The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations is the membership organisation for Scotland's charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises. Charity registered in Scotland SC003558. Registered office Mansfield Traquair Centre, 15 Mansfield Place, Edinburgh EH3 6BB.
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Support & learning blog
FOTA: How we use Good HQ It’s nearly six months since Friends of The Award in Edinburgh & the Lothians (AKA FOTA) claimed their page on Good HQ. They now have five reviews from a range of people that support the charity, including volunteers, members and service users. We caught... Read more
We know that charities are still not fully engaged with cyber threats and the risks they pose; phishing scams, ransomware and accidental loss of data. But now, with policies changing and GDPR looming, inactivity to these threats could soon come with sanctions. Over the last six... Read more
Good HQ Community Manager Lauren Plüss shares Big Hearts' experience of using the platform to gain feedback for their organisation. Big Hearts: How we use Good HQ Being a finalist in the Scottish Charity Awards in 2017, Big Hearts signed up to Good HQ to help promote their work... Read more
“We need to be much more proactive with the positive narrative around the vital work of the third sector. It’s not about ignoring the bad; it’s about getting a balance right" - Nicola Sturgeon at The Gathering, 21 February 2018. The media reporting of the Oxfam Scandal and the... Read more
In developing this website, we went through the following process: Define a project scope Document user needs Investigate existing usage patterns and audience profiles (analytics) Requirements gathering ("As a ... I need/want/expect to ... so that ...") Information architecture... Read more
We’re delighted that Citizens Advice Scotland recently repeated their research which digs a bit deeper into the headline digital exclusion figures. Their research was based on surveying more than 1,200 people seeking advice with more than half of the 61 CABx participating. I’ve... Read more
For many years I’ve spent the best part of my weekdays in-front of a computer screen- scanning emails, writing reports, Googling the answers to crosswords (don’t tell anyone). I’ve just been lucky enough to have ten months off work on maternity leave. In that time I have spent... Read more
Recent studies have shown that two thirds of Scottish adults are overweight or obese. This means that obesity is now an issue that affects most third sector organisations supporting people in communities and requires urgent attention. Voluntary Health Scotland will be leading a... Read more
The issue of a Scottish Governance Code for the third sector has been discussed in the past but has never got off the ground. At Scotland’s Third Sector Governance Forum, that troubled us. We think the Scottish third sector could really benefit from its own Governance Code. Good... Read more
Anyone who knows an infantile adult or a surprisingly sure-headed teen knows that maturity is only loosely aligned with age. More likely indicators of maturity include knowing your strengths, working on your weaknesses and being clear about your purpose and direction. So it is... Read more
SCVOs digital evolution programme focuses on supporting organisations to understand how digital technologies can help them transform. So far we’ve taken our soundings from a vast array of leaders who have participated in and shown their interest in our Senior Leaders Programme... Read more
We were in need of a new website. Does this situation sound familiar? Our existing website had over 1,200 pages and posts, it was running WordPress with a bespoke theme and many plugins in various states of maintenance, the design felt dated and it was difficult to find content... Read more
Have you ever pondered the basic digital skills framework and wondered how or even why particular elements are in there? Well, now’s your opportunity to question, challenge and re-shape its content. The Tech Partnership is leading a consultation and refresh supported by a... Read more
This year will see SCVO celebrate a ten year anniversary for our free legal advice service. In that time our legal partners have provided essential support to over 500 SCVO member organisations. Just last year, our survey of service users found that 100% would recommend the... Read more
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a hot topic right now. You can barely open a newspaper without reading an article about some new AI milestone, or a comment piece about why we are all going to lose our jobs to automation in the next decade. At CAF we have been trying to stay one... Read more
Did you know that all charity trustees are collectively responsible for the effective financial management of their organisation? No, it’s not just down to the treasurer… That’s why it’s essential, if you’re a trustee, that you have a handle on your charity’s finances, and are... Read more
Comic Relief have just opened applications for their third round of the Tech for Good Programme. This aims to support organisations to develop or scale digital solutions which deliver new or improved services to beneficiaries. Funding for up to 12 projects, each with grants of up... Read more
The need for third sector organisations to forge ahead using digital across all aspects of their organisations has never been so great. Technology continues apace and shows no signs of slowing. So, what do we do? Where do we start and how do we progress? These were questions we... Read more
Scotland’s Third Sector Governance Forum was set up in 2009 after a roundtable meeting to discuss findings from study into leadership and governance that showed that boards consistently rated their organisational effectiveness higher that the CEO and staff of the organisation. At... Read more
Last week, I spoke at Social Media for Social Good on harnessing the power of online reviews. As Community Manager at Good HQ, one of the first questions I’m asked is “how do I encourage people to write reviews?” There are some easy wins when you first claim your page, like... Read more
