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| | Day Conference Abstracts, Report and Papers
National Contexts and the Development of Voluntary Action: the Republic of
Ireland and the UK after a decade of devolution
Report from Nick
Acheson, event organiser
The Spring 2009 Day
Conference took place at the University of Ulster in Belfast. More than 40
delegates participated in a packed day of papers and discussion. The day was
opened by a welcoming address from Maeve Walls, Director of the Voluntary and
Community Unit in the Department for Social Development who gave an interesting
account of the challenges facing both government and the voluntary sector in the
development of government policy towards the voluntary sector in Northern
Ireland and said she wished to develop a more strategic and research driven role
for her unit.
Her presentation was followed by two papers in the morning session focused on
developments on the island of Ireland. Nick Acheson, from the host institution
argued that devolution in the UK offered an opportunity to extend comparative
research on the voluntary sector by using institutional and neo-institutional
theories to predict and understand divergences in voluntary sector policy and
practice within the different parts of the UK. He argued that the case of
Northern Ireland showed how local factors both in the policy environment and in
the social base for voluntary action shaped the way in which relations between
the state and the sector developed.
Joe Larragy, from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth gave a paper
(written with Freda Donoghue from Trinity College Dublin who was unable to be
present) exploring the development of state sector relations in the Republic of
Ireland during the ‘Celtic tiger’ years. Rapid secularization and rampant
consumerism, coupled with the collapse of trust in the institutions of the Roman
Catholic church had created a completely new environment, to which the
government had failed to provide a coherent policy response in terms of
developing policies towards the sector as a whole. The involvement of the
voluntary sector in the ‘community pillar’ of national partnership structures
was a significant policy innovation that had formalized the role of the sector
in policy-making while exposing important rifts within the sector itself.
Following these two papers there was a short business meeting in which the main
item discussed was the imminent launch of the new journal. A contract had been
signed with a publisher and the editorial board was being formed. A call for
papers would be issued later in the year.
After lunch, Paul Chaney from the University of Wales, reported on his research
on the political participation of equalities organizations in Wales. Drawing on
institutional theory, he argued that there were significant discontinuities with
the situation before devolution and that the legal framework provided by both
equalities law and by the two Government of Wales Acts, had provided equalities
organizations an increased role in policy-making and had strengthened their
capacity. But he noted that there were dangers of co-option and there were
worries over the extent of authenticity of the voice being exercised in these
new structures.
Pete Alcock from the Third Sector Research Centre discussed the development of
policy towards the voluntary sector in England. His paper drew together many of
the days’ themes particularly the tension between ‘horizontal’ policies like the
compact and the policy environment in particular ‘vertical’ fields, the dangers
of isomorphism and takeover, and the tension between service delivery and civic
engagement mirrored by the strong centralizing tendency in government evidenced
by the Treasury’s interest in the sector, and the rhetorical commitment to
localism and empowerment.
The last paper of the day was given by Ruchir Shah, from the Scottish Council of
Voluntary Organisations, who argued that the policy environment in Scotland
differed significantly from that in England. Whilst to an extent Scotland had
been playing ‘catch-up with England, nevertheless a greater commitment to public
services and the political need to develop distinctly Scottish policies had
resulted in a separate reflective ‘space’ in Scottish policy-making which had
led to a number of specific and distinctively Scottish policy initiatives that
did not fully mirror developments elsewhere in the UK.
The day was wound up by Arthur Williamson, Professor Emeritus of Voluntary
Action Studies at the University of Ulster. He recalled that it was almost
exactly 20 years exactly since the inaugural voluntary sector studies conference
at the University of Ulster.
Thanks are due to Roberta Madill and her team in the School of Hospitality at
the University of Ulster who provided the catering for the day.
Abstracts and
papers
Dr
Nick Acheson - National Contexts and Voluntary Action: The voluntary sector and
government in Northern Ireland - the end of a marriage of convenience?
There is a pressing need to develop a comparative research agenda across the
UK that draws on international comparative research into the developing role of
the third sector in welfare state modernization. Such an agenda requires new
theorizing and this paper suggests that neo-institutional theories and theories
of the public sphere offer a promising framework. By way of illustration, the
paper argues that relations between the voluntary sector and government in
Northern Ireland have been conducted through a marriage of convenience dating
back to the early 1990s. The policy framework that guided the marriage came to a
natural end in December 2008 and it is likely that relationships will become
more fraught in the future. The paper summarises evidence of the size and nature
of the sector in Northern Ireland and how this has been changing, and relates
its development to the context of the ‘peace process’ and the peculiar nature of
the political settlement of the ‘Good Friday’ agreement of 1998 that led to the
reinstatement of devolution. It argues that the way in which the sector is
structured by the deep sectarian divisions in civil society in Northern Ireland
have left it both vulnerable to state capture and politically weak. In more
straightened times ahead, it runs the risk of being relegated to a subservient
role.
