​Classifying what voluntary organisations do

Within the Almanac we classify organisations into subsectors based on the International Classification of Nonprofit Organisations (ICNPO). This system was designed by the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University in the US.

The ICNPO includes the following categories:

  • ICNPO 1 Culture and recreation
  • ICNPO 2 Education and research
  • ICNPO 3 Health
  • ICNPO 4 Social services
  • ICNPO 5 Environment
  • ICNPO 6 Development and housing
  • ICNPO 7 Law, advocacy and politics
  • ICNPO 8 Philanthropic intermediaries and voluntarism promotion
  • ICNPO 9 International
  • ICNPO 10 Religion

For the purpose of the Almanac, NCVO has expanded on the existing ICNPO categories and created several new categories. For example, for some categories (such as ICNPO 6) different types of organisations have been separated out individually whereas in others (such as ICNPO 2) organisations have only been partially separated into new categories.

These are all the ICNPO categories used within the Almanac:

  • ICNPO 1 Culture and recreation
  • ICNPO 2 Education
  • ICNPO 2.1 Parent-teacher associations
  • ICNPO 2.2 Playgroups and nurseries
  • ICNPO 2.3 Research
  • ICNPO 3 Health
  • ICNPO 4 Social Services
  • ICNPO 4.1 Scout groups and youth clubs
  • ICNPO 5 Environment
  • ICNPO 6.1 Development
  • ICNPO 6.2 Housing
  • ICNPO 6.3 Employment and training
  • ICNPO 6.4 Village halls
  • ICNPO 7 Law and advocacy
  • ICNPO 8.1 Grant-making foundations
  • ICNPO 8.2 Umbrella bodies
  • ICNPO 9 International
  • ICNPO 10 Religion

Below, we give some information on each ICNPO, including types of organisations, number of organisations, income and expenditure.

Although NCVO has classified all charities on the Charity Commission register for England and Wales, the information below only includes those charities that meet our general charities definition.

Ranking

ICNPO 1 Culture and recreation

  • Media and communications: Production and dissemination of information and communication. This includes radio and TV stations, publishing of books, journals, newspapers and newsletters, film production; and libraries.
  • Visual arts, architecture, ceramic art: Production, dissemination and display of visual arts and architecture. This includes sculpture, photographic societies, painting, drawing, design centres and architectural associations.
  • Performing arts: Performing arts centres, companies and associations. This includes theatre, dance, ballet, opera, orchestras, chorales and music ensembles.
  • Historical, literary and humanistic societies: Promotion and appreciation of the humanities, preservation of historical and cultural artefacts and commemoration of historical events. This includes historical societies, poetry and literary societies, language associations, reading promotion, war memorials and commemorative funds and associations.
  • Museums: General and specialised museums covering art, history, sciences, technology and culture.
  • Zoos and aquariums.
  • Sports: Provision of amateur sport, training, physical fitness and sport competition services and events; includes fitness and wellness centres.
  • Recreation and social clubs: Provision of recreational facilities and services to individuals and communities. This includes playground associations, country clubs, men's and women's clubs, touring clubs and leisure clubs.
  • Service clubs: Membership organisations providing services to members and local communities.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 2 Education

  • Vocational/technical schools: Technical and vocational training specifically geared towards gaining employment; includes trade schools, paralegal training and secretarial schools.
  • Adult/continuing education: Institutions engaged in providing education and training in addition to the formal educational system; includes schools of continuing studies, correspondence schools, night schools and sponsored literacy and reading programs.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 2.1 Parent-teacher associations

  • Parent-teacher associations (PTA): A formal organisation composed of parents, teachers and staff that is intended to facilitate parental participation in a school.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 2.2 Playgroups and nurseries

  • Playgroups and nurseries: An organised group providing care and socialisation for children under five.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 2.3 Research

  • Medical research: Research in the medical field; includes research on specific diseases, disorders, or medical disciplines.
  • Science and technology: Research in the physical and life sciences and engineering and technology.
  • Social sciences, policy studies: Research and analysis in the social sciences and policy area.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 3 Health

  • Hospitals: Primarily inpatient medical care and treatment.
  • Rehabilitation: Inpatient health care and rehabilitative therapy to individuals suffering from physical impairments due to injury, genetic defect, or disease and requiring extensive physiotherapy or similar forms of care.
  • Nursing homes: Inpatient convalescent care, residential care, as well as primary health care services; includes homes for the frail elderly and nursing homes for the severely handicapped.
  • Psychiatric hospitals: Inpatient care and treatment for the mentally ill.
  • Mental health treatment: Outpatient treatment for mentally ill patients; includes community mental health centres and halfway homes.
  • Crisis intervention: Outpatient services and counsel in acute mental health situations; includes suicide prevention and support to victims of assault and abuse.
  • Public health and wellness education: Public health promotion and health education; includes sanitation screening for potential health hazards, first aid training and services and family planning services.
  • Health treatment, primarily outpatient: Organisations that provide primarily outpatient health services e.g., health clinics and vaccination centres.
  • Rehabilitative medical services: Outpatient therapeutic care; includes nature cure centres, yoga clinics and physical therapy centres.
  • Emergency medical services: Services to persons in need of immediate care; includes ambulatory services and paramedical emergency care, shock/trauma programs, lifeline programs and ambulance services.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 4 Social Services

