NCVO
Harnessing the power of small
Researching, designing and testing a prototype to support small charities and foster connections
What we did
- Content strategy
- Usability testing
- Digital prototype
Impact measured against UN Sustainable Development Goals
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) wants to do more to support small charities in the sector. They commissioned detailed research into what the needs are and mapping the ‘ecosystem’ of what services already exists across England.
Our team picked up these findings as the basis of a digital prototype to support small charities. This prototype of a digital tool was tested and will be used to hopefully secure future funding.
We partnered with NCVO, The Power of Small steering group and The Small Charities Advisory Panel to run a collaborative, user-centred process which created a supportive and inclusive digital prototype.
This work informed the recommendations within the NCVO’s Power of Small Project Report
Research and testing key themes
Through our research and testing, several themes emerged. These lessons shaped the prototype and provide insight for organisations looking to support small charities more effectively.
A hybrid approach is essential
While digital tools provide efficiency, small charities still need offline support. In-person mentoring, workshops, and advisory services remain valuable.
Building trust in digital resources is based on quality and impartiality
User-generated reviews and testimonials could help build trust, but users also want assurance that the rating system is reliable and unbiased. To ensure quality, users prefer content that is curated, expert-led, and transparent about authorship and updates.
Funding challenges go beyond access
Small charities not only need more opportunities for funding, but also simpler application processes and clearer guidance on improving success rates.
Tailored, region-specific content is valued
Charities see limited value in a generic national resource. They need practical, localised support that reflects their geographical, financial, and specialist needs.
Practical steps for digital and strategy teams
For digital practitioners, funders, and infrastructure organisations, there are key takeaways from the prototype and testing project. By implementing these principles, digital tools can be built in a way that truly support and share power with small charities.
Structure content in line with users’ mental models
A tree test showed an 83% success rate in finding relevant information.
Refining content categorisation and searchability makes digital platforms more effective.
A digital platform for this audience should feel collaborative, not corporate
Small charities responded best to a warm, welcoming design, rather than something overly slick.
The use of clear, plain language and intuitive navigation made the prototype feel accessible.
Trust requires more than a rating system
Many charity leaders were hesitant about open review systems, fearing unreliable or biased feedback.
They preferred expert-moderated, curated recommendations over user-generated ratings.
User accounts must provide clear value
Some users saw no benefit in logging in unless it provided exclusive advantages.
Features like ‘Added since your last visit’, saved searches and appointment booking with specialists could make it worthwhile.
What you’ve achieved with the prototype to make it look so simple and accessible when the underlying information is so complex is a real testament to the team’s skill.
Fiona Dwyer, Project Manager for 'The Power of Small'
Priority journeys
Based on feedback from The Power of Small steering group, there were two main journeys identified to prototype.
1. Finding relevant information easily
A ‘digital front door’ entrance into a curated and maintained content repository that brings together knowledge from across the sector to support small charities with their priority needs, including funding and funding applications, practical support and policy.
2. Peer connection
Making peer connections with other organisations and individuals with similar interests, with a view to support each other or enter into collaborative funding bids.
As part of the project, we created:
- a tried and tested information architecture
- a name and design for a potential new digital tool
- a prototype and set of recommendations for how it might work and what might be included Insights about real users’ lives and needs
Building on existing insights
We wouldn’t start prototyping without a deep understanding of the problem and the needs of our audience.
Our research process included:
- building on the results of a survey of over 300 small charity professionals, identifying their biggest challenges
- a tree test with 29 participants, helping shape the information architecture
- in-depth one-to-one interviews with small charity leaders, testing the real-world usability of the prototype.
Key themes
- 92% of small charities cite funding as their biggest challenge: many feel they cannot compete with larger organisations for available grants.
- 78% prefer a mix of online and in-person support: while digital resources are useful, charities still need direct engagement with sector experts.
- Tailored content matters: users valued filtering by region and charity size, allowing them to find content that matched their context.
- Trust is built through expert moderation: user-generated reviews were met with some scepticism. Small charities preferred curated, validated recommendations.
These insights shaped the prototype, reinforcing the need for a structured, practical, and transparent approach.
Personal insights
As well as this research, our team also had personal experience that was valuable for the project:
James, our Director of Digital and Strategy, has worked in multiple charities, been a charity Trustee and committee member and also ran a community owned pub in Greenwich.
Ewan, our Product Manager, has also worked for charities and on projects specifically supporting small charities and has experience of being a Trustee.
Lucy, our UX and Content Strategist, has previously supported charities in a role at a funder, has worked on many charity projects at William Joseph and has recently become a charity Trustee.
Ben, our Designer, has created solutions for multiple charities. A highlight includes working on a project aimed at education and improvement of waste management in India.
Mel, our associate Digital Strategist, has experience spanning charity, non-profit, commercial and agency sectors. She is also a Digital Trustee, committee member and mentor.
Our team were working with Fiona Dwyer, a consultant specialising in charity leadership. Fiona brought her experience of being a trustee and working with Boards across a number of other organisations, including as CEO of a large charity.
As well as using our personal experience and knowledge of the sector, we were also aware of our cognitive bias and how this could affect our research.
