Hardly anyone can have failed to pick up on the recent flurry of stories in the national press about the Big Society, sparked off by Dame Elisabeth Hoodless's remarks that funds for volunteers are disappearing at an alarming rate, and that this is undermining the very idea of a "Big Society". At the same time, under the government's radical Localism Bill, there are literally scores of provisions for communities to take on new powers--running services, planning their neighbourhoods, developing new housing, and so on. The author argues that the Big Society may open up opportunities for the voluntary and community sector, but it will be critical to build on what is already there and not allow good voluntary work to be lost.