# Almost half of charity leaders considering their futures due to pressure

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/05/10/almost-half-of-charity-leaders-considering-their-futures-due-to-pressure/
- Published: 2021-05-10T08:52:00+01:00
- Author: Melanie May

**Nearly half of senior charity leaders questioned in a survey by Ecclesiastical
say they are considering quitting as a result of the increased demands caused by
Covid, while burnout and mental health concerns are rising across the board with
44% seeing an increase among colleagues since the start of 2021.**

The research follows on from the insurer’s [Charity Risk Barometer](https://www.ecclesiastical.com/insights/charity-risk-barometer-2020/),
released earlier this year, which found that two thirds of charities had seen an
increase in staff stress levels since the beginning of the pandemic.

The latest study from [Ecclesiastical](https://www.ecclesiastical.com/) questioned
450 charity leaders and also found that two thirds (66%) of charity leaders were
concerned about the effect that staff burnout could have on their charity – in particular
not being able to provide services to users (36%) who have become dependent on the
support they offer. Four out of five respondents (81%) said it had already become
more difficult to meet the needs of service users due to the pandemic.

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At the same time as the risk of burnout, charities have also seen an increase in
anxiety and depression among colleagues since January 2021.

According to Ecclesiastical’s research, two in five charities (44%) had experienced
an increase in colleague mental health concerns since the start of 2021. Cases of
anxiety (71%), stress (70%), depression (66%) all rose in that time – while a quarter
said they had seen an increase in both self-harm (25%) and suicidal feelings (27%),

Challenges at home such as child care or home schooling (33%), concerns about the
health of family or friends (30%) and fatigue of home working (30%) were all cited
as the main concerns for colleagues as the effects of the pandemic impacted on their
mental wellbeing.

Many of those questioned – 52% – say the government needs to do more to provide 
mental health support.

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