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Objectives and activities

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The responding to social change workstream led by NCVO third sector foresight aims to...

1. Make a strong case for how responding effectively to social change is essential to good strategic leadership and effective planning.

Our research shows many third sector organisations do not recognise the importance of responding to social change because constant fire-fighting prevents them from stepping back and thinking strategically. We work with support providers, as well as with the performance and the leadership and governance workstreams, to make a persuasive case for responding to social change.

We gather evidence and compelling personal stories about the benefits of responding to change, making our case through the sector press, co-ordinated communication channels, events and promotional material. We also make the case by working directly with support provider leaders to illustrate the benefits. We provide a comprehensive portal (www.3s4.org.uk) for support providers to access existing guidance, good practice and support on planning and strategy.

 
2. Clearly communicate information on social change and share this among support providers and with frontline groups.

Before third sector groups can respond to social change they need to have access to relevant information. There is an ongoing need for complex information about broader social change to be de-mystified and interpreted for these groups, clearly showing the specific implications for them. We aim to turn the abundant available information about social change into actionable intelligence.

We are developing a free, continuously updated resource base (www.3s4.org.uk/drivers) providing accessible and clear information about drivers (trends and forces) for support providers to use and cascade to frontline groups. And we help support providers add and customise information to make it fully relevant for their work. This includes working with seven sub-sectoral support providers on in-depth projects. We hold occasional seminars with external experts, support providers and frontline groups to gather new intelligence.

 
3. Provide support providers with the insight, skills and materials they need to help frontline groups understand and respond to social change.

We develop and deliver workshops for the chief officers and chairs of support providers to train them in how to understand and respond to social change. These workshops are interactive and combine web-based work with small group work, giving participants new knowledge and practical tools. We are also developing online training.

There are also workshops for development officers and other individuals who support frontline organisations, giving them tips and practical ways to cascade this learning to their groups. And we provide development workers with a pack of tools to use with organisations.

 
4. Collaborate

All our training is delivered in partnership with other support providers and we are working in-depth with seven support providers on sub-sectoral projects. We collaborate with the other national workstreams, in particular with Performance workstream and also actively with Equalities and diversity, and Campaigning effectiveness.