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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.

Volunteering during the covid-19 pandemic: What we know

  • Coronavirus
  • Involving volunteers

Governance round-up: July 2022

Read our latest round-up for trustees and governance professionals, with useful sector updates, training courses and written guidance.

  • Governance

Impact round-up: August 2022

In this edition, Sandy Chidley, senior consultant, spotlights opportunities in impact and evaluation and shares useful evaluation resources and training opportunities

  • Impact and evaluation

Time Well Spent: A national survey on the volunteer experience

Our survey of more than 10,000 people provides the most detailed analysis of volunteering for a decade

  • Involving volunteers
  • Digital and technology

Time Well Spent: Employer-supported volunteering

Building on existing work on corporate volunteering, this report looks at employer-supported volunteering through the eyes of the volunteer

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Involving volunteers

Government policy and funding round-up: August 2022

This round-up will help you to stay informed about our influencing work, and any government policy and funding announcements. For news related to what’s happening in parliament, see our regular inside track round-up.

  • Government and politics

Governance round-up: August 2022

Governance consultant Sally Stephens shares updates on the Charities Act and the Charity Governance Code, along with some exciting training opportunities for trustees

  • Governance

Turning abandoned shares into support for communities – and what you can do to help

We explain what dormant assets are, how they could support communities and how you can help make that happen.

  • Law and regulation

Supporting members through the cost of living crisis

  • Government and politics
  • Responding to crises

Government must provide immediate financial support to help communities

Voluntary sector partners joint statement on the cost of living crisis

  • Government and politics
  • Responding to crises

Our financial position and the importance of timing

Learn more about your organisation's financial position and understanding the timings of financial challenges

  • Financial management

Insolvency and cashflow forecasts

Learn more about what insolvency means and how cashflow forecasting can help

  • Financial management

Taking control, adopting a people-centred approach and seeking professional advice

Guidance on taking control of your situation, adopting a people-centred approach and seeking professional advice

  • Financial management

Key stages of collaboration

Learn about the key stages of collaboration and what they mean for your organisation

  • Collaboration

What is collaborative working?

Collaborative working, also known as joint or partnership working, covers a variety of ways that two or more organisations can work together

  • Collaboration

Benefits and risks of collaborative working

Decide whether collaboration will help you achieve your aims by learning about the potential benefits and risks

  • Collaboration

Should you collaborate?

A checklist of questions to help you decide whether to work collaboratively on a given project.

  • Collaboration

Top tips for collaboration

Tips to help voluntary organisations collaborate effectively with the right partners

  • Collaboration

The collaboration spectrum

This page explains the different ways that voluntary organisations may collaborate in order to bid for and deliver a commissioned contract

  • Collaboration

Partnerships

Guidance to help you decide whether working in partnership is right for your organisation

  • Collaboration

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

Leading change and transformation (2 days)

This practical two-day course for aspiring and existing charity leaders will teach you how to adapt to an ever-changing environment. Learn how to successfully deliver meaningful change to improve your team or organisation

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.

Managing people in the charity sector (2 days)

This course will equip managers in the voluntary sector with the skills and techniques they need to effectively manage paid members of staff

Advanced data protection (2 x 0.5 days)

This advanced course is specifically for data protection leads in charitable organisations. It will prepare your organisation for new laws and obligations.

Good practice in volunteer management (1 day)

This course provides an introduction to the key principles of good volunteer management and how to apply them in your organisation

Governance Forum

Our Governance Forum is a space for charity governance professionals and those who support good governance to come together, learn and network

Boost your personal influence and impact (0.5 day)

Learn practical tools and techniques to increase your capability, confidence and impact when seeking to influence others – both within and outside your organisation

Charity finance strategy (1 day)

This course will give you an overview of how to build a simple finance strategy. We’ll introduce tools to help you build the financial resilience of your charity