Inspiring Impact, the voluntary sector’s collaborative effort to mainstream good-quality impact reporting, has today launched the UK’s first-ever Code of Good Impact Practice.
The Code is a set of guidelines setting out what good impact practice looks like. It has been produced by Inspiring Impact member NCVO following a sector-wide consultation which generated 130 responses and the input of a working group of 17 organisations.
Inspiring Impact, whose programme board is chaired by David Carrington, winner of the 2013 Outstanding Achievement Award at last week’s Charity Awards, has also today published a report entitled Funders’ principles and drivers of good impact practice, devised by the Funders for Impact working group and facilitated by the Association of Charitable Foundations (ACF).
These funder principles mirror the Code of Good Impact Practice by helping funders think about the impact their own funding has on funded organisations, and how they can support the people and organisations they fund to do so too.
The Code of Good Impact Practice describes a cycle of impact practice and espouses a series of principles that include:
1. Take responsibility for impact and encourage others to do so too
2. Focus on purpose
3. Involve others in your impact practice
4. Apply proportionate and appropriate methods and resources
5. Consider the full range of the difference you actually make.
6. Be honest and open
7. Be willing to change and act on what you find
8. Actively share your impact plans, methods, findings and learning.
Catharine Pusey, head of consultancy at NCVO, said: “We were delighted that the vast majority of respondents to our consultation stated that they could imagine using the Code in future when considering their impact practice and generating ideas on how to focus on and improve it. We have listened to feedback and adapted the code accordingly.”
The Inspiring Impact programme, which has been running for a year, is managed by New Philanthropy Capital and has been funded in its first year by the Big Lottery Fund, Cabinet Office, Deutsche Bank, City of London Corporation, and Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.
The reports were all launched this morning at a fringe event at NCVO’s Evolve 2013 conference.
