Guides

NPC has worked with many charities and social enterprises over the years to help them work out what data they need to understand and improve their work. It can be a confusing question, and sometimes even the word 'data' puts people off. Here our head of impact management James Noble introduces the different kinds of information organisations can collect.

Now we have another general election around the corner, many charities will be gearing up to get their causes up the policy agenda. But in such a complex and ever-changing environment—where attitudes and the policy agenda are affected by a million different factors—how can campaigners know if their efforts are having an impact?

How much a foundation pays out goes to their heart of its mission. But many boards do not regularly consider how much money they are giving away over all, and whether this fits with what they're trying to achieve. So how can trustees guard against being too conservative in their spending?

‘A vision without a plan is just a dream. A plan without a vision is just drudgery. But a vision with a plan can change the world.’ We've updated of our free guide to charity strategy with some fresh thinking. Here Sally Bagwell introduces our approach and outlines some key principles for developing a strategy.

A charity closing is not a bad thing if it benefits its users. When news hit last September that leading childcare charity 4Children had ceased operating, NPC’s CEO Dan Corry argued that charity sector should learn from this type of event. The charity, it seemed, had managed to close in a way that did minimal damage to its beneficiaries and staff—a major coup. So what went right? We spoke to it’s former and final CEO to learn from their successful closure.

Andrew Weston outlines two key questions charities must ask themselves when designing a digital product or service.

Putting all your eggs in one basket, or your money where your mouth is? Views differ as to whether trustees should be expected to donate money as well as time to the charities they serve. Ruth Gripper explores the arguments for and against.

Terms like 'start-up' and 'social enterprise' sound like brand new approaches to pervasive social issues. But, as he explains below, James Noble has found that the model is not quite as new as we might think. And like the social enterprises of old, modern ventures need a solid approach to understanding and improving the success of their work. Read about an 'olde worlde' approach to social impact, and our guide for today's start-ups.