Caritas Social Action Network

What Caritas Social Action Network does

Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) is the domestic social action agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, founded in 2003 and registered both as a charity (no. 01101431) and as a company limited by guarantee (no. 4505111). Its functional role is to coordinate and represent the Catholic social action sector across England and Wales, convening an affiliated network of approximately 45-48 member charities working on homelessness, refugee support, poverty relief, and social justice. CSAN is based in London and operates with a small secretariat of around 5 employees.

CSAN's core products are network coordination services, policy and advocacy outputs, member capacity-building, and public campaigns — most recently the Jubilee 2025 'Debt, Poverty and Hope' initiative and a publication on AI and the dignity of workers. It does not operate a proprietary technology platform; its infrastructure is organisational (secretariat, member networks, ecclesial mandate) rather than technical. Outputs are typically briefings, events, and coalition statements rather than software or licensed services.

The business model is that of a UK registered charity: revenue derives from member subscriptions, grants, and likely resourcing channelled via the Catholic Bishops' Conference and other Catholic institutional donors, not from commercial pricing. CSAN serves two principal customer segments — its member charities (which receive coordination, advocacy representation, and development support) and, indirectly, the vulnerable populations across England and Wales reached through the network of Catholic charities it coordinates.

Name

Caritas Social Action Network

Legal name

Caritas Social Action Network

Website

https://csan.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CSAN is the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England's domestic social action agency, coordinating a network of roughly 45 Catholic charities addressing poverty, homelessness, and social justice across England and Wales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Network Coordination

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139), Religious Organizations (8131), Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil Society Strengthening & Civic Space (BPADAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences) (BPAGAJAB)

Keywords

• Catholic social action
• Charity network coordination
• Social justice advocacy
• Nonprofit member services
• Community support programmes

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable activities and grants: CSAN operates as a registered charity (number 01101431) coordinating Catholic social action. The organization facilitates grants and support through its network of member organisations but does not generate commercial revenue. It relies on charitable donations and may receive support from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CSAN is the domestic agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, coordinating Catholic social action through a network of Catholic dioceses and charities. It animates and coordinates advocacy, leadership development, community sponsorship, and policy engagement to address homelessness, migration, modern slavery, and poverty across England and Wales.

Product overview

Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) is a charitable organization and network coordinator, not a technology product company. It operates as the domestic agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales for social action. CSAN's offerings consist of advocacy campaigns (Love the Stranger, Jubilee 2025), leadership development programmes (Aspiring Leaders Programme), awareness initiatives (Human Trafficking Ambassador Programme), community service programmes (Community Sponsorship), knowledge resources (publications and reports), and network coordination services for its 48 member organisations. These programmes work together to animate Catholic charitable activities and bring voices of the poor to bear on public policy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Love the Stranger: A campaign focused on migration and refugee issues, promoting the right to asylum.
• Jubilee 2025

Quantifiable outcome

• Network coordinates Catholic social action across England and Wales addressing homelessness, migration, poverty, and other forms of misery

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Caritas EuropacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 May 2025CSAN participates in Caritas Europa regional conferences and initiatives. CEO Raymond Friel presented on servant leadership at the Caritas Europa Regional Conference in Chișinău, May 2025. CSAN aligns with Caritas Europa's Appreciative Inquiry research methods.
• Catholic Education Service and CYMFedminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 24 January 2025CSAN collaborated with Catholic Education Service and CYMFed to launch the Jubilee for Schools initiative, coordinating resources and communications for Catholic schools across England and Wales.
• St Mary's University, TwickenhamminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2024CSAN, together with the Catholic Bishops' Conference and St Mary's University, hosted a webinar during Anti-Slavery Week 2024 on modern slavery. Professor Carole Murphy from St Mary's leads the Bakhita Centre for Research on Slavery, Exploitation, and Abuse.
• Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSAN is the domestic agency of the CBCEW for social action, established by the bishops to develop the Church's social action in England and Wales. Archbishop Malcolm McMahon, Archbishop of Liverpool, serves as Chair of CSAN.
• Caritas InternationaliscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSAN participates in Caritas Internationalis campaigns including 'Turn Debt into Hope' to cancel debts of poorer countries. Alistair Dutton, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis, addressed CSAN delegates at regional conferences.
• CAFODminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSAN collaborated with CAFOD and Catholic Education Service to launch the Jubilee for Schools in England and Wales, coordinating communications for the 2025 Jubilee Year.
• Catholic VoicesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSAN worked with Catholic Voices, which trains lay people to communicate Catholic teaching with charity and clarity. Georgia Clarke from Catholic Voices spoke at the Jubilee Communications webinar.
• Diocese of BrentwoodminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYour Place (a CSAN member) is deeply rooted in the Newham community and within the Diocese of Brentwood, founded under the leadership of Bishop Thomas McMahon.
• Member Network (45+ organisations)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCSAN coordinates a network of Catholic charities including Caritas agencies for all English and Welsh dioceses, plus independent charities serving homeless, refugees, prisoners, families, and other vulnerable populations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Catholic Charities USA: US national network of Catholic Charities agencies providing social services and advocacy; shares the Catholic Social Teaching mission and member-network model, but operates in a much larger US market.
• Caritas Australia: Australian member of the Caritas federation running social action, refugee advocacy and humanitarian programmes; same Caritas model and Catholic Social Teaching framing, operating in a different geography.

Direct peers

• Church Army: Anglican evangelical organisation running social action projects (homelessness, recovery, community engagement) across England. Closest Anglican counterpart to CSAN's Catholic social action network model.
• Caritas Europa: Brussels-based federation of Caritas organisations across Europe, including CSAN. Operates the same network-coordination model for Catholic social action and is a core strategic partner of CSAN.
• Together Network: UK-based Catholic social action network that emerged from Caritas-related work; operates a similar model of mobilising Catholic charities around housing, homelessness and social justice.
• Caritas Internationalis: Global confederation of over 160 Caritas member organisations; CSAN participates in Caritas Internationalis campaigns (e.g., 'Turn Debt into Hope') and is treated as part of the worldwide Caritas family.
• CAFOD (Catholic Fund for Overseas Development): The official overseas development agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. CSAN and CAFOD are sibling bodies under CBCEW and jointly launched initiatives such as Jubilee for Schools.
• St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP) England and Wales: The largest volunteer-based Catholic charity in England and Wales and a CSAN member; comparable scope of frontline social action (visiting lonely/homeless, advocacy) with 9,500 volunteers.

Broad incumbents

• Citizens UK: UK-wide community organising charity that builds broad-based coalitions across faiths and civic groups for social change; comparable civic-space focus and policy advocacy approach, though operating at a larger scale and across faiths.
• NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): UK umbrella body for the voluntary sector, providing infrastructure, policy voice and member services to charities; comparable membership-coordination and advocacy function, but serving the entire voluntary sector rather than one faith network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/csanonline
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCkdUnLALG93FtKHpLZJadsA
• Facebookfacebook.com/CaritasSocialActionNetwork
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/caritas-social-action-network-csan-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Caritas Social Action Network