Slide 1
Building relationships between philanthropy and
Government – the Victorian Office for the Community
Sector
Philanthropy Australia Melbourne Seminar:
‘Contemporary and Emerging Issues in Philanthropy’
Lynne Wannan AM
Director, Office for the Community Sector
22 September 2011
Slide 2
Victoria’s Office for the Community Sector: Supporting the not-for-profit
sector
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More than 120,000 NFP sector organisations operate in Victoria, including
sports, arts, welfare groups, community service providers and more
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Over 37,000 are incorporated associations
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The NFP industry value was one and a half times that of the agricultural
sector (2006-2007)
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80% of Australia’s philanthropic trusts are in Victoria
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More than 40% of Victorians volunteer in NFP organisations
Slide 3
What is the Office for the Community Sector (OCS)?
Established to support the long term sustainability of the NFP sector the OCS
has two key goals:
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Reduce the burden of red tape
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Build sector capability
Slide 4
Reducing the burden of red tape
A number of initiatives aim to cut red tape including:
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Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) – mandatory for Victorian
government departments
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Common Funding Agreement (CFA) – for use by all Victorian government
departments by end Dec 2012
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NFP Compliance Portal - easy access to all Commonwealth, State and
local government compliance information via the on line portal
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Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (AIA) reforms underway and
promoted
Slide 5
Building sector capability – making the most of all available resources
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Increasing the use of web based tools
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Building workforce capability – getting the right skill mix
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Enhancing governance
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Supporting volunteering
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Supporting engagement between NFPs and Local Government
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Supporting relationships between NFPs and the corporate sector
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Supporting access to social finance such as capital loans
Slide 6
The OCS Engaging with the NFP sector
Reference Groups
Surveys
Development of
tools and resources
OCS
Working Groups
Summit
Grants
Pilots/Trials
Communications
Tools
Building on what’s
been done and showcasing
the good practice of the
sector
Slide 7
Working across government – reforming
the way government relates to the NFP sector
Establishing the structures
IDCs
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IDCs &
sector working
groups
Information
sessions
Minister to Minister
Secretary to Secretary
Participation with other Whole of Government projects
Build on activity already underway in government departments
Broker relationships with the sector
Communication: E-Bulletin, OCS website, events
Slide 8
Philanthropy – Victoria a long and proud history
The Victorian Government recognises the importance of philanthropy and the
extent of its support to the NFP sector in Victoria including:
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Giving an estimated $11Billion annually in Australia (2007-08)
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Providing mentoring, leadership and skills development
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Facilitating project development and implementation
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Supporting innovation, experimentation, research as well as ongoing
charitable and community activity
Slide 9
Government and the NFP sector – this sector is critically important to
Victorians
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Delivers $2.2 billion dollars of government funded services delivered in
Victoria
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Australia wide 62% of Australia’s community sector is government funded
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$759 million in tax concessions provided to the Victorian NFP sector in
2009/10
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And much more such as for sport:
• 94 major organisations funded to increase volunteer and
community involvement
• $835,000 to build governance and business skills in sports
associations
Slide 10
Changing environment in Victoria
The expected growth in Victoria’s population over the coming years combined
with the ageing of the population and increasing incidence of issues such as
those related to mental health will place pressure on Victoria’s NFP
organisations.
There is a need to support this sector as a whole so that Victoria continues to
have strong and responsive community organisations
Slide 11
Philanthropy and Government in Victoria
Philanthropy and government each with its own priorities and ways of working
but often intersecting and potentially able to leverage each other.
Both support organisations delivering services and supports to the Victorian
people and communities – sometimes the same, sometimes knowingly together,
sometimes not
The OCS has been facilitating the consideration of a collaborative approach to
responding to shared interests; an approach that worked well during the 2009
bushfires
Through a Philanthropy and Government Working Group thinking is underway –
how to build better understanding of how each works, opportunities and ways to
work together on shared issues and interests….
Slide 12
Collaborating to strengthen contributions
Engaging with the diversity of philanthropy – a diversity of histories, interests,
ways of working, governance structures and relationships
Sharing information and ideas on government work – what are the priorities, how
are they developed and what is it that government can and cannot do
The working group is developing guiding principles for collaborative relationships
for those that wish to go down this pathway
Slide 13
Guiding Principles for Building Collaborative Relationships between
Philanthropy and Government
Really a common sense way to engage with others:
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Understand each other – roles, policies, priorities and limitations
Engage early to get buy in for the project
Clarify expectations of what each will contribute
Allow time for relationship/trust building
Agree to project processes
Ensure the right people are at the table
Develop an evaluation framework
Agree to an exit strategy
Communicate – frankly, openly throughout
Develop an MOU that encompasses the above
Slide 14
Where to next
The OCS and those involved in the government and philanthropy working party
are keen to hear what others think can be done to progress a meaningful
relationship.
The group will continue to:
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Develop the guiding principles for government or philanthropy to use when
working together collaboratively
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Promote good ideas and approaches
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Look for other opportunities to work well together
Slide 15
Some examples of collaborations that have worked and will be referenced
in the guide:
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Strengthening Social Cohesion in Hume City - Supporting Parents
Developing Children Project
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Loddon Mallee government and philanthropic partnership – Robinvale,
Building the capacity of indigenous organisations
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Children’s Protection Society - Child and Family Centre
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White Lion - Youth mentoring
Slide 16
More opportunities to build collaboration between government and
philanthropy
The OCS will continue to provide:
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Ministerial briefings and the annual Treasurer’s briefing
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Briefings from philanthropy
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And we are keen to hear about ideas that can help us all support Victoria’s
valuable not-for-profit sector