I’ve often heard people in the third sector say that the government, and local authorities, don’t really understand third sector organisations. I’m pretty sure I’ve said something along the same lines myself. But now that I think about it, I’m not entirely sure what it means to say this.

‘Real Times’ is a programme of in-depth research studying how third sector organisations actually work in practice over time. We’re interested in capturing vivid, moving pictures of real life in third sector organisations – what really happens, how they change or stay the same over time, what really matters, and what counts. Essentially then, the research is about trying to gain a better understanding of how different kinds of third sector organisation work.

A bit more detail about the programme is provided here

We’re designing the programme at the moment, and refining our research questions. So it would be really helpful to know what people really mean when they say the government doesn’t understand the sector. For example:

• Is there a separate third sector culture or ethos that they don’t quite get? If so, what is it?
• Do they understand what the ‘voluntary’ bit of a voluntary organisation is?
• Is it that they think the sector should be a bit more coordinated, or tidied up?
• Do they understand the diversity of the sector?
• Do they lack an appreciation of the range of different people involved in third sector organisations, such as volunteers, trustees or committee members, project workers, and senior managers?

Or maybe the people who say these kind of things are simply wrong. It could, of course, work both ways – that third sector organisations just don’t understand government, local authorities and other statutory bodies.

We’ll be commenting on these kinds of issues in the future, and some of these questions might inform the Real Times research programme. I have a hunch that when people say things like this, whether justified or not, they are saying something quite important about how we understand the sector.

So, if you’ve ever said something like this, or been on the receiving end of it, it would be good to know what it was about. Answers on a postcard as they say…. (or comments on this blog), would be really welcome: What is it that governments, local authorities and others don’t understand?