Last year SCVO supported a group of senior leaders from a wide range of organisations to launch a Call to Action for a Digitally Confident Third Sector in Scotland. More than 100 sector leaders discussed, debated and contributed their experiences, hopes and fears at an... Read more
Did you feel misunderstood as a young person? I certainly did! Didn't it feel frustrating and isolating? Did you vow that you'd never lose touch with where young people are actually at? Have you lost touch? Are we at risk of perpetuating that misunderstanding and misconception? I... Read more
Never mind the countdown to Christmas, there’s only 241 days left to get ready for Data Protection D-Day! Last Thursday saw me at the SCVO Data Protection conference in Edinburgh. The event sold out remarkably quickly - evidence that the third sector has concerns about GDPR – the... Read more
Being cyber resilient is both the prevention of cyber breaches and also making sure that if a breach occurs you are able to respond without losing business continuity. A cyber breach isn’t necessarily a ‘hack’, but it is any incident in which data is lost or stolen, including... Read more
It’s a big question, with a complex answer. While 8 out of 10 people use the internet on a daily basis, the statistics showing high levels of use hide a deeper digital divide. The latest evidence Yesterday we published new research exploring what digital exclusion looks like in... Read more
In my previous blog, I talked about the process of applying for Universal Credit online and the implications for those without basic digital skills. As a digital service, it’s easy to interact with and its development has been based on the latest standards for building good... Read more
Through a series of unfortunate events, I’ve found myself suddenly unemployed.I don’t have any savings and I’ve built up some credit card debt. This was manageable when I had a job, but now I’m worried how I’m going to be able to pay the bills.I’m a single parent and determined... Read more
Here in Team Digital we recently had a discussion about exactly how secure public WiFi is (life in Digital can get pretty intense!). The debate centered around whether a public, but trusted, WiFi provider was essentially secure if you were only accessing sites with HTTPS enabled... Read more
The big stooshie over what the BBC pays its stars made for interesting reading last week, and anyone from the third sector who thinks this bad news story has no bearing on what we do, should think again… Last week’s BBC Annual Report and Accounts not only showed seven figure... Read more
With a flurry of fundraising news over the last few weeks where the considerable focus (and, in some cases, criticism) has been south of the border, you may be thinking ‘what does this mean for Scotland?’ The first thing to note is that Northern Ireland came to a decision on what... Read more
Cre8te ran FEMDA, the ‘Female Ethnic Minority Digital Academy’, in conjunction with the charity Saheliya. They said: “We recruited for our first group of learners by holding assessments to make sure the class was the right thing for them. They started their training in January... Read more
During #DLweek, SCVO digital connected with charity senior leaders to celebrate and inspire digital change. Catch up with the key elements of the day via Sally's special recipe for success. Read more
Any successful charity should have a diverse range of funding sources. Income generation through trading, by selling goods or services for a profit, can be an attractive prospect, but you need to look before you leap! There’s a lot to think about before considering trading, and... Read more
"What new apps are you using?" (or a variant of this) is one of the most frequent questions that the @digiscot team is asked. So often in fact, that we started cataloguing the many apps and useful digital tools that came across our desks. Some we trialled, some we just logged... Read more
I had a rare day out of the office last week and went back to school to learn more about how charities in my local area could access £3,000 of funding by engaging with students at the local High School. On a rainy General Election day I took cover from the developing storms (and... Read more
Lloyds Banking Group is one of the Digital Participation Charter signatories. As part of their commitment to helping support everyone in Scotland to develop basic digital skills some of their teams are spending time, under the banner of 'Day to Make a Difference', with local... Read more
We all know how hard it can be to recruit trustees, but a new report has found that it’s not that people aren’t interested in being on a board - the problem is down to poor recruitment practices that are in danger of damaging the effectiveness of charities across the UK. The... Read more
Let's all celebrate and have a good time - the words of Kool & the Gang are particularly relevant this Volunteers’ Week! A week that’s all about celebrating the dedication, time and effort of the thousands of volunteers who give up their time to support good causes across... Read more
The digital revolution has already happened and we are living in the aftermath. "The scale of change that has taken place – in how people chose to communicate, watch TV, learn, bank, shop and organise their lives has been likened to the industrial revolution" writes Julie Dodd in... Read more
Digital trail blazing in the third sector Have you ever been the first person to try something? Were you the one who braved a new hair style or fashion trend? Maybe you changed your career later in life (dreams of being an astronaut never die) or moved to the other side of the... Read more
To raise awareness of your favourite good cause? To thank an organisation for their hard word? To recognise the dedication of an awesome team of staff? Whatever the reason, we want to hear about it on Good HQ! If you’ve already voted this year (well done, you’re quick off the... Read more
