Health

OVERVIEW

There are 440 organisations in the voluntary and community sector which are involved in health and social care activities. Total income for 2003/04 is estimated to be £121.83 million.

One out of every five organisations in the health and social care sector are part of a wider UK organisational structure. The number of Northern Ireland based central offices and local offices is also significant. 25.4% of organisations in this sector describe themselves as local offices of a Northern Ireland wide organisation, with a further 15.8% claiming to be a central office of a Northern Ireland wide organisation.

There are approximately 4,108 paid employees working in the health and social care sector with a further 8,728 volunteers directly involved on a formal basis (management committees etc).

ROLE

The voluntary and community sector has a long history in health and social care in Northern Ireland, both as an advocate and a service provider. The challenges these organisations face include the health issues facing both men and women, levels of inequalities in health that exist between people from different socio-economic groups and the poor health suffered by many minority community groups of interest, such as people with a disability or ethnic minority groups.

The services provided in this sub-sector range from various forms of respite care, cancer services to information and advocacy. A community development approach to health and social issues is used in Northern Ireland, whereby this sub sector works at the grassroots level to help groups take action over their own work and to feed these needs into effective policy.

FUNDING

The public are the biggest funder of the health and social care sector, the bulk of which comes in the form of earned income (85.5%) such as planned giving and purchases from charity shops.

Government is also a significant funder of the health and social care sector and accounts for 30.7% of this sector's total income. Just over half (53.6%) of this income is in the form of earned income as the health and social care sector is an important provider of public services. Statutory agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent £11.93 million in the form of grants and donations on the activities of this sector. Although it is not possible to disaggregate the £20.09 million that comes in the form of earned income, it is health and social services trusts and other such agencies which are the main source of this type of income. Central government departments spent a total of £5.41 million in 2003/04 in grants and donations to the health and social care sector.

The other significant aspect of the income profile for this sector is the contribution the private sector makes. Well over half of all the income that the voluntary and community sector receives from business goes to the health and social care sector (£6.24 million in 2003/04).

PEOPLE

The health and social care sector employs 4,108 paid individuals.

Those individuals employed in the health and social care sector represent 14.2% of the total voluntary and community sector's workforce.

Four out of every ten employees in the health and social sector are part-time which slightly higher than the sector as whole where part-time employees make up 36% of the workforce.

Eight out of every ten paid employees in the health and social care sector are female.

There are 8,728 volunteers involved in the heath and social care sector.

Like paid employees there is a predominance of females who volunteer their time to assist in the activities of organisations in the health and social care sector. One in ten formal volunteers in the voluntary and community sector do so in the health and social care sector.

ORDER

Price: State of the Sector IV costs £10. To order a copy, contact Lynn Anderson 028 9087 7777

COMMENTS

Please give your opinion on this research by using the Have your Say box at the end of this article, or contact:

Gordon McCullough
028 9087 7777