Established in 1983, Children in Scotland is an umbrella organisation that represents over 400 voluntary, statutory and professional organisations and individuals that work with and for children, young people and their families throughout Scotland. Providing a unique forum for exchanging skills, expertise and knowledge, the charity exists to make Scotland a better place for all children, young people and their families. With around 40 staff, Children in Scotland is funded by grants from the Scottish Government, local authorities, corporate trusts and individual donations as well as the income generated from membership subscriptions and the sale of publications and events.
Children in Scotland
“FileMaker is both cost-effective and flexible and we consider it the best option for our requirements. It underpins all aspects of our work in a cost-effective, organised way and enables us, as a charity, to take a commercial approach to our work.” says Jacqueline Lamb, Director of Corporate Services, Children in Scotland.
Children In Scotland gets organised with FileMaker
FileMaker technology touches virtually every part of the operation.
Overview
- Children in Scotland use a number of FileMaker databases to run the organisation.
Industry
- Third Sector: Umbrella organisation that represents over 400 voluntary, statutory and professional organisations and individuals.
Solution
- Everything the organisation is involved in is underpinned by FileMaker.
Benefits
- Used for numerous activities, from tracking subscriptions and grant applications to monitoring publishing processes and recording event details and income.
Today, organisations like Children in Scotland are as professional and efficient as any private company.
The challenge:
Gone are the days when a charity could take an ad hoc approach to its affairs. Today, organisations like Children in Scotland are as professional and efficient as any private company in their operations. This means the infrastructure and processes that underpin the organisation must be slick and reliable, and the information required to sustain the charity has to be kept both secure and accessible to team members.
For an umbrella organisation like Children in Scotland, which has hundreds of members, the ability to keep track of subscriptions and ensure renewal requests are followed up, appropriately, is key. So too is the ability to follow the process of grant applications – a vital source of funding for the charity and often a complex procedure.
At the same time, as with all charities, finances are tight and organisations must demonstrate value for money with any technology they use. Children in Scotland is no different, requiring a robust database solution that offers affordable running costs.
Some other databases may seem cheaper initially but when you start to look at how much they cost over time, FileMaker is extremely competitive.
—Jacqueline Lamb, Director of Corporate Services, Children in Scotland
In its role as an umbrella agency taking in a multitude of organisations and children and family charities, the holding of regular events and meetings is another crucial element of Children in Scotland’s work.
The FileMaker solution:
Children in Scotland use a number of FileMaker databases to run the organisation. In fact, the technology touches virtually every part of the operation. “Everything the organisation is involved in is underpinned by FileMaker,” says Jacqueline Lamb, Director of Corporate Services.
“Children in Scotland has been using FileMaker for a number of years now. Prior to this, everything was done manually ” continues Jacqueline. “But now FileMaker is key to every department.”
Management of Members and Subscriptions
One crucial area of activity where FileMaker is vital, is the management of Children in Scotland’s membership contacts and subscriptions – comprising the majority of local authorities in Scotland and around 450 organisations in Scotland involved in children’s services. Getting this process right and under control is a crucial element of the organisation's operation.
“We exist because of our membership,” says Jacqueline. “Currently our retention rate is 84%, which is extremely high for an organisation like ours. This rate certainly wouldn't be anything like that if we didn't communicate effectively and carry out the basic task of renewing membership using our FileMaker database.”
Managing Proposals
In addition, the Children in Scotland team use a separate FileMaker database to manage the relationship with the various funders who support them. “We rely heavily on grants and have to ensure we are tracking the activities associated with them,” says Jacqueline.
“Using FileMaker, each funding application is logged along with details of the project, the amount and the communications that take place. It also has reminders for when the outcome is due, any follow up activity and who it is assigned to.”
Document Management
If a funding application is successful, the team are able to log and attach all contractual papers, interim reports and financial documents in the database as well and set up actions, allocated to the relevant people to ensure they meet the funders’ requirements around evaluation and reporting. “This database is also used to produce management reports on grants for our senior management team and our board,” Jacqueline adds.
Event Tracking
In its role as an umbrella agency taking in a multitude of organisations and children and family charities, the holding of regular events and meetings is another crucial element of Children in Scotland’s work.
“It's important we track all our events, most of which are focused on the continued professional development of the sector including seminars, conferences, consultation events, study visits and training workshops. We record all costs and income details of attendees, speakers and trainers and information about the outcome of our events in FileMaker,” says Jacqueline.
Publication Scheduling
Another way Children in Scotland stays in contact with members is through its monthly magazine and its broad range of publications. The details of the circulation, sales and costs of these publications are all managed using FileMaker. Data stored in FileMaker is also used to inform the website.
But like all organisations in the not-for-profit sector, a priority for Children in Scotland is ensuring that all investments offer maximum value for money and, according to Jacqueline that is precisely what FileMaker delivers.
She says: “Prior to purchasing FileMaker, extensive market research and price comparisons were carried out. Some other databases may seem cheaper initially but when you start to look at how much they cost over time, FileMaker is extremely competitive. We pay a yearly maintenance fee that ensures our costs are predictable and allows us to budget, which is extremely important for us.”
FileMaker offers a straightforward and successful way of ensuring operations tick along smoothly.
Notable benefits:
- Multi-purpose database – Children in Scotland use FileMaker for numerous activities, from tracking subscriptions and grant applications to monitoring publishing processes and recording event details and income.
- Easy organisation – With hundreds of members to track and membership renewals key to the organisation, FileMaker offers a straightforward and successful way of ensuring operations tick along smoothly.
- Affordable, predictable costs – The annual maintenance fee paid by Children in Scotland allows the charity to budget more easily and ensures that costs are predictable and that we always have access to the most up to date version of FileMaker.
- Adding additional documents – As in the case of Children in Scotland’s grant applications, FileMaker allows users to attach supporting documentation, so they are kept near relevant notes and all the information is in one place.
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