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Help and guidance

Our help and guidance content includes step-by-step guides, downloadable templates and interactive tools to help you run your voluntary organisation

Setting up

Learn about the practical steps you need to take to set up your own organisation

  • Setting up

Deciding to set up a new charitable organisation

Access our guidance to help you decide if you should set up a new charity, voluntary organisation or community group

  • Setting up

Choosing your legal structure

What you need to consider when choosing your legal structure and the main characteristics of different legal structures

  • Setting up

Understanding charity status and registration

Find out what charity status is and if you need to register as a charity

  • Setting up

Understanding social enterprise

Find out about social enterprises and their associated legal structures

  • Setting up

A charity's governing document: What it should include

Find out what information should be included in your charity's governing document

  • Setting up

Running a charity

Guidance and tools to help you run your charity or voluntary organisation

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Setting up
  • Closing down

Employing and managing staff

Practical guidance to help you recruit, manage and develop paid members of staff, including a useful introduction to employment law

  • Employing and managing staff

Employing staff essentials

Familiarise yourself with the essential aspects of employing paid members of staff

  • Employing and managing staff

State of the Sector 2024: Reaction and reflections

Our chief executive Sarah Vibert shares her thoughts on key findings from NPC’s new charity sector report

  • Government and politics
  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Responding to crises

The True Cost of Delivering Public Services

A survey of UK charities

  • Government and politics
  • Funding and income

Government policy and funding round-up: March 2024

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

  • Government and politics

Update on our work to tackle public services delivery crisis

An update on our work to address the chronic underfunding of public services delivered by charities.

  • Funding and income

Spring budget 2024: What it means for charities

Key points from the budget and analysis of how it will impact the voluntary sector

  • Government and politics
  • Funding and income

Practical support bulletin: March 2024

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

  • Business planning and strategy
  • Involving volunteers

Impact round-up: March 2024

Our latest impact and evaluation support, guidance and training

  • Impact and evaluation

Volunteering round-up: March 2024

The latest volunteering news, resources and dates for your diary

  • Involving volunteers

The inside track: March 2024

Our latest update on what’s happening in Westminster and how it might impact charities

  • Government and politics

Governance round-up: March 2024

The latest governance news, resources and dates for your diary

  • Governance

Involving paid staff as volunteers

Things to consider when paid staff want to volunteer for the organisation that employs them

  • Involving volunteers

Data protection and volunteers

Guidance on holding and protecting data on volunteers

  • Involving volunteers

Employment status

Guidance on when a volunteer can demonstrate that they're working under a contract, and what that means

  • Involving volunteers

Tribunal decisions

Examples of tribunal decisions where a volunteer be seen as an employee

  • Involving volunteers

National minimum wage

What happens if a volunteer is found to be eligible for the minimum wage

  • Involving volunteers

Making sure you don't create an employment contract

How to make the most of volunteers while ensuring they don’t become workers or employees

  • Involving volunteers

Volunteering and benefits

Learn more about volunteering while receiving state benefits

  • Involving volunteers

Volunteering, tax and national insurance

Learn about the tax and national insurance implications for volunteers

  • Involving volunteers

Volunteering and health and safety

Guidance on the health and safety measures you need to put in place when working with volunteers

  • Involving volunteers

Insurance and volunteers

Guidance on arranging insurance for volunteers and volunteer-involving organisations

  • Involving volunteers

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

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.

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

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

Better impact reporting (0.5 day)

This practical session will build your awareness of different types of reporting and support you to tell a compelling story through your reporting

Advanced project management (1 day)

Are you confident in your general project management skills but looking to strengthen your expertise? This course moves beyond the basics of project management to better understand techniques, activities and principles within a charity context.