I am always astounded at how much 'charity' and 'volunteering' goes on in England. Most of these charities pay large salaries to their top tier staff. Is it an acceptable way of grifting? Getting people volunteering under the auspice of charity. I just don't get the concept of all these charities in such a 'first world/rich' country.
The reasons are very disturbingly simple.
1. The UK Office for National Statistics recent figures tell us that almost a third of the population live in poverty (that's split into 1/6th in relative poverty and 1/6th in absolute poverty).
So that means many millions of adults and children need help in a huge variety of ways.
2. Public services have been systematically eviscerated and lack resources. Gvt has actively encouraged charities to fulfil what used to be statutory roles. Thus their top tier staff feel entitled to claim gvt-level pay. This all leads to expensive crisis-management silos - lack of timely co-ordinated support is more costly in the long run. Financially and in higher mortality rates. Nonetheless, the UK charity sector is booming. Volunteers are essentially unpaid civil servants. (I find it all despicable).
The UK is apparently wealthy. Its gvts like to portray it as a first world/rich country. It is, but only for the top 20%.
A couple of years ago, the UN Special Rapporteur on Poverty examined the UK. His report was damning. Amongst other excoriating things, he wrote that conditions were worse than Dickensian for many people.
quite prolific 
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