Baseline results and the impact of engagement

The National Survey of Third Sector Organisations closed in December 2008 with a very high response of 48,939 organisations (47%).  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.

The baseline scores and indicative targets for NI7 are available in this section, separate from the main survey findings, in order to support local strategic partnerships in agreeing and finalising their targets. 

The NI7 score reflects the percentage of TSOs’ who believe local statutory bodies have a ‘positive’ or ‘very positive’ influence on their success (on a five point scale), and local authorities will be judged on the improvement they make in this score by 2010.

The reports also include some brief analysis and data to put scores in context.  This suggests that at the national level 58% of those organisations declaring ‘a great amount’ of direct dealings with local statutory bodies find that they have a positive or very positive influence on their success, compared to  overall average of 16% across all third sector organisations.  (In both cases the percentage who feel local statutory bodies make a negative impact is lower than those who see a positive impact). 

This and other aspects of the local relationship are analysed in depth in the detailed analysis section of the website which is now available (to access this click here).

National Headline NI 7 Picture - Click here for a table giving results across each local area
Local Headline NI 7 Reports - Click here to see the headline report for your area
Office of the Third Sector - Click here for the press notice and more information about OTS

Important note on the methodology and findings

• The National Survey of Third Sector Organisations was conducted amongst third sector organisations (TSOs) across 149 upper tier local authorities in England from September to December 2008.
  
  
• In total 104,391 TSOs across all 149 single and two-tier authorities in England were invited to participate in the survey. Initially pre-notice letters were mailed to all selected organisations (along with a link enabling them to access the survey online). Paper questionnaires were then mailed to all selected organisations shortly afterwards. Thank you/reminder postcards and reminder questionnaires were also sent out to organisations, with telephone reminders conducted with a sample of non-responding organisations. TSOs were able to complete the survey either online or on paper throughout the fieldwork period.
  
  
• A database of TSOs drawing on the list of registered charities and registers of Community Interest Companies, Companies Limited by Guarantee and Industrial and Provident Societies in England, was supplied by Guidestar UK.   In some areas a census survey was conducted (i.e. all TSOs were asked to take part), and in others a random stratified sample of TSOs was constructed, using organisation type (registered charity, CIC, CLG or IPS) as the main stratifier. Registered charities were further stratified according to income.
  
  
• A total of 48,939 third sector organisations responded to the survey – this was a 47% response rate.
  
  
• Data from the survey have been weighted within each local authority and at a national level to ensure results are representative of the make up of TSOs according to organisational type.
  
  
• 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. For example, for a question where 16% of the respondents in an unweighted sample of 200 respond with a particular answer, the chances would be 95 in 100 that this result would not vary more than five percentage points, plus or minus, from the result that would have been obtained from a census of the entire (infinite) population (using the same procedures).  Strictly speaking these tolerances apply only to random non self selecting samples.  However, they are a good guide here.
  
  
• Tolerances are also involved in the comparison of results between different elements of the sample. A difference must be of at least a certain size to be statistically significant.  Each comparison made involve a number of elements to calculate whether a difference is statistically significant.  This includes the proportion answering a question, the number of respondents and the population size.  Caution must be taken when comparing any results of this survey.  This is particularly the case where there are small sample sizes in a number of local authorities, due to small population sizes (where a census was conducted).