Angela Smith, the Minister for the Third Sector, joined representatives from more than a dozen leading sector bodies at the latest voluntary sector recession summit in London yesterday.

The summit was organised by the NCVO, and among those attending the invitation-only event were delegates from chief executives body Acevo, the Institute of Fundraising, the SCVO, the Charity Commission, local infrastructure group Navca  and trade union Unite.

Stephen Bubb, chief executive of Acevo, talked about the opportunities created by wider public service delivery, saying that charities needed to gear up to take advantage of them rather than "whinge" and miss out.

Belinda Pratten, head of policy at the NCVO, said a number of obstacles, ranging from the rules on VAT and Gift Aid to rising utility bills and the new charge for playing music in charity shops, were holding charities back.

But the two-hour summit, which was the third to be held over the past year, did not result in any new initiatives.

Article published in Third Sector Online (21 January 2010): Click Here