Newyddion

We recently kicked off a new project, working alongside Catalyst, to create the second version of a classification system for the charity sector.  Yep, that’s a big sentence. There’s a lot to unpack there. The project itself is fascinating, the scope is challenging, and the various stakeholders, previous work completed and partners make it a […]

…Imagine: all the smiles, all the chit chat, all the cups of tea and all the biscuits… all the relational wellbeing developed everyday by almost 200,000 UK charities. Well, the tap has been turned off.  Deepr, a Catalyst partner, are working out how to turn it back on, online. And they’ve some early ideas to […]

The open working toolkit is the brainchild of the ‘Open Working Lineup’ (or ‘OWLs’ for short), a collective of content and service designers that came together at the end of last year to help grantees of three Catalyst and The National Lottery Community Fund COVID-19 Digital Response programmes share their research, processes, design work and […]

“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won’t come in.” ― Isaac Asimov While driving last week a red sports car undercut me – at about 90mph.  That was an unsafe, overconfident, law-flaunting individual in the other car, wasn’t it? When I was […]

Got an idea for a new digital service or product? Want to develop or change something you are already doing? Designing and building a new website? Iterative working could help! Iterative working is a design methodology that helps you learn and improve your product or service as you go. It’s a continuous cycle of learning, […]

Over the past six weeks, Founders and Coders have been delivering our Collaborative Digital Training Programme in partnership with CAST. Working closely with the two participating charities Social Action for Health and Pursuing Independent Paths throughout the progress has emphasised the strength of a collaborative approach to designing digital products. In this article, I’ll outline […]

Charity is about community. Almost every charity serves a community, and most charities are interested in bringing the members of their communities closer together. For the most part, charities have focused on doing this in person. But now, in the time of lockdown, the only way to bring your community together is online. The thing […]

“In my work with charities I see confusion over the differences between different types of ‘design’. Sometimes this grappling with terminology leads to unnecessary angst. It would be super helpful to be able to signpost them to something.” – Ellie Hale, Digital Teams Lead at Catalyst That’s how this article came about. It’s a mini-guide […]

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. It’s precious as a pearl. So in 2018 the Tech for Good Hub asked six services the Tech for Good programme funded what hindsight advice they would give charities wanting to build digital services for the first time. All six had been successful. They were demonstrating impact after their grant […]

UX, or user experience, design is the process of creating experiences that are easy, relevant, and accessible to everyone. This includes your website and how it links with ‘offline’ experiences, such as signing up to volunteer then helping out at a fundraising event. It also includes any other digital products like apps or voice assistants. […]

Pre-Covid-19 we talked a lot about ‘charity digital’ and ‘online service delivery’.  Since Covid-19 we’ve been talking even more. Because, as a sector, we’ve turned enmasse to digital to solve our pandemic-induced service challenges.  Challenging. Purposeful. Amazing.  However we don’t talk much about design.  Probably we should. Because good digital always relies on good design. […]

This article will help you write a strong digital funding application. Its tips will help you apply both to digitally confident funders and those with less experience.  You should read this article after reading How to get ready to apply for digital grant funding. Implement its advice before you start your application. That way you […]