The purpose of charities

I have felt like an outlier in the past for daring to dream that the purpose of the charity sector could and should be working towards social justice. Outlier or not, this is why I founded ChangeOut originally, so I could work with people who agree that a focus on changing society to be more equitable is a good thing.

More and more people seem to agree. This essay from Polly Neate, CEO of Shelter, is worth a read.

During my work with organisations, I often ask people about their level of ambition for change. It can be illuminating when people struggle to answer the question, and when levels of ambition differ within the same team. I always encourage people to dream big.

The first results for England and Wales from the 2021 census were published this week and the population has continued to grow and continued to age, with an increase of 20% in the number of people over 65 in England. With age-based prejudice widespread and influencing who has access to what healthcare, it's important that ageism is seen for what it is and tackled. I was interested to read this report drawing on evidence from around the world on ageism which was published by the UN last year.

Interesting and useful links 🖇️

The Parliamentary Committee on International development published its report into racism in the sector

A free webinar on nurturing young board members. Info here

Day of the Week 📆

2022 marks 50 years since the UK's first gay pride rally

What am I reading? 📚

I enjoyed reading Love Marriage by Monica Ali. A perfect sick bed (or holiday) read. Don't worry, I'm better now and back to non-fiction!

What am I watching? 👀

My Name is Leon is the TV adaptation of Kit de Waal's book of the same name and features a young black boy who is separated from his baby brother when both children are put into care, following their mother's illness. It is available on Iplayer. I'd have liked to see it delve more deeply into the many issues raised than is possible in 90 minutes but I enjoyed it.

What am I listening to? 👂

The Reasons to be Cheerful podcast covered philanthropy recently. It was really interesting to hear from Derek Bardowell and Stephanie Brobbey who are championing philanthropy for social justice.

Joy-giving things 😍

Superbloom at the Tower of London is a lovely idea.

Have a great weekend

Lucy x

If it’s your first time reading this newsletter, maybe you'd like to subscribe to make sure you don't miss an edition.

If you enjoy this newsletter and get something from reading it, could you do me a favour and tell your friends 📣

If you like ChangeOut, you can buy me a coffee! ☕️

All past issues of the newsletter are here and available to all subscribers. I write this newsletter for free because I believe in sharing progressive ideas that help us work towards a truly equal world. If you believe in this too and want to help support me, why not sponsor my work with a paid subscription?