Charity Impact

Digital for charities and nonprofits with Ross McCulloch, Founder of Third Sector Lab

Are you interested in harnessing technology for social impact at your charity, social enterprise or non profit?
Are you interested in digital improvement or digital transformation?
Much of the nonprofit sector is way behind where it could be in terms of digital capabilities, so Ross McCulloch talks us through key areas charity leaders and teams need to think about in harnessing technology for social impact.
Ross McCulloch is founder of Third Sector Lab, where he leads on working with charities to help them use digital and social media as a tool to deliver organisational objectives. He is the founder of Digital Trustees Scotland - a movement which aims to get a tech professional on every charity board. Ross developed and facilitates the highly-successful SCVO Digital Senior Leaders Programme. He also runs the CharityComms Scotland Networking Group and Third Sector Geeks WhatsApp Group to help strengthen the charity digital community.
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The Charity Impact podcast is the in-depth podcast for people working in the charity / non-profit sector, or more broadly to achieve social impact and/or social change.
We cover a range of charity sector issues and topics including strategy, funding and philanthropy, social impact, learning and evaluation, income generation and fundraising, governance and more.
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If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
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For episode notes with links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
Sign up to our e-mails for the opportunity to submit questions to future guests via the banner at www.kedaconsulting.co.uk  
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us by e-mail at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
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Past guests on the Charity Impact Podcast include:
Nick Temple – CEO, Social Investment Business: social investment, social enterprise, social value.
Derek Bardowell – CEO, Ten Years’ Time: funding racial justice and social change, systemic challenges, new funders and changemakers.
Emma Beeston – Philanthropy Advisor: philanthropy advice, impact measurement, choosing charities to support, funding trends.
Rhodri Davies – Director, Why Philanthropy Matters: philanthropy, impact and effectiveness, tech trends.
Sufina Ahmad MBE – Director, John Ellerman Foundation: philanthropy, grantmaking, leadership, governance, strategy.
Chris Sherwood – CEO, RSPCA: innovation, service improvement, governance, strategy, professional development.
Paul Irwin – Founder, TryLife: youth work, interactive digital films, gaining 7m Facebook followers, mental health therapies.
Ed Archer – Head of Service Design and Delivery, Toynbee Hall: co-production, shifting power, diversity and inclusion.
Paul Nott – Charity recruitment and retention specialist: staff recruitment and retention, professional development.
Amanda Batten – CEO, Contact: strategy, campaigning, collaboration, leadership.
Dee Brecker – Deputy Director of high value fundraising, Guys and St Thomas’ Charity: fundraising, diversity, inclusion, networking, strategy.
Mark Lever OBE – CEO, Helpforce: leadership, campaigning, service failure, social enterprise.

Social investment with Nick Temple, funding charities and social enterprises to grow their impact

In this episode of the Charity Impact podcast, I talk to Nick Temple, CEO of Social Investment Business, so if you’re interested in social investment for your charity or social enterprise, or if you’re just looking for some insight into the current social investment market as I was, then this episode is for you.
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The Charity Impact podcast is the in-depth podcast for people working in the charity / non-profit sector, or more broadly to achieve social impact and/or social change.
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We discuss social investment, starting with an introduction to the market and the context of how the social investment sector has developed over time to the point we’re at now where there is more social investment being made and a wider range of products and providers but there is still room for improvement, for example in making the finance more accessible to underrepresented parts of the sector including black and minority led organisations who have been under-invested in historically.
Nick outlines the main types of investment product available and gives some insight to the Social Investment Business portfolio, in terms of who has been funded, the mix of investment products and how the investment is being used for social impact including asset purchase, cash flow, seed funding, bridging loans and more.
We also look at common traits of successful applications for social investment; the application and assessment process and requesting proportional and useful information, shifting the requirement for analysing the data from applicant to funder.
Nick tells us about how the Social Investment Business has used data to improve transparency, effectiveness and to understand the landscape investees operate in; and how learning about inequity has led to working with partners such as Create Equity and Ubele Initiative to reach Black and minority led organisations who haven’t had the same access to funding historically.
We end the conversation with a look at the impact of the Social Value Act on charities and social enterprises, including how to benefit from it when preparing tenders and as a result of large scale public sector programmes that need to demonstrate social value.
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If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
For links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us at 
E-mail: hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/charity-impact-podcast/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090990481787 
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. Each episode, I ask a guest working in this field about their approach so that you and I can gain insights to maximise the impact of our own work. These 1-2-1 interviews will cover a variety of areas, including strategy, social impact, learning and evaluation, funding and philanthropy, income generation and fundraising, sector issues and more.
This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
 

Funding racial justice and social change with Derek Bardowell; highlighting new funders and changemakers that are showing us how things could be different.

