Experience Corps accused by Private Eye
In the latest issue of Private Eye the people running the Experience Corps have been accused of profiting from an organisations that was set up by government grants.
The story isn't currently on the Private Eye website so here's a summary.
The Experience Corps was a Home Office funded scheme to promote volunteering by older people. Almost 20m of funding was provided over three years but, though many have questioned the value of that investment, what Private Eye highlights is what has happened since the funding stopped.
The Experience Corps is now a private consulatancy which charges companies and organisations for "its knowledge and extensive networks" - built up, presumably during the period of public funding.
For all the details you'll have to by a copy of the Eye (see page 31) but the question they put is whether it can be right for a publicly funded organisation to turn to private profit without repaying any of its grants.
I temped there at the beginning. They got 3 million from the govt to set up their organisation. Then then spent their budget like no tomorrow on branding (Saatchi no less). Admittedly they did go for less colours on their logo to save money. They bought video cameras, brand new equipment, website etc. They had to spend the money because that is how govt decides how much budget to give you the next year. They employed expensive consultants. They hired celebrities for their national conference. And the consultants I worked with had fag and tea breaks practically every 5 minutes. I didn't quite see what the point of them was other than it was jobs for the boys. i.e. Sally Greengross and Maggie Semple.
Almost none, unfortunately.
Interesting, take it Private Eye has no online content at all?
There's a rebuttal in the letters page of this week's Private Eye. Defending the directors and insisting that everything has been completely above board.
Is it worth chasing them? Be good to get a response, maybe on eof the vols can call them?
Nope - no reply so far.
Hey Tom. Did you ever get your comment from EC on the repayment of the grant? Share if you can. Would be interesting to see how this example holds up against others, such as the Dome.
Lol, the Dress thing is a bit strange, must be some special EC humour thing?!
Hmm... if The Dress group on Facebook is a cunning marketing ploy it beats me.
(But, since they ask, it's not my dress)
I guess my point would be that it's sad that they don't seem to be active in promoting or supporting volunteering (apart from the annual tea party). Be interested to be corrected on this. Also trying to work out why they are promoting The Dress group on Facebook from their homepage... what did I miss?