Find out where your charity stands on technology and data — and get a clear plan to improve.
Or read common questions before getting in touch.
Charity Digital Code Assessment
Sample Report · March 2026
"It pulled together things I knew were issues and things I didn't even know to look for. I'd already started actioning recommendations before the walkthrough session."
Mona, Interim Director of Operations
Peer Power Youth
Your team uses a patchwork of tools — some chosen carefully, some inherited. You suspect things could work better, but you don't have the technical background to diagnose the problem or evaluate solutions. So you keep paying for tools you're not sure you need, and every new hire spends their first month figuring out how things work.
You know you have obligations under UK GDPR, but you're not confident your processes, policies, and systems are where they need to be. If something goes wrong, it's the people you serve who are affected first — and your organisation's reputation that takes the hit.
Passwords, processes, system access — nobody's quite sure what they had or how things were set up. Every departure is a scramble, and the risk compounds each time. One day it won't just be inconvenient — it'll be a safeguarding or data protection incident.
You need to make a case for investment, but you can't articulate the current state clearly enough to get buy-in. Technology decisions get deferred, budgets get questioned, and nothing improves — until something breaks.
The review is structured around the Charity Digital Code — an established framework developed by the charity sector to help organisations use digital, data, and technology effectively. It covers seven areas that matter for every charity.
The Code of Practice is the sector's benchmark for how charities should handle technology and data. It's what the Charity Commission and major funders increasingly expect. Funders are already asking about digital governance in grant applications, and the ICO is paying closer attention to the charity sector after several high-profile data breaches. Knowing where you stand isn't just good practice — it's becoming a requirement.
Board and senior team engagement with digital
Designing services around the people you support
How your team approaches technology and change
Whether digital is embedded in your organisational plans
Your team's confidence and capability with technology
Cybersecurity, data protection, and responsible use
How well you respond to change and learn from it
Rather than an unstructured IT audit, this gives you a clear picture of where you stand across each principle — with scored assessments, specific findings, and prioritised recommendations.
A clear dashboard showing how your charity performs against each of the 7 principles. No ambiguity — you'll see exactly where you're strong and where the gaps are.
A detailed findings document with specific, actionable steps — not vague advice. Each recommendation is prioritised, assigned an owner, and placed on a realistic timeline.
Policies and plans you can adopt immediately — incident response, data protection, leavers checklists, and more. Tailored to your findings, not generic downloads.
Everything is written in plain English for senior leaders and trustees — not IT specialists.
We start with a free, no-obligation call. You'll describe your situation, I'll explain how the review works, and we'll decide together whether it's the right fit.
I'll agree a clear scope with you in writing — what's included, what's not, and a fixed fee. No surprises.
I'll speak with your team, look at your systems and documentation, and assess your position against each of the 7 principles. This typically takes 3–4 weeks.
You receive a written report with scored assessments, detailed findings, and prioritised recommendations. I'll walk through it with you in person or on a call — and I'm available for questions afterwards.
Small to mid-sized UK charities — typically £500k to £5m annual income — that rely on technology and data to deliver their mission but don't have dedicated technical leadership in-house.
You might be a CEO who's inherited a patchwork of systems. An operations director who knows things aren't quite right but can't pinpoint why. A trustee who wants confidence that the organisation's technology and data practices are sound.
If you're responsible for making technology decisions — or accountable for the ones that have already been made — this review is designed for you.
£8,000/yr
One charity discovered they were paying for software licences nobody was using — enough to fund a part-time role.
1 person
A review found that a single staff member held admin access to every critical system — with no backup plan and no documentation.
0 policies
A charity handling sensitive personal data had no incident response plan, no data retention schedule, and no leavers process.
Based on anonymised findings from recent reviews.
£3,000 – £6,000
Depending on the size and complexity of your organisation. Agreed upfront as a fixed fee.
Most reviews for charities with £500k–£2m turnover come in at the lower end of the range. The fee depends on your charity's size and complexity.
Most of what we review costs staff time to fix, not money. The review itself typically pays for itself by identifying unused software subscriptions, quantifying risks for grant applications, or preventing a data incident that would cost far more to manage.
Fixed fee. No hidden costs. No ongoing commitment. No pressure to buy anything else.
I'm Tom Cain — a software engineer and technical leader with over a decade of experience. I started Tech for Charities because I kept seeing charities making technology decisions without independent advice, carrying data risks they didn't know about, and paying for tools they didn't fully use.
Every review I conduct is independent. I don't sell software, take referral fees, or recommend solutions I have a commercial interest in.
Book a free, no-obligation discovery call. Pick a time that works for you — most slots available within the week.
Book a free callOr send me a message if you'd prefer to email first.
Pick a time that works for you. The call is 30 minutes, no obligation, and no sales pitch. We'll talk through your situation and whether a review would be useful.
Choose a timeMost slots available within the week
If you'd rather send a message first, use this form or email hello@techforcharities.com directly. I typically respond within 2 working days.