Latest Updates

This weekend marks the anniversary of one of the more improbable incidents in Ireland’s strange and troubled past.

It is Volunteers’ Week. Given that the world feels like it is descending somewhere dark, it truly is worth remembering how much people are willing to help others without expecting anything in return.

Never mind clapping the carers, the only solution to our crumbling adult social care services is to fix the broken system.

Before Covid-19, Northern Ireland’s childcare sector worked hard but was under-resourced. Now it faces huge challenges, and shortages could hamstring our economic and social recovery from coronavirus.

Lockdown has re-connected most of us to the outdoors and the simple joys of walking.

The pressures Covid-19 has placed on the third sector are, amongst other things, ironic. They also get to the heart of what the sector is, and why it is special. DfC’s Community Response Plan illustrates this well.

Lauren Pennycook from the Carnegie UK Trust argues that local authorities are leading the way in supporting their communities during the pandemic

There are experts, and then there are other experts, and sometimes they don’t agree.

The first test of a universal basic income has proved a success. A large majority of the public want it introduced. Politicians at Westminster are drawing up plans. Is UBI now more likely than not?

It’s Red Cross Week, and Scope speaks to the organisation here in Northern Ireland about how it has had to transform its work to tackle the pandemic.

The Coronavirus Act is one of the most repressive pieces of legislation ever enacted by government. Scope talks to NI Human Rights Chief Commissioner Les Allamby about the implications.

Sean McKay, former Director of Audit at the NI Audit Office examines the challenges faced by running public information campaigns during the pandemic.

Governance Specialist Eileen Mullan says she is alarmed to discover that some charity boards in Northern Ireland have stopped functioning during the pandemic.

Coronavirus has forced huge, reactive changes across our lives. The third sector is no different. Organisations are working hard, individually and collectively, to adapt. They are also proving their worth.

Joe Bilsborough, researcher at the Centre for Local Economic Strategies, argues for a better approach to re-building NI’s economy when the crisis abates.

Death is not the end. For the bereaved it marks the beginning of grief.

The Covid-19 pandemic is forcing us to examine the mechanisms of our society and economy. Options that were previously just theoretical are now on the table. The impacts could be enormous.

It’s not just people who are threatened by Covid-19, it endangers political institutions as well. The European Union now finds itself in an existential crisis.  

Older people are perhaps affected more than any other group by Covid-19, directly and indirectly. Scope speaks with Age NI about the needs of our older population, and how they changed their service model almost overnight.

The pandemic will change the world, that much we know. The challenge is to change it for the better. Nick Garbutt makes the case for developing community economies.