Guided by a set of hypotheses
To create and maintain focus for this project, we created a set of 14 hypotheses that we wanted to explore.
These included:
a product that pulls together information from a range of partners will more efficiently answer small charities’ questions and help them to have greater impact
a product that signposts/hands off to specialised services and support will increase users’ faith in the quality of the content
a product that incorporates user-generated reviews will help to build trust
using warm, reassuring visuals and tone will help a product to feel welcoming and accessible
Each of the hypotheses provided clear guidance for visual and product design, content, functionality and testing approach. In addition to them, we were alert to other issues that emerged during the research or in conversation with NCVO and their Power of Small steering group, including costs to the user and staffing and infrastructure requirements.
Testing the information architecture
We needed to translate these rich insights and wide-ranging themes into an information architecture that would make sense to users in the prototype.
We tested a basic structure alongside 12 tasks relevant to small charities, including:
you have just joined a new organisation and are looking for guidance to ensure that fundraising activities are compliant
you are looking for guidance and tools to support with business planning for your charity
you are looking for advice on where to start with refreshing your charity’s website to better reflect your purpose
The findings from this test helped us to refine the user-focused category labels to use within the prototype, including ‘Funding’, ‘’Collaboration’ and ‘Governance’. The testing participants worked with/for small charities across England.
“Interesting exercise! My experience is that support and advice comes from a matrix collaborative approach in charities. Most staff wear more than one hat in the work that they do. Data and support is cross functional. To make information effective, it has to be clean, trusted, searchable and accessible.”
– Testing participant
The responses also informed the name of the prototype: ‘The small charities’ handbook’, which was the most popular response to the post-study question.
Participants were keen to understand how to connect and explore advice based on geography highlighting the importance of not just considering digital solutions.
Co-designing with the small charity community
We conducted a round of usability testing of the prototype with 9 small charity leaders. The participants included CEOs, trustees, managers, and service leads from various small charities across England. These participants represented a range of organisational focuses, such as international development, mental health, criminal justice support, and cancer support.
The testing aimed to evaluate early-stage concepts, user journeys, information architecture, the tool’s look and feel, as well as overall usability. Specifically, it focused on the ‘digital front door’ and ‘peer connection’ journeys, the information structure and filtering approach. The insights gained from testing have informed recommendations for iterating the product.
The information must be easy to read and digest
“I like that it’s very easy to read and quick to read … I like the topic areas labelled on each listing” – Family Support Service Lead at a cancer charity
The benefits to users need to be clear and transparent
“What will I get by logging in? Is it free? Why should I rate the services? What’s in it for me?” – CEO at a community development CIC
There is a need for a product like this
“Send me a message as soon as it’s done! Thank you for supporting small charities because it’s such a challenge” – Trustee at a disease support group charity
A transparent and practical approach to peer connection
One of the key needs emerging from the research was a way for charities to connect and collaborate on funding applications.
Positive responses
- Profile images and organisation logos: helping to build trust.
- Short, clear profiles: “nicely written, short and factual”.
- Filtering by region: allowing charities to find local connections.
- ‘Available support’ sections: outlining what individuals and organisations can offer.
- Cost transparency flags: helping users understand if any fees are involved.
Concerns raised
- Would individuals use this to sell services rather than connect as peers?
- Would it duplicate existing sector networks?
- The content would need need governance and moderation.
Recommendations
A peer connection feature should include:
Clear profile motivations like ‘looking for collaboration’ vs. ‘offering consultancy’
verification and moderation to prevent misuse
community-building features such as message boards and shared training opportunities
Done correctly, this could help charities collaborate effectively, reducing costs and strengthening impact.
Trauma-informed considerations
When testing with people, rather than considering whether we need to apply a trauma-informed approach in this work, we think about what depth we need to go to.
This is based on who we’re testing, what materials we’re using and the associated risk associated with potential trauma.
For this project, we were covering topics of accessing support and services as a small charity. Therefore, we were aware that infrastructure support for small charities has reduced in recent years as pressures have increased. We applied measures in line with trauma-informed principles of safety, trust, collaboration and equity, agency and power sharing and hope, to make the process as safe as we could.
Safety: participants were informed in advance about the purpose of the research and topics to be covered. Participation was given through informed consent and was voluntary and retractable.
Trust: we had clear practices to protect participant anonymity and these were communicated to participants
Collaboration and equity: we were clear that we are testing an early-stage prototype that the real product could look different or not be developed at all.
Hope: we shared synthesised findings and results with participants to show that we’re committed to creating insights that accurately reflect and include them.
Insight to iterate the product
Usability testing of the prototype revealed key insights into the needs of small charity leaders. Funding was reiterated as a pressing challenge. Participants emphasised the importance of tailored information, regional content, transparency, and a warm, reassuring design.
The product has the potential to foster collaboration and peer support. For this to be adopted, there needs to be clear value for account creation, as well as a hybrid (online/offline) support model. The ongoing maintenance and management were also highlighted as crucial for success.
Overall, the feedback underscores the need for a user-friendly, reliable, and well-resourced digital tool to support small charities operating in an extremely challenging environment.