Links to sector organisations

The Department of Internal Affairs is responsible for the Charities Commission, which:

• promotes public trust in charitable organisations
• provides education and assistance to the charitable sector
• encourages best practice in governance and use of resources
• maintains and monitors a register of charities
• receives annual returns and monitors the activity of charities
• provides advice on matters relating to charities.

» Go to Charities Commission website

CAB are voluntary organisations providing free, impartial and confidential services of information, assistance and referral to anyone in the community. Queries can include legal, personal, education, housing, finance or vehicle issues or disputes. CAB is staffed by trained volunteers who can access information by computer or from the extensive range of resources held by each bureau. There are 87 bureaux around New Zealand.

» Go to Citizens Advice Bureaux website

Community Law Centres promote participatory justice and community development to help meet the “unmet legal needs” of communities throughout New Zealand. The non-profit organisation provides legal information and resources for members of the public to help meet their own needs.

» Go to the Coalition of Community Law Centres of Aotearoa website

A collective of community groups has created Community Central  - an online space for people in tangata whenua, community and voluntary, public health and other organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand to work together, share and converse online.  The site includes private workspaces and discussion groups.

Visitors can also access a range of community sector e-newsletters, as well as the employment resource kit Mana Mahi, which contains 17 best practice guides and 6 resource booklets relating to a wide range of employment relations issues.

» Go to Community Central website

Established in 2003, the Community Sector Taskforce is an independent body of community representatives working to develop the relationship between government and the sector.

» Learn more about the Community Sector Taskforce

ComVoices is an independent network of tangata whenua and leading national community and voluntary organisations set up to promote and make visible the enormous contribution of the community and voluntary sector to New Zealand society. Established, in July 2005, ComVoices' primary aim is to ensure the sector has a powerful and collaborative voice in the community and at Government level.

» See the list of ComVoices members

The DIA is a regulatory body with responsibility for some aspects of how community and voluntary organisations operate. The DIA contributes to community development by administering Lottery Grants, Community Grants Schemes and Trusts; provides support services and policy advice for Ministers of the Crown; and also issues passports; administers civil unions; registers births, deaths; and promotes internet safety. The DIA is also home to the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management, which manages its own volunteering work programme.

Local DIA Community Advisors can provide free advice on:

• assistance with planning, including project planning
• provision of funding information
• setting up legal structures
• meeting training needs
• group facilitation.

» Go to Department of Internal Affairs website

The DIA also maintains the CommunityNet website to encourage information sharing between organisations. CommunityNet shares news, guides and tools for and by clubs, trusts, hapū and iwi. Practical resources to help you set up and run community projects and organisations include how to register as a legal entity, running a meeting, recruiting, retaining and recognising volunteers, and more. Fourteen how-to-guides cover topics such as human resources, campaigning and advocacy and risk management. 

» Go to the  CommunityNet website

This non-profit organisation collects and distributes information about funding via three separate searchable computer databases:

• FundView – contains information about funding for community groups in New Zealand
• BreakOut – holds information about awards, scholarships and grants for individual development
• CorporateCitizens – for organisations looking for mutually beneficial relationships with businesses offering volunteering, mentoring, sponsorship, gifts in kind, loans and other initiatives.

» Go to Funding Information Service website

FINZ is the professional body for fundraisers - providing professional development opportunities, networking events, publications and advocacy.  FINZ prides itself on its large base of members, all of whom agree to adhere to a code of conduct and ethics and maintain a high level of professionalism in all work undertaken.  FINZ members work with over 200 charities and not-for-profit organisations on local, national and global causes.  FINZ also maintains NZ's most comprehensive calendar of awareness weeks/days held in association with national appeals and street collections.

» Go to FINZ website

The Legal Services Agency (LSA) is a government agency that promotes access to justice through legal services, including legal aid, for those who have the greatest need and are least able to pay. It also manages the LawAccess website, which provides a catalogue of law-related information and resources, containing resources from over 140 New Zealand organisations.

» Go to Legal Services Agency website
» Go to LawAccess website

If you don't know which government agency deals with the topic you want to learn about, then visit www.newzealand.govt.nz.  This government portal collects news and other web content from government departments and makes it easier for you to find the help or information that you need.

» Go to www.newzealand.govt.nz

The Inland Revenue lists donee organisations approved for the purposes of sections KC 5, DB 32 and DV 11 of the Income Tax Act 2004. When a person makes a donation to an organisation listed, generally they can claim a tax credit for that donation. Donors can also donate to listed donee organisations via payroll giving 

» View the list on the Inland Revenue website

This New Zealand government website allows users to update registration details for an incorporated society, search for an incorporated society or charitable trust and obtain useful information on these organisations. The website was developed by the Companies Office, which is part of the Ministry of Economic Development..

» Go to Societies & Trust Online website

The Research Centre was established to "contribute to the strengthening of the capacity of the tangata whenua, community and voluntary sector through research".

The first major project of the Centre has been the development of a web-based research Clearing House for the sector. The Clearing House offers free access to research, promotes a code of practice for researchers, connects people to research, allows groups to find researchers, and has the potential for email lists, virtual conferences, and a 'how-to' section, etc.

Some special features of the site include Māori metadata standards, which make it possible to use Māori terms to help search for bilingual or te reo resources online; creative commons, which gives the authors copyright but allows the protected use of resources by others; and a 'Wiki' approach, which allows collaborative work.

Anyone can register in the Clearing House, and then "frolic in the clearing" - to Flag, Rate, Link or Comment on any resource that the Clearing House holds. This process helps verify the validity and quality of resources.

» Go to Tangata Whenua, Community & Voluntary Sector Research Centre Clearing House

A range of umbrella groups (councils, federations, collectives or associations of organisations in the community and voluntary sector) cover various subsets of the community and voluntary sector. Many perform roles for their members such as training, information sharing, research and lobbying. They are sometimes known as ‘peak bodies’ or 'national bodies'.

Volunteering New Zealand (VNZ) is an association of volunteer centres and national organisations with a strong commitment to volunteering. Their mission is to create an environment that supports, promotes, values and encourages effective volunteering by the people of Aotearoa New Zealand. Sixteen regional volunteer centres are listed on the VNZ website.

VNZ and the Tindall Foundation developed the VolunteerNow website to provide information about volunteering opportunities throughout New Zealand.

» Go to the Volunteering New Zealand website
» Go to VolunteerNow website