For 18 years we have helped charities and other organisations working for social good make better use of digital, data and design. We pair practical services with programmes that build skills, confidence and leadership right across the sector.
We know the pressures you work under. We will help you make good decisions, focus your budget where it matters, and skip the technology and activity you do not need.
Some of what nearly two decades in the sector adds up to.
years working alongside the third sector
people trained through our programmes
organisations supported since 2020
live workshops delivered last year
A curated few of the charities, funders and public bodies we have worked with
Third Sector Lab was founded 18 years ago by Ross McCulloch. Ross was head of communications at a national charity and could see how hard it was for organisations to navigate digital change well.
I wanted to build the kind of partner the sector actually needed: experienced, honest, ethical, and focused on making a real difference, not on selling technology for its own sake.
That purpose has not changed. What started as direct digital support has grown into an organisation that delivers services, runs and co-designs programmes, and shares what it learns, so the whole sector gets stronger, not just the client in front of us.
We do two connected kinds of work. They are not an agency and a charitable add-on bolted together, they are two halves of the same organisation, and each one makes the other better.
We help individual organisations solve problems and make progress:
We design and deliver programmes that lift many organisations at once:
Our programmes keep us close to the day-to-day reality of charities across the sector. Our client work keeps us grounded in turning ideas into practical change. What we learn from each shapes the other.
Good work should not feel harder than it needs to. Here is what you can expect from working with us.
We tell you what we think, why we think it, and what the trade-offs are. No hedging, no jargon fog.
We bring in the people and expertise the work needs, without stacking unnecessary layers onto a project.
We take discovery, research and testing seriously, but we do not make every piece of work bigger than it needs to be.
We will say when something is not needed, when a tool you already have could do the job, or when the brief will not solve the real problem.
We explain our decisions and involve you throughout. You should end up more confident and informed, not dependent on us.
We stay open about progress, risks, decisions, budgets and anything that needs your attention.
Five beliefs that actually change how we work.
Charities are not simply smaller businesses. Mission, governance, safeguarding, accessibility, trust, funding and lived experience all shape digital decisions. We understand that context and build it into the work.
We share what we know, explain how decisions are made, and are honest about what we are still learning. Expertise should help people make better decisions, not create dependence or make simple things feel mysterious.
It is why our guides are free to read, with no email wall.
We care more about whether something works for the people it is meant to serve than whether it looks clever in a portfolio. Sometimes the right answer is a new website. Sometimes it is a simpler process or better use of what you already have.
Part of being a good partner is questioning assumptions, unnecessary spending, industry hype and ideas that are unlikely to work. We challenge to help you move forward, never to make you feel foolish or behind.
Technology should support people and purpose, not the other way round. Users, staff, communities and people with lived experience should shape the work, and human judgement stays essential, especially with data and AI.
A small, experienced team who do the work ourselves.
Ross founded Third Sector Lab and is a well-known voice in charity digital across Scotland and the UK. He leads on strategy, speaks and writes widely, and was named Big Issue Changemaker of the Year for his work on digital inclusion.
Stuart shapes how organisations look, sound and feel, from visual identity to the words on the page. He cares about clarity over cleverness, and about brands a whole team can actually pick up and use.
Paul designs and builds accessible, user-focused websites that teams can run themselves. He is happiest turning a messy brief into something clear, usable and genuinely helpful for the people it is meant to serve.
Kerry runs the programmes that reach across the sector, keeping The Curve, Digital Trustees and Open Working practical, welcoming and well organised. She is the reason things actually happen on time.
Noor works on the data, analytics and AI side, helping organisations understand what is working and make confident, evidence-led decisions without the hype.
Marie helps charities grow their reach and their relationships through content, SEO and Ad Grants. She is focused on the right people finding you, and then staying with you.
Experienced, sought-after people, brought in for the right expertise at the right time. A network, deliberately, not a fixed staff grid.
Our core team is backed by a trusted network of associates, specialists and partner organisations. When a project needs deeper expertise, in areas like CRM implementation, complex AI work or specialist training, we bring in people who know that work properly.
They stay responsible for the relationship, the quality and the delivery. You get the right expertise without paying for a large permanent agency to sit on every job.
Some of our most useful work is bringing the sector together to learn from each other. It is the network of the network.
Our community meets in Glasgow to share what works in charity digital, in the open, with peers rather than pitches.
A long-running network for people doing digital in the third sector, swapping practical help and honest advice.
Three voices, three different things worth knowing about working with us.
The team at Third Sector Lab are purpose-led and phenomenal at what they do.
They understood our world from day one, and were honest about what would and would not help.
Straightforward, responsive, and the result actually moved the numbers we cared about.
How we grew from direct digital support into a partner that pairs services, programmes and community.
Third Sector Lab founded by Ross McCulloch
The Curve begins delivering funded training
Digital Trustees launches with funder backing
Big Issue Changemaker of the Year
8,000+ people trained and counting
You do not need a finished brief. Tell us what you are trying to achieve and what is getting in the way. We will ask a few questions, share our first thoughts, and be honest about whether we are the right fit.