Talking about... Charity reserves

What are charity reserves? Should all charities have them? And is it time to rethink when and how rainy day funds are used and not used?

These are just a few of the questions Sarah Vibert, CEO of NCVO, puts to Jane Ide, CEO of ACEVO and Caron Bradshaw, CEO of Charity Finance Group, in this latest charity finance podcast. We also share a range of resources to help you better manage your charity's reserves and make your charity's funds go further:

Research

A research report into charity reserves management in Scotland (lots of useful stats and insights for those elsewhere in the UK)

Webinars, articles, other podcasts

Modern reserves with Scottish Grantmakers and CFG (2023)

Thinking about reserves, by Caron Bradshaw (2022)

Rainy days and reserves, by Caron Bradshaw (2021)

Third Sector podcast: Raid of replenish? (2023)

Guidance

Writing the financial procedures: reserves policy, NCVO (December 2022)

Running a charity: Financial Difficulty and Insolvency, NCVO (December 2022)

And finally, an oldie but still a goodie: Beyond Reserves, CFG/ACEVO/CIoF (2012) (Scheduled to be updated early 2024).

With thanks to Sarah, Jane, Caron and the teams at NCVO and ACEVO for sharing their insights and resources.