You searched for
''

About us

Find out about our services, the way we operate and how we champion voluntary action

Who we are

We’re the membership community for charities, voluntary organisations and community groups in England

Our services

Find out how we can support you, from support for small charities and training to consultancy and corporate relations

Training

We offer a range of training courses designed to help you do what you do best

eLearning: Roles and duties of trustees

This flexible, interactive course will help you understand your duties as a trustee and support you to run your charity effectively so you can make a bigger difference

Leading on purpose

A practical four-month programme for emerging charity leaders who are on their way to leading organisations

Our vision for charity leaders

Learn about the mindset, knowledge and connections that emerging leaders need to guide the sector into the 2030s

Support for small charities and voluntary organisations

We know small charities make a big impact with limited resource - that's why we're here to help

Small charity helpdesk

Ask our practical support team any question about the setting up or running of your charity or voluntary organisation.

Governance round-up: July 2023

Recent governance news, resources, research, events and more

  • Governance

Applications open for £76m Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund

Find out if your organisation is eligible for new funding up to £75,000

  • Funding and income
  • Responding to crises

Consumer Duty: What is it and how will charities benefit?

Learn how new banking rules will affect your charity or voluntary organisation

  • Financial management

Volunteering round-up: August 2023

The latest news, events and opportunities for people managing or supporting volunteers

  • Involving volunteers

Governance round-up: August 2023

A round-up of the latest guidance from the Charity Commission, recent governance news and upcoming training and events

  • Governance

Impact round-up: Summer 2023

Senior consultant, Sandy Chidley, runs through some recent work on ethical evaluation and shares useful evaluation events and training opportunities

  • Impact and evaluation

The inside track: September 2023

A round-up of what’s happening in Westminster that might impact charities. This month sees a Labour reshuffle, an update on new APPG rules, and a look ahead to party conferences

  • Government and politics

Volunteering round-up: September 2023

The latest volunteering news, resources and dates for your diary

  • Involving volunteers

Practical support bulletin: September 2023

Resources, free events, support and guidance on the big issues affecting small charities

  • Financial management
  • Funding and income
  • Responding to crises

Government policy and funding round-up: September 2023

An update on our influencing work, government policy and funding announcements

  • Government and politics
  • Funding and income

Responsible and ethical use of technology

Guidance around using technology responsibly and ethically in your organisation

  • Digital and technology

Understanding responsible and ethical use of technology

Use this page to understand why you need a plan to manage ethical risks when you use technology

  • Digital and technology

Technology — when good intentions go wrong

Use this page to explore imagined-from-life examples which look at the ethical challenges involved in technology and what can go wrong

  • Digital and technology

Consequence scanning when you work with technology

How to reduce technology-based risk within your organisations

  • Digital and technology

The digital maturity matrix

The digital maturity matrix is a simple tool to assess your current strengths and weaknesses, and helps you see what you need to do next to improve.

How AI can help small charities

Understanding artificial intelligence (AI) and how small charities can use it to improve their work.

  • Digital and technology

Dealing with unconscious bias

Tackle one of the biggest obstacles we face when creating digital content, software and services

Planning user research

Use this page to learn about how to plan user research. The first step in planning any successful digital project is to explore what people need. Here are some methods to help you do that well.

  • Digital and technology

Asking good user research interview questions

Use this page to ask the right kind of questions when you're planning user research interviews

  • Digital and technology

Best practice and legal compliance for consent and data storage

  • Digital and technology

Mentoring and coaching skills (0.5 days)

This course provides an introduction to the key differences between mentoring and coaching. You’ll learn how to use both skills effectively to develop and support staff, volunteers and clients

Theory of change for strategic planning and evaluation (1 day)

Learn how to create your own theory of change and narrative. This course will challenge you to think critically about what you're doing and why

Charity finance skills (1 day)

This course will help people with little or no financial background to feel confident in managing day-to-day charity finance

Charity trustee induction and refresher (2 x 0.5 days)

This course will give trustees an overview and understanding of charity governance, regulation and best practice

NCVO/Zurich webinar: Developing and embedding effective risk assessments for volunteers

Join us for an essential webinar on creating and embedding effective risk assessments to protect your volunteers and those they support

Financial governance for trustees (0.5 day)

This course will revisit the core financial duties of a charity trustee and explore what it means to practice good financial governance

Strategic leadership (1 day)

This practical one-day course for aspiring and existing charity leaders will elevate your strategic leadership skills, so you can create lasting impact for your organisations and the communities you serve.

Safeguarding essentials in charities (1 day)

All voluntary organisations have a duty to keep the people they work with safe from harm. This course introduces the basics of safeguarding within a charity context in England and highlights effective safeguarding practice

Tools and methods for measuring outcomes (1 day)

Get an introduction to data collection methods and practical guidance for evaluating your work

Recruiting volunteers (0.5 day)

This course will develop your skills and help you use a marketing approach to recruit volunteers