Derek Bardowell and Alex Blake discuss new approaches to funding racial justice and social change, highlighting initiatives that are setting an example of what a fairer society could look like.
The Charity Impact podcast is the in-depth podcast for people working in the charity / non-profit sector, or more broadly to achieve social impact and/or social change.
In this episode of the Charity Impact podcast, I talk to Derek Bardowell, author of Giving Back and CEO of Ten Years’ Time.
We discuss the problem with the traditional notion of philanthropy, charity and the systems in wider society; and go back to the original meaning of philanthropy – love of humanity, not the notion of wealthy people giving to the poor.
Derek explains that the current model of philanthropy is based on preservation of the status quo. It’s a cycle that preserves power for philanthropists and for very large charities/institutions. It’s not addressing the root causes of issues, it’s not funding systems change. When so much of our financial system is built on exploitation, we need to create a new way that is regenerative and fair for all.
There are different ways of doing things and Derek highlights multiple positive examples of both funders and organisations/initiatives that are creating social change. If people don’t know where to start, there are now organisations with the specialist knowledge to distribute funds equitably and to support black and minoritized communities. These new funders and changemakers are showing us how things can be done differently and what a different society could look like. 
We also discuss Derek’s popular book, Giving Back, which critiques philanthropy and offers solutions; as well as lots of other books, organisations and movements to read, learn about and support.
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
For links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us at 
E-mail: hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/charity-impact-podcast/
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. Each episode, I ask a guest working in this field about their approach so that you and I can gain insights to maximise the impact of our own work. These 1-2-1 interviews will cover a variety of areas, including strategy, social impact, learning and evaluation, funding and philanthropy, income generation and fundraising, sector issues and more.
This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
 

Emma Beeston on advising philanthropists, giving strategically, assessing impact, trends in philanthropy and grantmaking.

“It’s giving permission sometimes, to not be perfect. There’s this sense that there’s a magic answer. Everybody has all these opinions about what philanthropy should and shouldn’t be, so it can be quite a baffling world if you’re new to it.”
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
In this episode of the Charity Impact podcast, I talk to philanthropy advisor Emma Beeston. We talk about the role of the philanthropy advisor, the types of philanthropists Emma works with and the process of helping them to give strategically. We cover some of the thinking around how to choose which charities to support and what makes an effective charity; the pressure of trying to make the perfect decision and the inevitable need to take risks.
We also talk about the debate between trust-based philanthropy and more data driven approaches, trends in philanthropy and grantmaking including the changing attitudes of the younger generation and increased collaboration between grantmakers.
Emma also introduces us to her new book, co-authored with Beth Breeze, ‘Advising Philanthropists: principles and practice’, which they believe is the first ever book specifically on philanthropy advice (more info on this at the bottom of the page).
Scroll down for Emma's biog.
 
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us at 
E-mail: hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/charity-impact-podcast/
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to increase their income and impact.  
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
 
Emma Beeston, Philanthropy Advisor
Emma is an independent philanthropy advisor to philanthropists, families and foundations. Her advice guides donors from exploring their values through to implementing their giving to achieve their philanthropic goals. Emma specialises in supporting those new to philanthropy and facilitating multi-generational giving. Prior to her current role, Emma worked for grant-making organisations including Children in Need, Lloyds Bank Foundation and Comic Relief.
Emma co-created with Beth Breeze the Advising Donors module for the Philanthropic Studies master’s degree programme at the University of Kent. She is also a lecturer on the Philanthropy, Grantmaking and Social investment master’s degree programme at Bayes Business School and a trainer with the Association of Charitable Foundations. She wants philanthropy to be accessible to all and is co-founder of a giving circle, Bath Women’s Fund.

Rhodri Davies on Why Philanthropy Matters, approaches to giving, assessing charity impact and exploring tech trends.

