Every pound has to justify itself

Most charities run lean. Budgets are often grant-funded and tied to specific outcomes, the team is small, and the person “doing the IT” usually has another job: an operations manager, a trustee, or a volunteer who happens to be good with computers. Technology still matters just as much. Donor records, case notes, fundraising and payroll all depend on it.

Doing IT cheaply isn’t the goal. The goal is putting the limited money where it protects the charity most, and not paying for things you don’t need. Here’s where that usually is.

Claim the nonprofit discounts you’re entitled to

The easiest saving is often the one charities miss. Microsoft and Google both run nonprofit programmes that give eligible registered charities free or heavily discounted licences. In the UK, Charity Digital Exchange also offers discounted software to charities. We regularly meet charities that have paid full commercial prices for years without realising.

Eligibility and terms change from time to time, so check the current offer before buying or renewing. If your Microsoft 365 setup has grown in a hurry, it’s also worth checking you’re not paying for licences nobody uses. Our Microsoft 365 Administration service can sort both out.

Protect the data you hold first

Charities hold sensitive information: donor details, beneficiary records, sometimes health or safeguarding notes, plus the finances. UK GDPR applies regardless of size, and a data breach costs a small charity far more in trust than it ever saved in IT spend.

The protections that matter most are rarely the expensive ones:

  • multi-factor sign-in on every account;
  • backups that are tested, not just switched on;
  • leavers’ access removed on their last day;
  • encryption on laptops that leave the office.

If you’re unsure whether your backups would get you running again after a bad day, our guide to backup vs disaster recovery explains the difference.

Make volunteers’ access simple and safe

Volunteers come and go, and shared logins are the easy shortcut. They’re also how charities lose track of who can see what. Give each volunteer their own account with access to only what their role needs, and close it when they move on. With the right setup this takes minutes, and it’s far easier than untangling a shared password later.

Don’t buy hardware before you need to

New laptops for everyone is rarely the best use of a grant. A good machine can often be given another couple of years with an upgrade or a repair, and refurbished business-grade equipment is a sensible option for many roles. The point to replace a device is when it stops getting security updates, not just when it starts to feel slow. Our computer and laptop repairs team can tell you which of yours are worth keeping.

Pay for support in the shape you need

Support doesn’t have to mean an enterprise contract. If problems are occasional, pay-as-you-go IT support starts at £60 + VAT an hour for remote help, with no contract. If you’d rather have someone looking after everything (monitoring, backups, security and a helpdesk your team and volunteers can call), our IT support for charities starts from £100 + VAT per month. Registered charities get discounted rates, and the final price is set after a free assessment of your actual setup.

Most charity support happens remotely, which also means you don’t have to be local. Our remote IT support covers charities anywhere in the UK, with on-site visits across West & Central London when hands-on help is needed.

Questions to ask before you spend

  • Are we using every nonprofit discount we’re eligible for?
  • Is every account protected with multi-factor sign-in?
  • When did we last test restoring from a backup?
  • Who still has access that shouldn’t?
  • Which devices have stopped getting security updates?
  • Do we need ongoing support, or help when something goes wrong?

If you’d like a second opinion on any of these, take a look at our IT support for charities. We’ll start with a free, no-obligation assessment and a clear quote scoped to what you can realistically fund.