It’s more than just education it also building the bridge between the black community and this establishment, and that’s what we really have to be looking at. - David Tyrone Christie
In this weeks episode I speak with David Tyrone Christie, Chair of the charity Majivuno.
David and I speak about the challenges that he and his colleagues faced in setting up the charity, what the charity aims to do, and tips and advice for anyone wanting to setup their own charity.
The challenge of setting up a charity or social enterprise to meet a need in society is daunting at the best of times. For David and his colleagues there were added challenges that were ironically part of the social inequality that they are seeking to address.
David spoke about the challenges of seeking funding, but also seeking unrestricted funding to help start the work, and the need for funding to give him and his colleagues a chance to dedicate their full time to it.
We spoke about the reservations among his community that people have towards entities linked to the establishment, including the reservation of engaging with a Charity Commission registered charity. David explained that some are worried about interference from the system and that there is a lack of trust due to historic treatment.
We also touched on the governance model of charities generally, and how David and his colleagues had sought a solution of stipends for trustees, modelled on church stipends. This led to talking about the challenges the sector faces recruiting boards of trustees from diverse backgrounds or with lived experiences, especially if those boards are also carrying out all or the bulk of the charities operational work.
In our increasingly busy and under-pressure charity sector, resilience is needed more than ever, and listening to David speak about his journey it occurred to me that there is also a great deal of entrepreneurism when it comes to setting up a charity or social enterprise.
Identifying the need isn’t necessarily the issue, after all we live in a world where the need seems to far outweigh the supply. So choosing how to dedicate energy to meet one of the multitude of needs and sticking at it sounds like the secret sauce for progressive social change.
To find out more about setting up a charity, check out these links:
We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.
This episode is brought to you by our platinum sponsor Charity People.
Related episodes that you may be interested in:
E148 – Grant Seekers And Grant Makers With Alex Blake - https://www.charitychat.org.uk/post/e148-grant-seekers-and-grant-makers-with-alex-blake
E133 – Is There An Alternative Charity Governance Model With Philip Kirkpatrick - https://www.charitychat.org.uk/post/e133-is-there-an-alternative-charity-governance-model-with-philip-kirkpatrick
E111 – Black History Month With Agnes Agyepong - https://www.charitychat.org.uk/post/e111-black-history-month-with-agnes-agyepong