The local authority area of Falkirk is a mix of urban and rural communities. Well placed for commuting throughout the Central Belt, it has a growing tourism industry, and a higher than average industrial employment rate. In common with the rest of the UK, it has an increasing ageing population, although unusually there is also a higher than average percentage of young families located here. The local third sector reflects this diversity, with a wide range of services, carers and supports available in the community.
Third sector organisations are essentially any that are not Public Sector (eg national or local government), or private businesses. They encompass many different formal and legal types, the most common being:
- Charities
- Unincorporated voluntary organisations
- Social enterprises
- Co-operatives
- Development Trusts
- Community groups and organisations
- Credit Union
- Housing Associations & Registered Social Landlords
- SCIOs
- CICs
There are over 500 such organisations in the Falkirk area. A few years ago a study was done to estimate the total contribution of the sector to the economy of Falkirk, which was over £14 million. During the first half of 2015 CVS Falkirk conducted another study, which showed that the value of the sector had risen to over £70 million.
In 2016, this had again risen to over £103 million. View the 2016 highlights and the full report on our website.
The 2017 report showed that Falkirk’s third sector had a collective income of £89.3 million, and that there was an average of 2,105.5 volunteer hours donated per week, which had an annual worth of £925,156.70. The 2017 highlights and full report are available on our website.
The 2018 and 2019 reports (plus 2019 highlights) are also available to view or download.
In summer of 2020, we commissioned Arrivo Consulting to begin the immense task of capturing and evaluating the incredible work of our third sector during the first stage of the COVID-19 pandemic and the initial lockdown(s). The report is now available to view or download as a pdf, along with a summary report.
This is an ongoing activity, which will be updated regularly, and findings will be published here annually, and via our Publications page. We may contact you to help us with our research.
You can also check out our Member Directory, which provides details of our member groups and organisations working across Falkirk.
