Charity analysis
What makes a good charity? How can I tell if a charity will achieve its aim? Will my donation make a difference? How can my charity be more effective?
At NPC we believe it takes both head and heart to change lives. Charities, funders and trustees must be passionate about a cause, but you also need clear-headed charity analysis to make smart choices.
Our tried and tested approach centres around the integral features common to all effective charities. If you’re looking for funding advice or if you’re a charity seeking strategy support, we can help.
We want to help you translate your passion for change into tangible impact. To do this, we analyse four vital areas of effectiveness:
- Purpose: Is the charity needed? Does the charity have a good strategy? Do the charity’s activities match its strategy? Does the charity achieve results?
- Impact practice: Does the charity use information to learn and improve? Does the charity know what it is achieving? Does the charity have the right approach to evaluation? Is the charity open about its findings?
- People: Does the charity have good leadership and governance? Does the charity recruit talented people? Do people using the charity help shape its work? Does the charity have a healthy organisational culture?
- Finance and operations: Is the charity financially secure? Is the charity managed well? Is the charity efficient?
To learn more about our approach, read our guide: What makes a good charity?
We’d love to see you at one of our training days. We also offer tailored consulting support to help you do good, better.
Featured resources for charity analysis
What makes a good charity? NPC’s guide to charity analysis
NPC's step-by-step guide to charity analysis, outlining our tried and tested approach which focuses on the key characteristics we believe are common to all effective charities.
How I’d analyse a charity in two hours
'There’s a lot to do if a funder wants to analyse a charity. What if the funder only has two hours to make a decision? Or a day at most?’
How I’d analyse a charity in two hours: Part 2
Last week I talked about part 1: analysing a charity in two hours, and focused on the first hour of desk research. This week, I'm talking about the phone call with the chief executive.
So… what actually makes a ‘good’ charity?
This week we launched a new guide to charity analysis. Ruth Gripper explains what the guide is, and how it can help both charities and donors understand what an effective charity looks like.
Recent updates
Briefing: Britain’s largest charities still face income hole
Even with the furlough scheme, redundancies, costs savings, fundraising drives and government support, big charities still face a worrying financial hole.
State of the Sector 2020
Our research captures our sector in the final few months of calm before the storm, offering insight into its strengths, weaknesses, challenges and risks, so that philanthropists, funders and policy makers can best support charities to help those who rely on them now more than ever.
State of the Sector 2020: Why insights and understanding are vital at this critical time for the charity sector
State of the Sector is our comprehensive survey of the opinions of charity leaders. PwC are proud to once again be co-sponsors of this research, at this critical juncture for the charity sector.
The long view on the state of the sector
One of the most exciting things about State of the Sector 2020, is its potential to compare its findings with our original research conducted in 2017 to see what's changed. Iona Joy sadly left us this year but before she did she shared the changes she's seen in the state of the sector.
State of the Sector 2020
State of the sector, our comprehensive survey of the opinions of charity leaders is returning for 2020. Theo Clay, lead researcher on the project sets out what's changed, what's stayed the same, and what we hope to achieve.
NPC Ignites 2019: Impact for people
The programme for this year's NPC Ignites has been announced. Find out what the hot topics are and who will be debating them.
Reforming charitable tax reliefs
Sir Nicholas Montagu KCB, Chair of the Charity Tax Commission shares his thoughts on the role and goals of the commission as it launches a new call for evidence.
‘Trust me, I’m a charity…’
NPC's new Head of Policy and External Affairs, Nathan Yeowell, reflects on his first NCVO conference and the new Charity Comission chair.
Late, lukewarm and bland?
The government has finally responded to the House of Lords Select Committee report on Stronger Charities for a Stronger Society—ten months after its publication. This week the Lords discussed the government’s response, and were not impressed. Nathan Yeowell, NPC’s new Head of Policy and External Affairs, has four reflections on the debate and the status of the report as we look forward to the year ahead.
15 years of NPC: What I’ve learned
15 years doesn’t sound long, but it means we're older than Twitter, the X factor and the financial crash. So we've seen a few things. Here our longest serving member of staff and head of our charities team, Iona Joy, shares her top lessons from a decade and a half of trying to do good better.
Happy birthday to us! NPC turns 15
NPC has been working for a decade and a half to improve the work of charitable organisations. Here our CEO Dan Corry explains why this milestone is no cause for rest, but merely a platform to continue to transform the charity sector.
What can charities learn from the Taylor Review on employment?
Yesterday's publication of the Taylor Review—which looks at modern work and employment practices—has rightly received lots of attention. And its findings bring a much needed prompt for the charity sector to scrutinise how it treats its employees. There are difficult questions to be asked and issues to be balanced. Here, Andrew Weston looks at job instability, low pay, and overwork in charity sector.