In this episode of the Charity Impact podcast, I speak to Rhodri Davies, a widely-respected expert and commentator on philanthropy and civil society issues. We discuss philanthropy - why it matters, how its approached, various current issues, technology trends and the challenge of measuring impact and effectiveness.
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
 
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
 
Rhodri Davies, Director of Why Philanthropy Matters
Rhodri Davies is the founder and Director of Why Philanthropy Matters - a space for exploring philanthropy: what it is, how it works and why it affects all our lives. Rhodri draws on a deep knowledge and passion for the history of philanthropy as well as current issues and trends, to put philanthropy in its proper context and help us all understand where it has come from, what it looks like today and where it might be going in the future.
Rhodri’s new book is titled What is Philanthropy for? (click the link to find out more on this).
Rhodri is a Pears Research Fellow in the Centre for Philanthropy at the University of Kent, and also the Philanthropy Expert in Residence at the Pears Foundation. He also hosts Philanthropisms, the podcast that puts philanthropy in context.
Rhodri was formerly Head of Policy at Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), where he created and led the in-house think tank Giving Thought.
In 2016 he published Public Good by Private Means: How philanthropy shapes Britain, a book tracing the history of philanthropy in Britain and what it tells us about the modern context. Since then he has been a self-confessed history of philanthropy nerd, and tweets about this at @Philliteracy.
He is involved with a number of external projects and steering groups, including the World Economic Forum Technology and Social Justice Initiative, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Better Giving Studio and the Wellcome Trust-funded Border Crossings project (which is exploring the relationship between voluntary action and the NHS since 1948).
 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to increase their income and impact.  
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
 
Thank you to Feedspot for selecting the Charity Impact podcast in its list of the Top 25 Charity Podcasts on the web.

Sufina Ahmad MBE on philanthropy, grantmaking, charity leadership & governance, and developing strategy in complex and changing environments.

“We must work as trustees to always act in the strategic because we are not close enough to the work to know what to do at an operational level and the moment we think we do is the moment we are failing.”
 
Sufina Ahmad MBE on philanthropy, grantmaking, charity leadership & governance, and developing strategy in complex and changing environments.
 
In this episode, I speak to Sufina Ahmad about her impressive career progression, learning and development, charity governance and leadership, philanthropy, grantmaking and developing strategy in complex and changing environments.
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
 
Sufina Ahmad MBE, Director, John Ellerman Foundation
As Director of the John Ellerman Foundation, Sufina works closely with trustees, staff and stakeholders, including grantees, to ensure all aspects of the Foundation’s strategy, governance and grantmaking work is delivered effectively.
Before joining the Foundation, Sufina worked in corporate strategy and performance at the City of London Corporation. She has also worked for the National Lottery Community Fund and City Bridge Trust in grantmaking, strategy and policy roles. Sufina started her career in service delivery and business development roles for charities working with adults with learning disabilities and older people.
Sufina holds trusteeships with Just for Kids Law, We Belong, The Charterhouse and the Association of Charitable Foundations. Sufina is an honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, having chaired their Expert Panel on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. Sufina was awarded an MBE for charitable services in 2020.
 
For other episodes covering these and similar themes, check out:
Mark Lever - CEO experiences, leadership, training...
Dee Brecker - fundraising, strategy, DEI, culture...
Amanda Batten - CEO experience, strategy, campaigning, collaboration...
Chris Sherwood - Leadership, strategy, change, innovation...
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to increase their income and impact.  
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.

Chris Sherwood, RSPCA CEO on innovation, service improvement, governance, strategy and professional development (#8)

“Its not right, it could be better and could be different.”
 
Chris Sherwood, RSPCA CEO on innovation, service improvement, governance, strategy and professional development (#8)
 
In this episode, some of the areas we discuss are:
Chris’ experience working in the charity sector, living with epilepsy, having a working class background and experiencing homophobia
Innovation and service improvement in a continuously changing world
Organisational change projects
Changing the governance model and strategy development at the RSPCA
Reflections on career and professional development.
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
About Chris Sherwood
Chris Sherwood, who has been Chief Exec of the RSPCA since August 2018. Before that Chris was CEO at Relate for 3 years having previously been their Director of Policy, Communications and Digital Services.
Before that he had roles as Director of Innovation and Development at Scope and Senior Development Manager at Nesta where he led their work on Co-production, People Powered Health and Ageing. Prior to joining the voluntary sector he worked in local government while studying for his degree.
 
“Most innovation is hidden in public services and charities…people will find ways to do things more effectively and efficiently, not always within the rules.”
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and navigate a range of challenges and opportunities. 
 
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.

