State of the Sector Research

A. The State of the Sector is a major research project led by Greater Manchester’s Local Infrastructure Organisations (LIOs) in partnership with Nottingham Trent University. It maps the size, diversity, and contribution of the VCSE sector across Greater Manchester, providing evidence to influence policy, funding, and future support.

A. You work or volunteer for a VCFSE organisation in Greater Manchester. Your perspective will help ensure the research reflects the diverse range of organisations and local contexts across GM.

A. Your input helps build a strong evidence base that:

• Shapes funding priorities and support. Every response counts—big or small organisations all matter.

• Demonstrates the sector’s impact and needs.

• Informs local and regional decision-making.

A. You will complete an online survey on Qualtrics, a certified survey platform. You will be asked about your organisation’s activities, workforce and volunteers, funding and financial position, assets, and the communities it supports. Where organisations are members with their respective LIOs, NTU will use these details to prepopulate questions for you to confirm or to update. You will be invited to take part in a focus group which explores the themes in the survey and to add local context. You will be asked if you would like to receive insights about this research, including being notified about when the report is published and the opportunity to receive an Individual Insights Report, showing how your responses fit within the bigger picture in Greater Manchester.

A. Yes. We recognise exact figures aren’t always available. Informed estimates are welcome where needed.

A. Every organisation that completes the survey will receive an Individualised Insight Report (IIR). This report benchmarks your organisation against others in Greater Manchester and can support funding bids, strategic planning, and advocacy. Your organisation will also be entered into a locality-based prize draw of £250.

A. Nottingham Trent University will email the survey link directly to LIO members in January 2026. If you’re not a member, you can still take part.

A. Yes! So long as you don’t clear your browser cookies/cache, you can pick up where you left off by using the same device to come back to where you were. It’s as easy as just clicking on the same link you used the first time. Please note that there’s no save button to look for.

A. We would suggest using a desktop to complete the survey; however, if you’d prefer, you can use a mobile or tablet. Whatever you find easiest.

A. The survey should take around 30 minutes, depending on your organisation’s size. It uses conditional logic, so you’ll only see questions relevant to you.

A. The survey will be open between January and March 2026; the exact dates will be shown on the survey landing page. Most respondents take 15–30 minutes. You can pause and return using the same browser.

A. Someone with an overview of your organisation’s key areas—such as finance, staffing, volunteers, and activities—should complete the survey to ensure accurate responses.

A. It will help to have:

• Awareness of your main activities and groups served.

• Approximate annual income and main funding sources.

• Number of paid staff, volunteers, and trustees.

• Weekly volunteer hours (estimate).

• Details of premises/assets.

A. The findings of this survey will help to build a clear picture of the VCSE sector’s role, contribution, and needs across Greater Manchester. Your responses will feed into accessible outputs designed for practical use: a GM-wide report, ten locality summaries, and an interactive dashboard for your organisation to use, all of which will support planning, funding bids, advocacy, and decision-making at both local and GM-wide levels.

A. Your data will be analysed to build an understanding of the experiences of VCSE organisations in Greater Manchester. All results will be aggregated and anonymised in any published outputs. If you confirm or update organisational membership data originally provided by LIOs, NTU will return the updated version to them. NTU will only share back information that LIOs already hold.

Your data will be held securely by NTU in accordance with their privacy policy.

A. The GM-wide report and locality reports will be published in Summer 2026. Your Individualised Insight Report will be emailed to you at the same time.

A. Yes. To cut down the amount of time it takes you to fill in the survey, some data is prepopulated with information that you’ve shared with your LIO. If it’s incorrect, please overwrite it. We want to make sure the information we gather is as accurate as possible!

The information you share in the survey will then be used to update the records at your LIO.

A. No. This survey should be seen as a fresh start rather than a continuation of previous reports. Our focus is on providing an accurate, up-to-date picture of the sector as it stands today.

A. Participation is voluntary – there is no requirement to take part. If you start the survey and then wish to withdraw, please email [email protected] within five working days of starting or submitting; NTU will delete your details and responses where feasible. After that point, we cannot guarantee that anonymised data may already be incorporated in analysis and outputs, so your data will be anonymised in line with GDPR requirements and retained as part of the study. No information will link back to you or your organisation.