Guides

This page includes links to download documents. Some links are to external sites. HLC cannot be held responsible for the content of documents produced by external organisations.

To download a document click on the link using the right mouse button and select the "Save target as" option. Some downloads will need Adobe Reader installed on your PC 

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Assessing change: developing and using outcomes monitoring tools

A brand new practical handbook on developing monitoring tools to help organisations demonstrate the difference they are making.

Packed with practical tips, step-by-step guidelines, and an emphasis on integrating monitoring systems into day-to-day practices, this is an essential resource if you want to help your groups capture valuable outcomes information. 

Download Assessing change: developing and using outcomes monitoring tools now!

 

Charities & Public Services Toolkit - Free guide to help not-for-profits become more visible online

The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) has teamed up with brands such as Oxfam, Shelter and the Central Office of Information to provide best practice case studies in the use of search, and stress the importance of having a thorough strategy.

With 89% of active internet users relying on search engines, resulting in almost 2 billion searches per month in the UK it is now the cornerstone of consumes' online activity, and the toolkit is an essential for charity brands looking to boost their traffic, public interest and donations online.

The toolkit illustrates how for non-profit and charity campaigns there are a number of reasons why search marketing is so significant - in particular it can help generate donations, you can monitor results in real time and you can also use search to react immediately to emergency news stories or natural disasters when they hit.

Download: Search Toolkit for Charities & Public Sector - PDF (1165k)

 

Media Guide for Small Voluntary Sector Organisations - So you think you want to use Social Media?

The Yorkshire and Humber regional ICT champion has produced an excellent guide to using social media, for small voluntary and community organisations.

Download your free copy

 

Equality Act 2010

Equality Act 2010 - A summary guide for voluntary and community sector service providers

 

Financial guidance for charities from the Charity Commission

The Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales, has published four updated sets of financial guidance for charities and their advisers covering risk management; financial difficulties and insolvency; reserves and internal financial controls.

The four sets of guidance are:

The guidance has been revised to reflect new developments and the challenging economic climate that charities now face. It covers the main points of financial management, planning and control in the context of charity law and good practice.


Charities Evaluation Service

Organisational health checks

Charities Evaluation Services (CES) has just published a new online review of organisational 'health checks' used by infrastructure organisations in their capacity building work with front line organisations.

The report is split into sections so that you can dip in and out of the parts most relevant to your work. Or you can download it as one document by clicking here.

If you work in a development capacity, click here to see how the tools are being used.

If you are thinking of creating your own health check tool, see an overview of what's already out there.

You might fund capacity building work and want to see the landscape of health check tools at a glance.

The study was written for the National Performance Programme by Dr Jean Ellis of Charities Evaluation Services with Tracey Gregory.

 

NCVO-Navca procurement guide

Pathways through the Maze - a Guide to Procurement Law, written by Anthony Collins Solicitors, aims to help voluntary groups understand the legal and practical issues of public sector contracting. It is free to download from the NCVO and Navca websites.

You can download from one of two sites by following the links below.

http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/pathways  

http://www.navca.org.uk/localvs/lcp/news/maze  

 

A Guide to Social Return on Investment

A Major New Guide on Social Impact launched by Ministers. This publication will help charities, social enterprises and all organisations with a focus on social and environmental values to communicate their impact effectively to customers, government, public service commissioners, investors and the wider public.

Click here to download "A Guide to Social Return on Investment" from the SROI Network.

Governance Code for the Voluntary Sector

This Code is designed for all those involved in the governance of voluntary and community sector organisations, and particularly for trustees, and chief executives. It will also help staff, volunteers, members and service users to understand what they can expect from a well-governed organisation. Download the document from NCVO web site. Download the document from NCVO web site.

Big Lottery Fund Guide to Completing Applications

The Big Lottery Fund has produced a wholly useful guide to filling out the outcomes part of application forms for their demand-led programmes.

Click here to download the guide from the BLF site.

HLC's Through the Maze Guides

A series of step by step handbooks to give a general overview on certain topics and guide your organisation “Through the Maze”.

Funding Applications Made Easy

A step by step guide to the application process.

Download "Through the Maze" Funding Applications Made Easy (PDF 927 kb)

Secured Your Funding the Next Steps

So you have your funding, what do you do next? Covers planning and time management, project reviews, monitoring and evaluation and cashflows.

Download "Through the Maze" - Secured Your Funding? .... The Next Steps .... (PDF - 151 kb)

Setting Up an Organisation

Why start a new group? What do you want to achieve? Setting your aims and objectives, developing your ideas, constitutions, management committees, legal obligations, etc.

Download "Through the Maze" - Setting Up An Organisation (PDF - 142 kb)

Working Towards a Community Building

This guide covers, in a simple way, all the issues you need to address during the early planning stages.

Download "Through the Maze" - Working Towards a Community Building (PDF - 203 kb)