  • Child welfare, child services and day care: Services to children, adoption services, child development centres, foster care; includes infant care centres and nurseries
  • Family services: Services to families; includes family life/parent education, single parent agencies and services and family violence shelters and services.
  • Services for disabled people: Organisations that promote and supply services for disabled people; includes transport facilities, employment and education services, providing independent living and leisure activities.
  • Services for the elderly: Organisations providing geriatric care; includes in-home services, homemaker services, transport facilities, recreation, meal programs and other services geared towards senior citizens (does not include residential nursing homes).
  • Self-help and other personal social services: Programs and services for self-help and personal development; includes support groups, personal counselling and credit counselling/money management services.
  • Disaster/emergency prevention and control: Organisations that work to prevent, predict, control and alleviate the effects of disasters, to educate or otherwise prepare individuals to cope with the effects of disasters, or to provide relief to disaster victims; includes volunteer fire departments, life boat services, etc.
  • Temporary shelters: Organisations providing temporary shelters to the homeless; includes travellers‘ aid and temporary housing.
  • Refugee assistance: Organisations providing food, clothing, shelter and services to refugees and immigrants.
  • Income support and maintenance: Organisations providing cash assistance and other forms of direct services to persons unable to maintain a livelihood.
  • Material assistance: Organisations providing food, clothing, transport and other forms of assistance; includes food banks and clothing distribution centres.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 4.1 Scout groups and youth clubs

  • Youth services and youth welfare: Services to youth; includes delinquency prevention services, teen pregnancy prevention, drop-out prevention, youth centres and clubs and job programs for youth.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 5 Environment

  • Pollution abatement and control: Organisations that promote clean air, clean water, reducing and preventing noise pollution, radiation control, treatment of hazardous wastes and toxic substances, solid waste management and recycling programs.
  • Natural resources conservation and protection: Conservation and preservation of natural resources, including land, water, energy and plant resources for the general use and enjoyment of the public.
  • Environmental beautification and open spaces: Botanical gardens, arboreta, horticultural programs and landscape services; organisations promoting anti-litter campaigns; programs to preserve the parks, green spaces and open spaces in urban or rural areas; and city and highway beautification programs.
  • Animal protection and welfare: Animal protection and welfare services; includes animal shelters and humane societies.
  • Wildlife preservation and protection: Wildlife preservation and protection; includes sanctuaries and refuges.
  • Veterinary services: Animal hospitals and services providing care to farm and household animals and pets.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 6.1 Development

  • Economic development: Programs and services to improve economic infrastructure and capacity; includes building of infrastructure like roads; and financial services such as credit and savings associations, entrepreneurial programs, technical and managerial consulting and rural development assistance.
  • Social development: Organisations working towards improving the institutional infrastructure and capacity to alleviate social problems and to improve general public wellbeing.
  • Economic, social and community development: Organisations working towards improving the quality of life within communities or neighbourhoods. For example, squatters' associations, local development organisations, poor people's cooperatives.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 6.2 Housing

  • Housing assistance: Organisations providing housing search, legal services and related assistance.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 6.3 Employment and training

  • Job training programmes: Organisations providing and supporting apprenticeship programs, internships, on-the-job training and other training programs.
  • Vocational counselling and guidance: Vocational training and guidance, career counselling, testing and related services.
  • Vocational rehabilitation and sheltered workshops: Organisations that promote self-sufficiency and income generation through job training and employment.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 6.4 Village halls

  • Village halls: A village hall is a charitable community facility that is available to the public in a particular area for community-related recreational activities.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 7 Law and advocacy

  • Advocacy organisations: Organisations that protect the rights and promote the interests of specific groups of people, e.g., the physically handicapped, the elderly, children and women.
  • Civil rights associations: Organisations that work to protect or preserve individual civil liberties and human rights.
  • Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) associations: Organisations that promote the interests of, or provide services to, BAME people.
  • Civic associations: Programs and services to encourage and spread civic-mindedness.
  • Legal services: Legal services, advice and assistance in dispute resolution and court-related matters.
  • Crime prevention and public policy: Crime prevention to promote safety and precautionary measures among citizens.
  • Rehabilitation of offenders: Programs and services to reintegrate offenders; includes halfway houses, probation and parole programs, prison alternatives.
  • Victim support: Services, counsel and advice to victims of crime.
  • Consumer protection associations: Protection of consumer rights and the improvement of product control and quality.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 8.1 Grant-making foundations

  • Grant-making foundations: Private foundations; including corporate foundations, community foundations and independent public-law foundations.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 8.2 Umbrella bodies

  • Other philanthropic intermediaries and voluntarism promotion: Organisations that recruit, train and place volunteers and promote volunteering; including volunteer services and volunteer centres.
  • Fundraising organisations: Federated, collective fundraising organisations; includes lotteries.
  • Umbrella bodies: A central organisation (usually members-based) that represent the best interests of other, smaller bodies.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 9 International

  • Exchange/friendship/cultural programs: Programs and services designed to encourage mutual respect and friendship internationally.
  • Development assistance associations: Programs and projects that promote social and economic development abroad.
  • International disaster and relief organisations: Organisations that collect, channel and provide aid to other countries during times of disaster or emergency.
  • International human rights and peace organisations: Organisations which promote and monitor human rights and peace internationally.

Examples

Data

ICNPO 10 Religion

  • Faith-based organisations: Faith-based organisations that have a charitable purpose but are not places of worship.

Examples

Data

This page was last reviewed for accuracy on 01 September 2021