and are encouraged to respond. 

Oh, and in case you’re concerned about damaging relationships with your funders, reviews are published anonymously.

The aim of Grant Advisor UK

The free service aims to help funders review and improve their practices, and act as a resource for fundraisers to gain peer-to-peer insights to help with funding applications.

Emily Dyson, Deputy Director of The Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) commented:

“One of the biggest challenges funders face is hearing authentic feedback from applicants and grantees. The GrantAdvisor UK platform provides an exciting opportunity for funders to hear regular, honest feedback – where the possibility of receiving funding is not a factor. We look forward to seeing how this opens up conversations about grantseekers’ experiences and needs as they evolve over time, providing important information to grant makers about their practice. We will be sharing the platform with our Open and Trusting funder community and look forward to working with GrantAdvisor UK – and CAST – to make life easier for grantseekers.”

Call to action

CAST is calling on charities to provide feedback and funders to add their organisations to the site, to help refine their systems in line with applicants’ needs.

Final Word

Looking for an experienced Trust Fundraiser to boost your grant income? We’re well connected. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 to start the search.