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SLCVO Blog 18 September

joford4
6 hours ago
8 min read

This week's blog looks at how to identify and evidence community need, understand who will benefit from your work, define your organisation's purpose and outcomes, plan activities that deliver public or community benefit, and demonstrate the impact your organisation hopes to achieve.

 

Over the past few months, we have received a growing number of enquiries from people interested in setting up community organisations. These have ranged from groups looking to purchase public buildings and save valued local facilities, to those establishing social prescribing initiatives and other community-led services.

 

Whatever the starting point, every successful community organisation begins in the same place: understanding the need they are trying to address, the change they want to create, who will benefit, and how they will deliver benefit to their community. Only once these questions have been answered should a group begin considering operating models and legal structures.

 

Defining Community Need

Before deciding on a legal structure, your group should first understand the need you are trying to address. The strongest organisations are built around a real community need, not simply a good idea or a funding opportunity.

 

Ask yourself:

  • What problem are we trying to solve?

  • Who is affected by this issue?

  • How do we know this need exists?

  • What evidence do we have?

 

Gathering Evidence

Evidence generally comes from two sources: primary research and secondary research.

 

Primary research is information you collect yourself from local people and organisations. This can include:

  • Community consultations

  • Surveys and questionnaires

  • Public meetings

  • Focus groups

  • Discussions with service providers

  • Feedback from people with lived experience

 

Secondary Research is information that already exists and has been collected by others. Examples include:

  • Local Place Plans

  • Community Action Plans

  • Census data

  • Research reports

  • Public sector strategies

 

Using both primary and secondary research gives a much stronger picture of local need and helps show that your organisation is responding to a genuine issue.

 

For practical guidance on gathering community evidence, including community profiles, engagement methods, public meetings, promotion and analysing findings, read SLCVO's blog: https://www.slcvo.org.uk/post/slcvo-blog-08-may .

 

Scotland's Census

One of the best sources of information is Scotland's Census, which provides reliable data on population, age, housing, health, education, employment, transport, household composition, disability and caring responsibilities to help build a detailed picture of your community and its needs.

 

You can access detailed information about your local area by following these steps:

  • Visit Scotland's Census Search: https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/search-the-census#/

  • Select Census Tables.

  • Ensure 2022 is selected.

  • Choose Search Data by Location.

  • Under Choose Location Type, select either:

  • Data Zone 2011 (for local areas within Skye and Lochalsh); or

  • Island Groups 2022.

  • A map will open. Select the area you wish to explore.

  • Click My Selection, scroll to the bottom and select Next.

  • Choose the topic you want to explore, such as Population

  • Select the report or table you want to view.

  • The information will be displayed on screen and can also be downloaded as an Excel spreadsheet for further analysis.

 

Community Reports and Plans

Across Skye and Lochalsh there is already a large amount of information available to help groups understand local priorities and challenges. Looking at existing reports can save time, prevent duplication and help identify common themes, gaps in services and opportunities for new projects.

 

Examples include:

 

Other Sources of Community Evidence

Local organisations have also carried out valuable research and community engagement that can help build your understanding of local need.

 

Creating a Community Needs Assessment

Once you have gathered your evidence, it should be brought together into a Community Needs Assessment or Evidence Report.

 

This report should explain:

  • What need has been identified.

  • The evidence supporting the need.

  • Who is affected.

  • What services already exist.

  • Where there are gaps in provision.

  • What outcomes the organisation hopes to achieve.

 

A clear evidence report helps trustees and directors make informed decisions and ensures the organisation remains focused on meeting a genuine community need. It is also useful for:

  • Developing a business plan.

  • Applying for funding.

  • Seeking community asset transfers.

  • Working with partners and stakeholders.

 

Funders, regulators and partners increasingly expect organisations to show clear evidence of need and demonstrate that local people have helped identify priorities. Having a strong evidence base will strengthen applications, save time and give confidence that your organisation is responding to a real demand from the community.

 

Who Will Benefit

When  setting up a group, one of the most important questions to ask is:

Who will benefit from what we do, and how will they benefit?

 

If you are considering becoming a charity, this is known as public benefit. Demonstrating public benefit is a key requirement of being a charity and is something that must be clearly shown in your application to OSCR, governing document, activities and decision-making.

 

The Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) describes public benefit as the benefit your organisation provides to the public or a section of the public through its charitable activities. Find out more here https://www.oscr.org.uk/becoming-a-charity/meeting-the-charity-test-guidance/public-benefit/

 

If you are considering a becoming a Community Interest Company (CIC), you must show that your activities will benefit a particular community or group of people and pass the community interest test as part of the application process. Find out more information here

 

Many groups focus first on the activity they want to deliver, such as running a community café, managing a village hall, operating a football club or providing community transport. However, it is more helpful to start by thinking about the people who will benefit and the difference your group will make.

 

For example, if your group wants to create a new football facility, the benefit is not simply the facility itself. The beneficiaries might include:

  • Young people gaining confidence and new skills.

  • People improving their physical and mental health.

  • Families accessing affordable activities.

  • Schools and youth groups using the facility.

