Half of British Charities Expect to Lay Off Workers This Year

Half of England’s charities expect to cut staff members in the coming year, and a third say they will have to reduce services in the face of government spending cuts, the Financial Times writes, citing a new survey by Britain’s National Council for Voluntary Organizations.

The latest installment of the council’s quarterly poll of nonprofit groups charted a continued decline in organizations’ fiscal confidence, with 35 percent planning service cuts–double the proportion from three months ago–and 49 percent anticipating layoffs.

Local authorities in Britain, under orders from the central government to cut spending by 28 percent over four years, are expected to slash grants to charities and volunteer groups, leading some survey respondents to predict that many organizations will fold in the coming years.