Top digital tools to help charities measure their impact

Evaluating the impact and value of charity work is crucial to attracting further funding and helping to improve. Here are five top digital tools and resources to help charities prove they are making a difference.

This page and the webpages linked below are designed to help you take your first steps into measuring, understanding, and improving your impact. The cycle of good impact practice defines what impact practice is and articulates a clear path to success.

What is impact practice?

These pages are designed to encourage good impact practice through clear and practical guidance.

Impact practice encompasses all the activities you do to focus on impact and learn how to best serve the people you support.

The Big Mental Health Survey is a major new research project to understand people’s experiences of mental health support provided by primary care and the voluntary and community sector (VCS) and experiences of discrimination in the community.

To view the full resource see the PDF attached below.

Mind reports on a range of mental health issues, such as prevention, crisis care, benefits and sport.

Coronavirus reports

Take a look at their reports which explore the impact that coronavirus has had on our mental health and shares recommendations for how we protect everyone's mental health going forward. 

Resources

SANE provides emotional support to anyone affected by mental health problems, including families, friends and carers. Using our database, we can also offer support in considering other options for help, including local services and agencies.

To download the full resourse click here

As part of our coverage of the best digital tools for service delivery, we highlighted chatbots as a solution for keeping in touch with service users. Here’s how to get started.

We share the best cost-effective social media management platforms that charities need to know about. Launching into a full-on social media strategy is an important way to transform fundraising and connect with a wider audience.

To view the full resource click here

Reform

Reform is established as the leading Westminster think tank for public service reform.

We are dedicated to achieving better and smarter public services. Our mission is to set out ideas that will improve public services for all and deliver value for money. We work on core sectors such as health and social care, education, home affairs and justice, and work and pensions. Our work also covers issues that cut across these sectors, including public service design and delivery and digital public services.

This report brings together recommendations for designing digital skills interventions for older people with care and support needs. It draws on insights from two pathfinders, which were funded by NHS Digital and supported by Good Things Foundation as part of the Widening Digital Participation programme. The pathfinders generated insights on:

• Small system-level changes that can embed digital inclusion in social care support.

• Factors influencing digital inclusion within social housing schemes.

To view the full resource open the pdf attached to this post.

About the Author Tony Chapman is Director of Policy & Practice, St Chad’s College, Durham University and Honorary Professor in the Department of Sociology, Durham University https://www.stchads.ac.uk/category/research/Third Sector Trends Study