DigiShift 95: the Charity Digital Skills Report 2026 key findings

What does the Charity Digital Skills Report 2026 tell us about digital skills and AI across the sector..

Join us for a special DigiShift session with Zoe Amar as she unpacks the key findings from the Charity Digital Skills Report 2026—the sector's leading benchmark for digital skills, confidence and support needs.

Produced by Zoe Amar Digital and Nissa Ramsay, the report provides valuable insights into how charities across the UK are using digital technology, embracing innovation, and where further support is needed to drive digital change.

Join Zoe to explore the latest trends, challenges and opportunities shaping digital transformation in the charity sector, and discover what charities need to thrive in an increasingly digital world.

Drawing on responses from more than 800 organisations, the report reveals both encouraging progress and continuing challenges across the sector.

One of the standout findings is the rapid growth in the use of artificial intelligence (AI). Nearly 9 in 10 charities (88%) now use AI tools in their day-to-day work, up from 76% in 2025. Strategic and active adoption has also increased significantly, with 46% of organisations now embedding AI into their operations and services.

Charities are using AI in a wide range of ways, including:

• Administration and project management (71%)
• Social media and content creation (40%)
• Monitoring and evaluation (39%)

But this report is about more than just AI. It also highlights the digital skills, capacity and leadership gaps that continue to hold many organisations back.

Zoe Amar 

Zoe Amar is widely regarded as one of the charity sector’s leading digital experts. She founded digital agency and social enterprise Zoe Amar Digital in 2013. Their clients have included Sense, Anglia Ruskin University and The School for Social Entrepreneurs. Zoe is Chair of The Charity Digital Code of Practice. She writes for Third Sector about charities and also co-authored The Charity Commission’s digital guidance for trustees ‘Making Digital Work’. Zoe has 20 years’ experience as a charity trustee and currently sits on the board of Charity Digital Trust. Previously, Zoe worked for 5 years as part of the leadership team at a national charity that advised nonprofits about technology. She was voted one of the top 20 Pandemic Pioneers by Charity Times and has also won an Inspiring Communicator Award from CharityComms.

Anyone working at any level in a charity with an interest in digital skills in their workforce

Since March 2020, DigiShift has helped thousands of charities and non-profit organisations learn and collaborate. Run in collaboration between SCVO and Third Sector Lab, and supported by the National Lottery Community Fund (Scotland), DigiShift offers practical and actionable advice from digital experts.