Charity Bank in the North Evaluation

Project Director: Peter Wells
Project Duration: 2008-2012

Charity Bank in the North was an innovative project intended to increase the array of funding used by the voluntary and community sector. In particular it sought to increase the use of loan funding at a time when grant funding was reducing. The value of the programme was around £10 million and it was delivered by Charity Bank with Key Fund Yorkshire, Fit for Funding and the University of Huddersfield.

The evaluation explored the processes and impact of Charity Bank in the North. It combined the detailed analysis of monitoring data, a survey of organisations receiving support and detailed case studies. It also piloted the use of Social Return on Investment (SROI).

The evaluation culminated in the production of a final report in 2011 (Social Investment and its Impact) which was launched at a major conference in York hosted jointly by CRESR and Charity Bank.