1. ‘Below the radar’ in ‘Real Times’: early findings
from the qualitative longitudinal study
Rob Macmillan and Andri Soteri-Proctor
Third Sector Research Centre, University of Birmingham
‘Below the radar’ reference group meeting
13th Sept 2010

2. ‘Real Times’: TSRC’s qualitative longitudinal study
A prospective longitudinal case study design
Overall purpose:
Understanding how third sector activity operates in practice over time
• What happens within third sector organisations (TSOs) over time and why?
• What matters to TSOs over time and why?
• How might we understand continuity and change in third sector activity?

3. Overarching research questions
Fortunes Strategies
What influences the fortunes of TSOs? How do TSOs regard and negotiate the
How do TSOs judge their fortunes? environments in which they operate?
Challenges Performance
What challenges do TSOs face? How is the ‘performance’ of TSOs
How do TSOs respond? understood by different stakeholders?
How can we understand the
achievements of TSOs?

4. Potential research themes
Aspects of third sector activity we may need to explore:
Mainly inside third sector activities
• Purpose and mission; values, consensus and conflict
• People: turnover, succession, trajectories, class, ethnicity and gender
• Governance and accountabilities
• Funding and finance, sustainability and resilience
Mainly outside and around third sector activities
• Access to support and capacity building
• Inter-organisational relationships: competition and collaboration
• ‘Success’, impact, legitimacy and regard
• Participation in policy, independence

5. How the research is structured
16 core cases
+
3 ‘complementary cases’ for each core case
Recruitment phase
Phase 1 – Spring 10
Phase 2 – Autumn 10
Phase 3 – Spring 11
Phase 4 – Autumn 11
Phase 5 – Spring 12
Phase 6 – Autumn 12
Project end – Aug 13

6. Selecting for diversity
• Organisation size – from the very large to the very small
• Geographical scale – National (3), Regional (1), Sub-regional (4), District (3),
Sub-district (5)
• Regions – WM (4), NW (3), Lon (2), EM (2), SW (1), EE (1) + 3 ‘nationals’
• Geographical context – Urban/rural & affluence/deprivation
• Function – service delivery; community-based activity; enthusiasms;
campaigning
• Policy field – employment services, housing, mental health, family support,
community development

7. Below the radar in Real Times
Four of sixteen core cases of particular interest for the ‘Below the radar’
work-stream – two ‘hubs’ and two villages:
•M: a community centre in a deprived urban area in the North
•P: a resource centre serving a multi-cultural community in the Midlands
•L: a relatively deprived village in the North
•S: a relatively affluent village in the South West

8. Remarkable things... (1 of 2)
L: community activities in a relatively deprived village (North)
•successful first 18 months for community-run charity shop and cafe
(no business support or plan, and limited start-up funds)
•brown hair turning grey
S: community activities in a relatively affluent village (South West)
•an action group taking forward the Parish Plan’s ‘quick wins’
•doubts and debates about the viability of the village hall
•geography, class and Parish Councils
•connections - support networks and historical legacies
•digging deeper...

9. Remarkable things... (2 of 2)
M: community centre (North)
• LA centre becomes a charity in the 90s to prevent closure
• Ongoing tensions between key managers about future direction...
• Seen as “stuck in treacle” with potential loss of LA funding
P: resource centre (Midlands)
• Originally supported by a multi-million pound body
• first year running as an independent charity
• Obtains small amounts of funding to do its usual work...

10. For discussion
Given the opportunity to examine small, informal and
grassroots third sector activities longitudinally....
....what aspects, issues and concerns might be worth
exploring over time as the ‘Real Times’ study unfolds?