Nick's presentation is available here (Powerpoint
format).
Dr
Freda Donoghue and Dr Joe Larragy - The State’s
Relationship with the Third Sector in Ireland: discourses in policy
Third sector actors play a number of different roles in the policy arena and
tend to be more active in representing their individual constituencies’
interests than in representing broader interests of relevance to the third
sector as a whole. Although they have had a long history in Ireland, specific
policy dealing with the third sector took years to come to fruition and, since
its publication in September 2000, is noteworthy for its tardy implementation.
This paper critically examines the variety of political discourses on voluntary
organisations in Ireland and argues that the lack of an integrated political
vision of voluntary-statutory relationships lies at the heart of the stasis on
action.
Dr Paul Chaney - Devolved Governance and the Political Participation of
Equalities Organisations in Public Policy-Making in
Wales
After a decade of ‘democratic’ devolution, this paper explores the
relationship between the Welsh government and equalities-related voluntary
organisations. Devolution has introduced significant changes in the structures
and processes of governance designed to foster cross-sectoral working,
participation in the policy process and, the promotion of equalities. Many of
these are enshrined in constitutional law. Prominent examples include the
statutory Voluntary Sector Scheme, the Voluntary Sector Partnership Council, and
the Welsh government’s duty to promote equality in the exercise of its
functions. This article draws upon extensive primary and secondary sources –
including research interviews with policy actors and the records of meetings
between government ministers, officials and voluntary organisations – in order
to evaluate the extent to which constitutional reform has reframed the
relationship between government and the third sector. Attention is focused on
the extent and quality of voluntary sector organisations’ engagement in the
policy process and whether the structures of devolved governance allow
equalities-related organisations - representing constituencies of gender,
‘race’, faith, disability, age, and sexual orientation - to advance their policy
demands on government.
Paul's presentation is available here (Powerpoint
format).
Professor Pete Alcock - The Third Sector Policy Environment in England:
partnership or take-over?
The last ten years has seen a step change in the scale and reach of
government policy initiative and intervention for the third sector in England.
This has led to significant changes from the less interventionist regime of the
previous decades, but also to increasingly significant differences from the
distinctive regimes emerging under the devolved powers in Scotland, Northern
Ireland and Wales. Central to the new regime in England has been the creation of
the Office of the Third Sector (OTS) with an increased budget, a strategic
location in the Cabinet Office and a remit to extend policy across the full
range of third sector action. The paper will examine briefly they key policy
programmes developed by government and now overseen by OTS and their
implications for the sector, drawing on Kendall’s distinction between horizontal
and vertical dimensions of intervention. This will be set within the context of
a broader review of the policy environment in England, and in particular the
focus on the role of third sector organisations (TSOs) in public policy
delivery. Underpinning much of this changed climate is a model of partnership
between the third sector and the state which may create threats to the
independence and autonomy of many TSOs, and may be resulting in a peculiarly
English model of third sector support which the other devolved administrations
are challenged to follow. The paper concludes by exploring how these evolving
policy climates may be included within a research agenda for the four countries
within the UK.
Pete's presentation is available here (Powerpoint
format).
Ruchir Shah - Scotland’s
Voluntary Sector and its Devolved Government: a developing relationship?
In the run up to devolution, the overall conception of what can be achieved
by the state in a modern society was probably broadly similar in Scotland and
England. While the degree of emphasis differed, there was a recognition that the
days of the omniscient welfare state had gone and after the economic
liberalisation of the 1980’s, the progressive efficacy of a 100% free market was
under question. Associated with the shift from the Conservative to New Labour UK
administrations, there was increasing interest in the potential role of
non-profits as a ‘third way’ to solving public policy needs. This process was
accelerated by devolution.
As a result, the sector in Scotland as in England found itself taking on a
growing public service delivery role. Over time there was a concern that this
was introducing tensions with its voice and advocacy role. This prompted the
development of Compacts between the state and voluntary sectors during the late
90’s in England and Scotland. Given the fact that many of the policy areas that
related to the activities of the voluntary sector were devolved areas such as
social, environmental and cultural, it made more sense that the Compacts
themselves were devolved. Scotland however brought with it a strong municipalism
entrenched in local authorities, strong corporate interests embedded in the
professional and medical institutions, and a substantially higher per-capita
spend on public sector. These factors equated to a greater public sector
penetration in Scotland and translated to a greater restraining of the
development of the voluntary sector’s role in delivering statutory activities in
Scotland compared to England.
Ruchir's presentation is available here (Powerpoint
format).
Image: Alastair Nevin for University of Ulster
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