About the National Survey of Third Sector Organisations

The National Survey of Third Sector Organisations (NSTSO) gathered the views of the leaders of Third Sector Organisations (TSOs) in England including voluntary and community organisations, charities, and social enterprises. These organisations go by many names, and many also consider themselves to be community groups, co-operatives or mutuals, a club or society, or a non-profit organisation, housing association, faith group or trust.

The survey is the largest ever of the third sector. It is funded by the Office of the Third Sector which sits at the centre of government, in the Cabinet Office, in recognition of the increasingly important role the third sector plays in both society and the economy. The survey was commissioned so that, for the first time, all local authorities could be judged on their performance in creating an environment for a thriving third sector.

The survey ran between September and December 2008. 104,391 TSOs were invited to take part either via a self-completion postal questionnaire or online, and a very high response of 48,939 organisations (47%) was achieved.  We are very grateful to all those organisations that took time to complete the survey. 

The survey delivers an unprecedented level of information and insight into the third sector at local and national level.  It also measures a key local government performance target: National Indicator 7 (NI7) – An Environment for a Thriving Third Sector.

Because a sample, rather than the entire population, was interviewed the percentage results are subject to sampling tolerances – which vary with the size of the sample and the percentage figure concerned.