Paul Irwin on his personal story, from youth work to founding Trylife, making the world’s most complex interactive digital films, gaining 7m Facebook followers and doing a lot of therapy. (#7)

“The power is in your pocket (your phone) to change the world.”
In this episode, we discuss Paul’s story from being put into ‘care’ by the council as a teen which was actually just a B&B, to benefitting from youth work and then becoming a youth worker and going on to create Trylife, which has made a difference to so many disadvantaged young people. We discuss the co-production process, working with professionals and young people to create the most complex interactive film ever made, gaining 7 million Facebook followers, future plans and the deep work Paul has done during the pandemic to address his own mental health.
 
“TryLife interactive film series... You Make The Choices... You Live With The Consequences... You TryLife...”
Paul Irwin, founder of TryLife.
Paul Irwin has a background in working with disadvantaged young people from around the world. He created an interactive film series “TryLife” aimed at educating young people about the consequences of their actions. If you remember the old choice-based adventure books, TryLife is an interactive digital video version of those books, tackling real issues facing young people:
Episode 1 – drugs, alcohol and sexual health
Episode 2 – knife crime and gang violence
Episode 3 - mental health and suicide
Episode 4 – child sexual exploitation and grooming
Episode 5 – isolation and loneliness
Episode 6 – continuing on from episode 5, characters coming out of Covid lockdown
Episode 7 – teenage pregnancy and perinatal mental health.
Paul’s talent at creating and curating content has also seen incredible success in social media. He has amassed a huge following via TryLife, reaching up to 188,000,000 people per week. In one month, TryLife managed to reach 65% of all Facebook users in the USA with no marketing or advertising spend and using just one mobile phone.
Paul was the very first winner of the HRH Pitch at the Palace awards which is arguably the UK’s most prestigious competition for tech startups. Most recently, he started developing an interactive film with the heads of the Bloods, Crips and Mexican Mafia in South Central Los Angeles with the support of Facebook and the producer of Bladerunner.
 
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and navigate a range of challenges and opportunities. 
 
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.

Ed Archer on co-production; shifting power; and diversity and inclusion issues in the charity sector. (#6)

“It is better to do great work that nobody knows about, authentically, that makes a real difference to the community you are working with, than to say all the right things but to let down that person that comes through your door.”
 
Ed Archer on co-production; shifting power; and diversity and inclusion issues in the charity sector. (#6)
 
In this episode, our main focus is on co-production and shifting power to people with lived expertise / lived experience. We also discuss diversity and inclusion issues in the sector, particularly through the lens of class; and Ed shares some great examples and practical advice on inclusive recruitment practice (this is around 28 minutes in).
 
Our guest is Ed Archer, Head of Service Design and Delivery at Toynbee Hall.
Ed has previously been interim Policy & Campaigns Director at Ambitious about Autism, Director of the SEND Consortium, the National Strategic Lead for Children & Young People at Mencap, and is a member of the Council For Disabled Children Partnership Board.
Those job titles are all a bit of a mouthful but basically what Ed does and knows really well is helping charities to listen to and work alongside the people they serve, finding ways to build fairness and transfer of power into ways of working across service delivery, campaigning, recruitment and more. Its about designing systems and structures that serve communities in the way they want and need.
 
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and navigate a range of challenges and opportunities. 
 
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.

Sufina Ahmad MBE on grantmaking changes during Covid; racial equity; reimagining the art of the possible; and 4 leadership capabilities. (#5)

“I find time and again that it's the quiet leaders that have the skills and capacities that we need; they've got the ability to sense make, to relate, to vision, to invent. They're often the people who are doing the hard work and the necessary background work through which we can form these building blocks that we need to dismantle the oppression or the injustices that we currently find ourselves facing.”
 
Sufina Ahmad MBE on grantmaking changes during Covid; racial equity; reimagining the art of the possible; and leadership capabilities. (#5)
Sufina Ahmad MBE, Director, John Ellerman Foundation
 
As Director of the John Ellerman Foundation, Sufina works closely with trustees, staff and stakeholders, including grantees, to ensure all aspects of the Foundation’s strategy, governance and grantmaking work is delivered effectively.
 
This inbetween-isode features a clip from our 2021 event on grantmaking trends, where Sufina spoke about her personal reflections of leading John Ellerman Foundation since starting the role in January 2020 as well as what this period has meant for the grant making sector and what might come next.
 
Sufina’s insightful and inspiring talk covers leadership in the sector as well as some of the big issues for grantmakers around power, transparency and equity; how the response to Covid-19 has improved grantmaking practice; increased focus on diversity, equity and inclusion and re-energised the art of the possible.
 
For episode notes, links and other guests, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/ 
 
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review. 
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
 
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and make decisions to navigate the various challenges and opportunities we face in the sector.
 
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.