NPC's manifesto for social impact

April 2010, 14 pages

With the recession, and the prominence of the voluntary sector in the coalition's Big Society agenda, now more than ever there needs to be a sharper focus on social impact.

The 2010 election offered a great opportunity for government to review and improve the way it works with charities and philanthropists. NPC published its social impact manifesto just before the 2010 general election, outlining recommendations to help government invest in what works but also save money. We calculated one scheme featured in the manifesto to have the potential to save government £150m per year, while also reducing the current reporting burden on charities.

>>Read NPC's manifesto for social impact.

The manifesto puts forward six recommendations that could improve social impact.

Supporting charity effectiveness

1. Government should introduce an Impact Fund to help charities measure their own impact.
2. Spending departments should coordinate the development of standardised frameworks for impact measurement.
3. Government should publish the evidence it collects from charities in the same way that it publishes other public services performance data.

Supporting effective philanthropy

1. Government should support the provision of good quality information to help philanthropists focus on effectiveness.
2. Government should promote the development and take-up of good quality philanthropy advice.
3. Government should build sustainable partnerships with philanthropists.

We hope our manifesto will contribute to an ongoing debate about how government can improve the way it works with the third sector. We’re keen to get your comments. Please email Clare Yeowart, our public affairs manager if you would like to discuss this further.

Read posts on NPC's blog about the Big Society, and a 'to-do list' for Minister for Civil Society Nick Hurd - encouraging shared measurement, developing an impact fund, freeing up data, and scaling up charities.