State of the Sector
NPC’s State of the Sector programme seeks to inject new thinking to how charity leaders can adapt and thrive in a changing world.
State of the Sector is the most rigorous analysis of sector leader opinion, and how it changes over time.
How charities have reacted to Covid-19
Covid-19 is changing the sector, but in divergent ways. Some have narrowed the range of services they offer, whilst others are broadening their activities to meet new needs or to reflect existing needs becoming deeper and more complex.
Charities told us that a big barrier to impact was the lack of recognition from government, funders, and society at large. We believe all charities should gather evidence of their vital role in the crisis and the effect that the changes they are making are having on beneficiaries.
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Where we stood as the crisis hit
Our research captures the charity sector in the final moments of calm before the storm, offering insight into its strengths, weaknesses, challenges and risks. It paints a picture of a broad and complex sector, wrestling with its relationship with government, funding challenges, technological change and its own diversity and representativeness.
We hope that by understanding the trajectory the sector has been on since 2017, funders, philanthropists and policymakers will be more able to understand vulnerabilities and help charities adapt to the new challenges they face, so they can keep serving the people who need them more than ever.
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Our earlier research
State of the Sector is a long-running research programme, allowing us to compare how charities, contexts and challenges are changing over time.
Project Lead
Selected media coverage
The Guardian Voluntary
Have charities weathered the worst of the storms? The forecast is mixed.
Third Sector
Most departmental funding from £750m rescue package is available, minister claims
Civil Society
Government and NLCF ‘resolving final issues’ around small charity funding
Charity Digital
Coronavirus: Lack of digital confidence threatens charities’ support for affected communities
Charity Times
Coronavirus: Charities at greater risk due to public sector contracts, research shows
Children and Young People Now
Coronavirus: Children's charities threatened by major income drop
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