Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations

ACEVO (Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations) is a membership body for the leaders of third sector organisations in England and Wales. ACEVO has sister organisations in Scotland (acosvo) and Northern Ireland (CO3 Chief Officers 3rd Sector [1]).

Aims

ACEVO's stated aims are to connect, develop and represent third sector leaders. In turn, these aims are met by offering professional development and peer learning opportunities; providing informal networking events and a members directory available to all members; and lobbying the UK government on the behalf of its members. These three aims are all intended to make the sector more professional and effective. ACEVO is a registered charity 1114591.

History

ACEVO was started in 1987 by three charity Chief Executives who felt isolated in their positions, and felt a need for a networking group of third sector leaders. Its original name was ACENVO - Association of Chief Executives of National Voluntary Organisations. It has grown steadily since then, and when its current Chief Executive, Stephen Bubb, took over in 2000, ACEVO had a staff of 6 and around 1000 members. Today it has 32 staff and a total membership of over 2000.

Membership

ACEVO's membership is primarily drawn from England and Wales, but since February 2005 it has been offering membership to leaders of organisations based outside the UK (third sector leaders in Scotland or Northern Ireland can join acosvo or CO3 respectively). In England and Wales membership is also offered to private organisations (Commercial membership), and likely successors to current Full members (Associate membership).

Influencing

ACEVO has been influential within the UK in campaigning on behalf of third sector leaders, most notably on issues of governance, leadership and funding. ACEVO is a strategic partner of the Cabinet Office's Office for Civil Society, and has been involved in the government's numerous task forces and working groups.

Together with New Philanthropy Capital, ACEVO developed and pioneered the concept of Full Cost Recovery [2], which states that third sector organisations should cost their work robustly, and that the funding they receive from government should be sustainable.

International Work

ACEVO's international work, as of October 2006, had two clear and distinct aims. The first was to build a European network of third sector leaders, alongside key partners in France and Sweden. The second was to assist ACEVO members in Nigeria and Italy who had requested ACEVO's help in developing their own national associations for third sector leaders.

Recession Support

Recession Support is a free microsite launched and run by ACEVO. It was designed to provide useful information to help charities and third sector organisations survive the recession.

Areas covered on the website include finance, organisation management, CEO development, as well as providing expert guides from industry leaders on a range of topics. The advice available ranges from fraud prevention, to cost saving, funding, staff management and the opportunities provided to charities in times of economic decline. The website details events, courses and key links to other relevant organisations and third sector membership bodies such as the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action, the Institute of Fundraising, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and the Social Enterprise Coalition, as well as important government departments.

criticism

ACEVO has been criticised by other voluntary sector organisations for taking political stance in favour of charities assisting with the privatisation of public services such as healthcare and prisons. The National Council For Voluntary Organisations criticised a 2005 ACEVO report warning it could "warp public perception of the role of the sector" . These concerns have resurfaced more recently following CEO Stephen Bubb's secondment to the department of health to assist with Andrew Lansley's NHS "listening exercise".

External links

• Official website
• "Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations, registered charity no. 1114591". Charity Commission for England and Wales.

• Recession Support