Civil Society Covenant - contribute to the NAVCA response

The government is consulting on a new Civil Society Covenant, resetting the relationship with the VCSE sector. Maddy, CEO at NAVCA, contributed to a roundtable and subsequent reception at No. 10 to launch the work.

​Both the Secretary of State Lisa Nandy and Prime Minister Keir Starmer explicitly recognised the importance of close work with the VCSE sector, and the common goals and ambition it has with government.

​ They spoke of respect for the VCSE sector, recognising its unique contribution to society.

​They were clear that the Covenant needs to be with all levels of government – local authorities, NHS, and each government department, something we have since reiterated to both No. 10 and DCMS. This is an important and unique opportunity to influence government and emphasise the importance of local infrastructure and local charities and community groups.

Get involved 


The government is keen to hear from small, local organisations, and the NAVCA network is key to that. We will submit a response on behalf of the NAVCA network – join us on Wednesday 13th November, 1pm – 2pm, to share your ideas and develop a collective response that highlights the role of local infrastructure. You can sign up for the meeting via the NAVCA website. If you can’t make this meeting, please add your thoughts to the NAVCA discussion forum here, and we will include these in our response. 


We also encourage you to share the survey with your local networks, or to develop a local response. We will co-create a set of common messages for members to draw from. 

You can view the Covenant framework here, with more information on the NCVO website here. The deadline for survey submissions is midday on Thursday 12th December.