  • Volunteers gaining experience and training.

  • Local businesses benefiting from increased visitors.

  • The wider community through stronger social connections.

 

The same applies to a community hall. The hall itself is not the beneficiary. The beneficiaries are the people who use it and the positive outcomes they experience.

 

When thinking about who will benefit, consider:

  • Who will directly use your service or activity?

  • Who might benefit indirectly?

  • Are there particular groups of people you want to support?

  • What difference will taking part make to their lives?

  • How will we measure and demonstrate this difference?

 

It is also important to think about any potential negative impacts. For example, a new facility may bring many benefits but could also create challenges such as increased traffic, parking pressures or competition to existing organisations. Understanding both the benefits and challenges helps groups plan effectively and demonstrate good governance.

 

A useful exercise is to create a simple beneficiary map. Put your project in the centre and then list all the people, organisations and communities who may benefit around it. Many groups find that their project has a much wider impact than they first realised.

 

By clearly identifying who will benefit and the difference your activities will make, your group will be better placed to choose the right legal structure, demonstrate community need, secure funding and show the impact it delivers.

  

Agree Your Purpose and Outcomes

When planning a new organisation or project, it is important to understand the difference between your purpose and your outcomes.

 

Your purpose is the reason your organisation exists. It describes the need you are trying to address and the overall aim of your work.

 

Your outcomes are the changes, benefits or improvements that happen because of what your organisation does. They describe the difference made to the people, groups or communities you support.

 

For example:

  • Purpose: To improve the health and wellbeing of local people.

  • Activity: Running weekly walking groups.

  • Outcome: People become more active, improve their physical health and feel less isolated.

 

Having a clear purpose and well-defined outcomes will help guide your work, demonstrate impact and strengthen funding applications.

 

For more information about developing organisational purposes and writing effective purpose statements, visit OSCRs website  

 

For more information about developing outcomes visit Evaluation Support Scotland website https://evaluationsupportscotland.org.uk/resources/how-to-write-an-outcome/  and https://www.outcomeproof.com/en-gb/how-to-write-a-good-outcome-gb/


What Activities Will You Deliver and How Will They Benefit the Community?

Once you know the need you want to address and the purpose of your organisation, the next step is to think about the activities you will deliver. This is particularly important when applying to become a charity or a Community Interest Company (CIC), as you will be asked to explain what your organisation will do and how those activities will provide public benefit or community benefit.


Clearly linking your activities to the difference they will make for people and communities will help demonstrate why your organisation is needed and how it will achieve its purpose.

 

Activities are the things your organisation will do to achieve its purpose. They might include running events, providing services, managing facilities, offering support, delivering training, or organising community projects.

 

When describing your activities, it is usually best to give an overview rather than lots of detailed information. This allows your organisation flexibility to respond to changing needs and opportunities.

 

For example, instead of saying:

  • We will hold 12 lunch clubs every year.

 

You could say:

  • We will organise regular lunch clubs and social activities for people living in rural communities across Skye. We will provide opportunities for people to meet, take part in activities, access information and build connections within their local community. Where possible, transport will be provided to help people attend.

 

This explains what the organisation will do without being overly specific.

 

Activities Should Support Your Purpose

Every activity should help your organisation achieve its purpose and provide a public or community benefit.

  

A useful question to ask is:

  • "How will this activity improve people's lives?"

 

A lunch club is not just about providing a meal or a place to meet. The activity can help people make friends, reduce loneliness, become more involved in their community and improve their wellbeing.

 

For example:

  • Activity: Running a lunch club.

  • Benefit: People have more opportunities to socialise, build friendships and feel connected to their community.

 

  • Activity: Providing community transport.

  • Benefit: People can access services, attend appointments and remain independent.

 

  • Activity: Running youth activities.

  • Benefit: Young people gain confidence, skills and positive opportunities.

 

  • Activity: Managing a community hall.

  • Benefit: Local people have a place to meet, learn, celebrate and access services.

 

In each case, the activity is what you do, but the benefit is the difference it makes.

 

When starting a new group, it is important to build a strong foundation that clearly explains:

  • The need you are addressing.

  • Your organisation's purpose.

  • The activities you will deliver.

  • Who will benefit.

  • The difference those activities will make.

 

Having these building blocks in place will put your organisation in a much stronger position when choosing and applying for a legal structure, seeking funding, developing partnerships and demonstrating your impact.

 

In next week's blog, we'll guide you through the process of becoming a charity, Community Interest Company (CIC) and other legal structures.


How SLCVO Can Help

SLCVO can support groups from the initial idea through to establishing a formal organisation. We can help you identify community need, define your purpose, explore legal structures, develop governing documents and understand regulatory requirements. We provide practical guidance on constitutions, articles of association and society rules, helping ensure your organisation has the right foundations in place. Having someone to discuss ideas and documents with can help avoid common issues, strengthen governance and support long-term success. Whether you are starting a new group, taking on a community asset or developing a social enterprise, SLCVO can help you navigate the process.

 

If you would like to discuss the support we provide to start-up groups email

 

Blog produced with the support of Microsoft Copilot

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