# Using charity services in Scotland

## About this briefing

These findings are based on a telephone survey of 1,028 respondents (adults aged 16+) commissioned by SCVO and conducted by Ipsos Mori on 9th\-16th November 2015.

## Key findings

*   Four out of five (84%) households in Scotland used a service or facility run by a charity over the previous year.
*   76% of households enjoyed charity-run culture, sport, leisure or social activities.
*   34% of households were helped by a charity last year, receiving advice, social care or health care services.
*   47% of people used a community centre or village hall in last year.
*   More than half of respondents (52%) took part in a charity-organised event last year.
*   43% of respondents attended a church, or an event in a church/religious building in the last year.
*   Younger and middle-aged people were slightly more likely to have used a charity service on the last year.  
    
*   For many charity services, there is little difference between Scotland and the UK.  However, Scottish households are far more likely to have used certain services in the last year:
    *   52% of Scottish households took part in a charity-run social event, versus only 14% in the wider UK
    *   47% used a community hall, versus only 18% in the wider UK.
    *   43% attended church, or a church-related event, versus 23% in the wider UK
    *   31% got advice from a charity, versus 16% in the wider UK

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## About SCVO

SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations) is the national membership organisation for Scotland's voluntary sector.

Our role is to champion the role of voluntary organisations in Scotland and to support them to do work that has a positive impact.

SCVO supports members and the wider voluntary sector with all aspects of setting up and running a voluntary organisation. SCVO represents the needs and concerns of the voluntary sector to the Scottish government in Holyrood and UK government and Westminster. Through our learning and events programme SCVO offers training and development opportunities to the sector.

Members access an extensive membership benefits package including specialist, in-depth, 1-to-1 guidance from our Information Services team and from professional service partners.

Access to exclusive membership networks (including comms, employers, governance and policy) supports members to grow their connections, stay up to date, exchange ideas and views with peers, and learn through tailored learning opportunities.

SCVO members enjoy free access to Funding Scotland Premium to stay on top of funding opportunities to support their organisation’s financial resilience.

Discounts and savings on SCVO products and services (including our HR service, managed IT support, payroll service and events and training) and partner offers provide members with support to allow them to focus on delivering their organisation’s goals. Further SCVO products and services include [extensive digital support](https://scvo.scot/support/digital), a climate action resource [Growing Climate Confidence](https://climateconfident.scot), a voluntary sector publication [Third Force News](https://tfn.scot) and a voluntary sector jobs and recruitment service [Goodmoves](https://goodmoves.org).

For more information on SCVO membership, visit [SCVO membership](https://scvo.scot/membership)