RSPCA ‘will make hundreds of staff redundant’ as drop in donations during lockdown continues to batter charities
- The UK’s biggest animal welfare charity saves thousands of animals each year
- The impact coronavirus is having on the voluntary sector means cuts are needed
- The pandemic has led to a steep decline in charity fundraising income
- Fundraising bodies have called on the Government to help more charities
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
The RSPCA has announced it will be making one fifth of its staff redundant due to financial strain caused by the coronavirus crisis.
The UK’s biggest animal welfare charity, with over 1,600 workers, could face a shortfall of up to £25million this year, with the global pandemic causing a decline in charity fundraising.
It is the latest organisation in the voluntary sector to be affected by coronavirus, with UK charities facing a collective loss of £12.4billion by the end of the financial year.
A fifth of RSPCA staff are set to be made redundant as the coronavirus pandemic continues to damage the UK voluntary sector
Redundancy proposals will be made by RSPCA staff next week, with the organisation refusing to say whether frontline animal care and protection roles will be affected.
RSPCA chief executive Chris Sherwood said: ‘We know this is a really difficult time for our staff and the proposals we are putting forward have not been taken lightly.
‘This is an incredibly challenging time for charities – the current crisis has exacerbated an already difficult financial situation our organisation faces.
‘We are a large animal charity offering many welfare services for pets, wildlife, farm animals and research animals both here and abroad.
‘We are the only charity with a team of inspectors across England and Wales going out 365 days a year, rescuing animals and then caring for, treating and rehabilitating those animals, sometimes for many months on end, which is incredibly costly.’
The RSPCA protects thousands of abused and abandoned animals per year, while they also hand out punishments to owners who do not meet their protection guidelines.
In 2018, the charity rescued 108,000 animals and rehomed nearly 40,000 the following year, with 661 people were prosecuted for animal abuse.
The British animal welfare charity saves thousands of vulnerable and neglected animals each year and also prosecutes abusive owners
Meanwhile, both the Charity Finance Group (CFG) and the Institute of Fundraising (IoF) have urged the government to review the support being given to UK charities in lockdown.
In April, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced £750million would be made available to support frontline charities, but this move has been accused of not going far enough to save certain organisations.
CFG chief executive Caron Bradshaw said: ‘This isn’t about the survival of the institution of charity or individual charities, but the devastating impact that this will have on those who rely on the services charities provide.’
IoF CEO Peter said: ‘The government urgently needs to review and enhance its emergency support for charities, with a further bespoke package of support, an extension to the job retention scheme specifically supporting those charitable activities which are still unable to take place, or both.’