Many people believe that charities don’t pay tax – but that’s just not the case! Whilst charities do benefit from a range of tax incentives on charitable giving - particularly from Gift Aid - there are still at least 18 different taxes that can affect them. The Charity Tax group... Read more
Skyscanner OneDay workshops At Skyscanner, we take one day each year to close down our 11 offices around the world and give everyone the chance to get involved with an activity that benefits their local community, we thought long and hard about what to call this initiative and... Read more
The Independent Fundraising Standards & Adjudication Panel for Scotland was formally established in December 2016, to promote good fundraising standards and adjudicate on fundraising complaints throughout Scottish registered charities. You can hear more about the Panel’s role in... Read more
You could not fail to miss the coverage of the worldwide ransomware attack over the weekend which particularly affected the NHS. The scale of the attack, and its impact on public services, is unprecedented. However, similar attacks happen on a daily basis and third sector... Read more
It's time to check if your charity has the right bank account Read more
Money, money, money ... and the easter bunny! Read more
Which charities will you choose for the greatest awards ceremony of the year? Read more
Check out some of the inspirational feedback for a range of charities Read more
Looking back on two inspirational days of digital sharing Read more
How to avoid becoming bad news Read more
Trustees don’t have to come up with creative fundraising ideas, but they do have to scrutinise them Read more
How feedback helped us improve GoodHQ Read more
A how to guide for making the most of Google for Non Profits Read more
Unmissable events for charity trustees Read more
There’s a lot to think about if changing your charity form, especially getting the right fit Read more
Charity feedback platform GoodHQ can help boost public trust in your cause Read more
Rhona McAdam from SCVO pro bono service partner Burness Paull shares advice on handling the awkward situation of removing charity trustees Read more
Make sure your village hall trustees are protected by checking your legal structure Read more
A taste of what we have planned for Trustees - and there's still time to book Read more
Essential reading for all charities using the internet and social media Read more
Find out why the SCIO is such a popular model for charities in Scotland Read more
Glasgow Life built basic digital skills for both workforce and service users, through a six month Digital Internship post. This meant they could create created a mentored online learning resource for frontline staff working with client groups least likely to have basic digital... Read more
Finally, a New Year's resolution you can stick to Read more
Exploring the seventh data protection principle: organisational and technological measures Read more
Efficient ways to get information, monitor performance and make decisions Read more
Expert advice from Harper Macleod LLP Read more
Accuracy, retention, rights and the Data Protection Act Read more
That's when mediation can help Read more
A video to round off #trusteesweek 2016 Read more
Don't be afraid to embrace the possibilities Read more
It's important for trustees to keep on building better governance Read more
Tell us at our trustees workshops or take our survey Read more
Why charities need to embrace the digital agenda Read more
Personal data, information and the importance of specified purposes Read more
Calling all trustees - here's your guide to what really matters Read more
Embracing digital has opened up the possibilities for doing more with less Read more
If you want to do better, you need to listen to what people are saying about you Read more
We can give ourselves a licence to do great things Read more
Datawareness and the importance of understanding what’s fair and lawful Read more
Join us in sharing digital knowledge and skills (and cake) Read more
Introducing a new blog series on data protection and how it relates to your organisation Read more
Incredible success of #myunfilteredlife campaign is beyond our wildest hopes Read more
Scottish Parliament inquiry and UK Government consultation are keeping us busy! Read more
More top tips from the Turning festival Read more
First in a new blog series on why digital change matters, ahead of November leadership event Read more
Queens Cross Housing Association got older people engaged in learning how to use the internet through researching their local history They said: “We worked to engage older people with the internet by harnessing their interest in social history and genealogy. We sought to create... Read more
How to create perfect personas Read more
You need to build better governance Read more
Join your colleagues to shape the future of Scotland's digital third sector Read more
Invaluable help on navigating the digital landscape Read more
When I received the call to say that our development had been chosen to have Wi-Fi installed into all flats, communal areas and guest rooms it’s fair to say I was really excited. Then the co-ordinator brain took over ... how do I get the tenants interested, excited and involved... Read more
Whole range of online tools available to help third sector organisations connect with supporters Read more
Tech giant onboard to promote digital participation and basic digital skills in Scotland Read more
For charities working with people in disadvantaged communities this RBS sponsored fund offers a great opportunity to develop a project. Read more
On Internaut Day we want everyone to be able to make the most of the amazing resource that is the internet Read more
New round of grants for charities working hard to get people online Read more
Third sector organisations engaging in vital work around cyber security in Scotland are encouraged to apply Read more
One Digital meetups open for business across Scotland Read more
Part three of our digital participation special series Read more