Today we’ve launched the 14th edition of the UK Civil Society Almanac. It paints a picture of a sector that is running to stand still – in terms of income and spending it is roughly the same size as 6 years ago.
But that overall picture hides the vast variation below the surface. Many organisations have seen falls in income from government, or from other sources, while others have risen – particularly earned income from individuals.
This year’s Almanac is supported by Sarasin and Partners.
If you’re taking a look at the Almanac today then here are the best places to start:
The basics
The Almanac has its own dedicated website. For an overview of the findings then head to the introduction. It takes you through the story of this year’s Almanac and points you to more detail. The press release shows what we think the key findings mean for the sector.
For NCVO members
You’ll be receiving your free copy of the printed Almanac in the post soon, but in the meantime head over to the members’ area of the website where you can download a copy of the PDF and access presentations using the data.
And don’t forget you can access our free guide for NCVO members on using the Almanac in your work.
Volunteering
This year’s online edition has five pages of data on volunteering, drawing on the Community Life survey, our survey of volunteer centres and other sources. Our estimate is that 21 million people across the UK volunteer – find out who they are and what they do.
The detail
To dive into the detail of the Almanac start with the contents. From there you can access the data bank with detailed tables and our methodology. Every chart and table in the online version can also be downloaded as a CSV file or an image.
I hope this gives you some places to start with the Almanac and that it provides you with the evidence needed to support your work. If you have any questions or thoughts then it would be great to hear from you – comment below, email almanac@ncvo.org.uk or tweet me @kanedr or #ncvoalmanac.
David Kane was formerly NCVO’s Senior Research Officer. He discusses open data and emerging trends in the voluntary and community sector and wider civil society. 
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