The local infrastructure charity Gosport Voluntary Action has merged into the support charity Community First amid growing funding challenges, the charities have said.

The merged charity will operate as Community First and continue to provide services to the Hampshire community as well as support groups to recruit volunteers, secure external funding and receive governance, business planning and training advice.

“The merger is driven by wanting to deliver more and better impact with greater value for money,” the charities said.

“Both charities have reserves but are dependent on identifying and securing new income streams and generating new revenues over the coming years and they believe they are better doing that as a single entity.”

The organisations said the merger aimed to “reduce a duplication of services” and “ease the pressure on local authorities facing funding shortfalls, ensuring crucial services like home help and supported volunteering can continue to thrive”. 

The charities cited the proposed removal of the VCSE infrastructure grant from Hampshire County Council as an example of growing funding challenges.

The proposal will see the grant removed from April 2025 as Hampshire Council tackles a £132m budget deficit.

“Gosport Borough Council has already withdrawn funding for GVA in recent years, and other grants including charitable trusts and foundations, and traditional sources of income, are becoming more competitive and harder to secure,” the charities said.

“When organisations like Community First and GVA have to fund overheads, it makes sense to operate a lean and efficient model and one way of doing that is to merge, sharing senior management, finance, HR and back-office functions. 

“It’s important to emphasise that much of what Community First will be doing is combining services across a wider geographic area to create some economies of scale to grow services and increase impact than would otherwise have been doable if the two charities stayed independent.”

Community First has 120 members of staff while Gosport Voluntary Action employs 13 people, who will transfer to Community First.

No redundancies or job cuts are planned because of the merger, the charities said.

Community First recorded an income of £3.4m in its latest accounts for the year to the end of March 2023.

Gosport Voluntary Action had an income of £399,139 over the same period.

Two trustees from Gosport Voluntary Action will join the Community First board and GVA will eventually be wound up.

Gosport Voluntary Action has not had a chief executive since January, when Kay Hallsworth stepped down.

The charity employed an interim manager until 30 September to help prepare for the merger.

“Buildings and offices will be retained and will continue to provide benefits to community groups for meetings, activities, services and events,” the charities said

“Community First already operates across multiple locations in Hampshire and while it constantly reviews its office and premises requirements, it remains committed to being embedded in those communities it is here to serve, including Gosport.”

Tim Houghton, chief executive of Community First, said the merger would lead to a “more resilient” support network.

“Strong local voluntary organisations and charities are needed more than ever as we look to support and complement our local authorities,” he said.

“By bringing together the strengths of both organisations, we’re not only ensuring that vital services remain accessible to those who need them most in our neighbourhoods, but we’re also building a more resilient support network for the future.”

Ian Reeves, chair of Gosport Voluntary Action, said: “The merger reflects our shared vision to work to support our community. 

“By pooling our resources, expertise and, most importantly, our people, we will be better equipped to serve our voluntary and community groups and deliver services that make a positive difference to Gosport borough residents now and in the future.”