Free data and digital support

Are you a UK third sector organisation that needs support with data and digital? You’re not alone! Small and medium organisations (and some larger ones) usually need an extra boost in their resources because they don’t have the capacity to tackle these projects in-house.

While we offer a variety of programmes, we know we can have a bigger impact on the sector through collaboration with like-minded organisations. If our programmes aren’t right for you, or you’re not sure exactly what you need, take a look at the organisations below and what they offer. Most of them are targeted at smaller organisations, based in the UK, and can help with analysis projects, data basics, or other digital support.

Organisation	Data analysis/viz	Desk research	Digital support	Training
CAST			✔	✔
Digital Candle			✔
Pro Bono Economics	✔	✔
Pro Bono OR	✔
Scottish Tech Army			✔
SCVO Digital Checkup			✔	✔
Statisticians for Society	✔			✔
Superhighways	✔	✔		✔

Who they are
CAST is a charity helping charities and social impact organisations to make the fullest use of digital technology in order to be as responsive and resilient as possible.

How they work
CAST runs a number of free programmes.

What they do

Digital support.

Training in user centred design via their Design Hops.

Building leadership in digital skills via their Digital Leads Network.

Free digital skills and toolkits.

Restrictions
None.

Who they are
Digital Candle is a free digital advice service for charities.

How they work
Charities submit a question and are matched with a volunteer digital expert for a one hour call.

What they do

Digital support including marketing and strategy.

Google Ads.

Remote service delivery.

Choosing digital tools.

Social media.

MailChimp and email marketing campaigns.

Restrictions
None.

Who they are
Pro Bono Economics uses economic analysis to help charities, funders, firms and policymakers measure, understand and articulate their impact; influence and inform policy; and make best use of their data, in order to collectively tackle the causes and consequences of low personal wellbeing in the UK.

How they work
Pro Bono Economics matches volunteer economists with charities.

What they do

Data analysis.

Short-term support with basic data analysis, data visualisations, or short-term research via their Data First Aid programme.

In-depth economic evaluations eg calculating your organisation’s social return on investment.

Desk research.

Restrictions
Data First Aid is free. In-depth economic evaluations may require contribution from charities over £2.5 million.

Who they are
The Operational Research (OR) Society supports organisations with operational research, which applies systematic analytic techniques to improve decision making.

How they work
The OR Society matches volunteer operational researchers with charities to support operational efficiency. 

What they do

Data analysis.

Appraising different options.

Improving processes.

Restrictions
None.

Who they are
SCVO’s Digital Checkup lets you assess your capability across a range of areas, helps you identify the strengths and the gaps your organisation is facing with digital technology, and how you compare to similar organisations.

How they work
The check up is free for all organisations. SCVO offers free support to Scottish charities to plan their next steps after taking the checkup.

What they do

Assessing baseline digital skills.

Restrictions
Follow-up support for Scottish charities.

Who they are
The Scottish Tech Army is a volunteer community provides digital help to organisations across the UK, to improve your confidence and understanding of how technology can be used to deliver your services, and deliver digital solutions to maximise the impact your organisation can have.

How they work
The STA assesses the technical feasibility and the level of effort needed to work on a solution, and matches you with suitable volunteers, for free.

What they do
A broad array of digital support including:

Web and app development.

CRM support and implementation.

Dashboards and reporting.

Restrictions
None.

Who they are
Statisticians for Society is a pro bono scheme from the Royal Statistical Society that connects professional statisticians and charitable organisations.

How they work
Statisticians for Society matches volunteer statisticians with charities looking to use data and evidence for decision making for short-term, finite projects.

What they do
Projects vary but can include:

Survey design and/or analysis.

Review of data quality and/or use.

Review of methodologies for research.

Restrictions
Annual turnover of less than £1 million.

Who they are
Superhighways offers advice, training, and IT support to help small charities and community organisations across London be more effective, raise their profile and demonstrate their impact using digital technology.

How they work
A mixture of free and low cost training and support options.

What they do

Training on specific tools such as Canva, PowerBI, and Excel.

Building websites.

IT support.

Data literacy and data skills training.

Restrictions
Based in London. Additional support available for small charities based in Kingston upon Thames.

Want to be featured on this page?

Did we miss you? If you are a UK-based organisation providing pro bono or low-cost data and digital support to third sector organisations, and want to be featured on this page, please contact us.

Looking for something not listed here?

If you need to recruit a volunteer for a more specific task, you can always try Reach Volunteering, which connects skilled volunteers to charities.