Who cares about the voluntary sector? Lessons for the new Labour government

This paper examines the direction of public policy in the UK towards the voluntary sector since 1997. It does this by asking what lessons the new Labour government of Keir Starmer can learn from the period of New Labour government (1997-2010) and the Conservative Party led majority or coalition governments (2010-2024). We look at each period through four lenses: what was the dominant political rhetoric towards the voluntary sector, what key policies the government enacted, which major government funding decisions impacted on the voluntary sector, and how different governments engaged the sector in periods of crisis (such as the financial crisis or the COVID-19 pandemic). The incoming Labour government of 2024 has been almost silent on how it sees its relationship with the voluntary sector, except for announcements about partnership working and the common refrain of engaging communities. This is in sharp contrast to 1997 and 2010: the incoming parties on both occasions had relatively wellformed programmes for government. In part this may reflect the decline in programmatic government and a period of incredible turbulence in British politics. However, the paper concludes that this is a significant risk. Whilst there are lessons from previous governments, the new Labour government of 2024 faces far greater challenges and risks of multiple crises than its predecessors. Identifying a genuine partnership and vision with the diversity of the voluntary sector is one of many pressing issues it faces.