A lack of fair, sustainable funding is placing growing strain on staff across Scotland’s voluntary sector, according to new workforce research published this week.
The 2025 Voluntary Workforce Survey, carried out by Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, gathered responses from more than 1,300 people working in charities and voluntary organisations across the country.
The findings show that funding insecurity, short-term funding cycles and overall shortages are having a direct and damaging impact on pay, job security and staff wellbeing.
One in four respondents reported being on fixed-term or temporary contracts, rising to one in three among front-line workers, compared with just one in ten across the wider workforce.
More than a quarter of voluntary sector workers, 27%, said it was quite or highly likely they would lose their job within the next 12 months, double the rate recorded across the wider Scottish workforce.
The survey also found a sharp decline in work-life balance, with the proportion of staff who felt they had a good balance falling from 60% in 2015 to 50% in 2025.
Many respondents reported rising workloads linked to difficulties recruiting and retaining staff, often as a knock-on effect of funding cuts and ongoing uncertainty.
Despite these pressures, staff continued to express a strong belief in the value of their work, with 84% saying that making a real difference to people and communities was one of the best aspects of their role, and 87% describing their work as useful.
Overall job satisfaction, however, has fallen significantly, dropping from 79% in 2015 to 64% in 2025, with funding pressures identified as the key driver.
SCVO is now calling on the Scottish Government to align its funding practices with SCVO’s definition of Fair Funding, including multi-year funding of three years or more, flexible core funding, timely decisions and inflation-based uplifts that cover full operating costs.
Commenting, SCVO Chief Executive Anna Fowlie said:
“Scotland’s voluntary sector is powered by people who care deeply about making a difference.
“Our workforce survey shows a strong sense of purpose among voluntary sector workers, and commitment to the work they do day in, day out.
“But it also highlights the significant strain being put on voluntary sector workers as a result of the financial pressures that have become all too familiar to the voluntary sector.
“Voluntary sector leaders will, of course, be up for the challenge of delivering rewarding, fair work.
“Too often this is being undermined by public sector funders.
“Budget cuts, short-term funding cycles, late payments, incoherent decision-making and poor communication have become all-too familiar.
“This needs to change and our politicians know it.
“Ahead of the Scottish Budget and Spending Review, the Scottish Government has a real chance to create a funding landscape that is multi-year, sustainable, flexible and accessible.
“The people and communities served by Scotland’s dedicated voluntary sector workers deserve nothing less.”
Charity Leadership Scotland Chief Executive Lucinda Godfrey added:
“These numbers confirm what many leaders already feel: the work is vital, but the weight of it is heavy.
“At Charity Leadership Scotland, we are committed to collaborating on powerful research that assesses the wellness of Scotland’s voluntary sector and ideally leads to meaningful action to protect and support the individuals and organisations underpinning it.”
The voluntary sector employs more than 136,000 people, accounting for around five percent of Scotland’s workforce.
Unite the Union lead officer for fair work Shauna Wright said:
“Unite the Union stands with care and not-for-profit workers who have faced underfunding in their sector, resulting in higher stress levels and concerns about their future employment opportunities in an industry where they have not felt valued for the work they provide.
“Urgent action is needed to secure fair pay terms and conditions.”
