What Durham Community Action does

Durham Community Action is a voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) infrastructure organisation, established in 1935 and operating as Durham Community Action Limited (a company limited by guarantee) from Low Willington, Crook, in County Durham, United Kingdom. The organisation provides advice, training, resources and representation to community groups, charities and social enterprises across County Durham, organised around four core pillars: Providing Expertise and Advice, Supporting Community Initiatives, Enabling Good Volunteering, and Providing a Voice. Beyond these pillars it runs specialised programmes including the Rural Housing Enabling programme, the County Durham Poverty Truth Commission, the REACH County Durham health equity partnership, and the Giving Time prison-to-volunteering project, and it facilitates a portfolio of networks covering wellbeing, social prescribing, Cree community spaces, community growing and food, community energy, rural community research, and a Share & Learn network of volunteer-led community organisations.

The underlying delivery model is human-led and partnership-based rather than technology-based: services are delivered through direct advisory work, network facilitation, training workshops and events, with no proprietary software platform, no app, and no disclosed AI capability. The technology stack referenced in the inputs consists of a CRM-backed mailing list, a website with a training portal, and a podcast production channel. The organisation is funded through grant and contract income from multiple public sector partners, notably Durham County Council, NHS-linked bodies via the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System (ICS), the ACRE Defra National Rural Housing Enabling Programme, the Office of the Durham Police and Crime Commissioner, and national networks including the Poverty Truth Network and VONNE; services are provided free of charge to beneficiaries. With 16 employees, the organisation operates at small-charity scale, prioritising breadth of community reach across County Durham over revenue growth, and functions as a convening bridge between grassroots VCSE organisations and public sector decision-makers.

Name

Durham Community Action

Legal name

Durham Community Action Limited

Website

https://durhamcommunityaction.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1935

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Durham Community Action is a County Durham-based VCSE infrastructure charity, established 1935, that provides advice, training, volunteering support and sector representation to community organisations, and facilitates multiple specialist networks and programmes including rural housing, poverty truth, and health equity initiatives.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Development Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Other Community Housing Services (624229)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

State/Provincial Housing, Urban/Regional Planning & Community Development (BPAIABAM), Civic Education & Community Engagement (Voting, Local Government) (EDAAAFAC)

Keywords

• Community infrastructure support
• Voluntary sector advisory
• Volunteer brokerage services
• Rural housing enabling
• Community network facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

Low Willington, Crook

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant and Contract Funding: As a charity and infrastructure organization, Durham Community Action operates primarily through grant funding, government contracts, and partnership agreements with public sector bodies including Durham County Council, NHS trusts, and national programs such as the ACRE Defra National Rural Housing Enabling Programme.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Durham Community Action is a Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) infrastructure organisation that provides advice, training, resources, and support to community organisations across County Durham. It delivers four core service pillars — Providing Expertise and Advice, Supporting Community Initiatives, Enabling Good Volunteering, and Providing a Voice — alongside specialised programmes such as Rural Housing Enabling, REACH County Durham, the Poverty Truth Commission, and Giving Time, and facilitates multiple sector networks including Wellbeing Link Workers, Social Prescribing Link Workers, Cree Network, Community Growing & Food Network, Community Energy Network, and Rural Durham Community Research Network.

Product overview

Durham Community Action is a Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) infrastructure organisation providing advice, support and assistance to communities across County Durham. The organisation offers a coordinated portfolio of services including four core pillars: Providing Expertise and Advice, Supporting Community Initiatives, Enabling Good Volunteering, and Providing a Voice. Alongside these core services, the organisation facilitates numerous specialised programmes including the Rural Housing Enabling programme, REACH County Durham health partnership, and the Poverty Truth Commission. The organisation also coordinates multiple networks including the Wellbeing Link Workers Network, Social Prescribing Link Workers Network, Cree Network, Community Growing & Food Network, County Durham Community Energy Network, and Rural Durham Community Research Network. Additional services include the Giving Time prison mentor programme and various training and events offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• REACH County Durham: A partnership between Durham County Council, Durham University and Durham Community Action examining ways to tackle unfair and avoidable differences in health experienced by communities in County Durham.
• Share & Learn Network
• Rural Housing Enabler Programme
• County Durham Poverty Truth Commission
• Giving Time

Products and services

• Providing Expertise and Advice Support service for community organisations providing advice, training, resources, and help to tackle challenges and realise their aspirations.
• Supporting Community Initiatives Service that works with networks and communities of interest to track sector opportunities and challenges, and to innovate and test new approaches which strengthen social and community infrastructure.
• Enabling Good Volunteering Brokerage and resource service developing volunteering opportunities and good practice in volunteer-involving organisations, championing volunteering across all sectors and supporting new volunteers to find suitable roles.
• Providing a Voice Representation service applying VCS knowledge and expertise within sector-led networks and multi-agency partnerships in County Durham, the North East, and nationally, to influence public sector policy and the design of local services.
• Rural Housing Enabling Programme Programme giving County Durham communities the chance to assess local affordable housing needs, provide rural communities a voice, and support more affordable housing development.
• REACH County Durham Partnership programme examining ways to tackle unfair and avoidable differences in health experienced by communities, addressing wider determinants of health such as income, education, housing, employment, and social support networks.
• County Durham Poverty Truth Commission Commission bringing people with direct experience of poverty together with civic and business leaders to change the narrative around poverty and make better decisions to bring about lasting change.
• Share & Learn Network Network of community organisations that run local buildings and services, providing regular meetings focusing on governance, funding, compliance and climate action, with networking and peer support.
• Wellbeing Link Workers Network Six geographical networks bringing together organisations and groups that support wellbeing of individuals in County Durham, enabling smooth referrals between services offering support.
• Social Prescribing Link Workers Network Quarterly network for Social Prescribing Link Workers across County Durham, enabling VCSE partners and community groups to promote and inform SPLWs about projects across the county.
• Cree Network Network of community spaces (Crees) across County Durham offering safe communal space to men, women and young people experiencing poor mental health, risk of social isolation, self-harm, suicide and general wellbeing concerns.
• Community Growing & Food Network Network bringing together organisations with projects or interest in food growing, gardening and food systems, enabling community groups to connect, communicate and collaborate to share good practice.
• County Durham Community Energy Network Collaborative space for organisations delivering, funding, or supporting Community Energy initiatives across the county, meeting quarterly to share best practice and coordinate activity.
• Rural Durham Community Research Network Network building research capacity in rural communities to investigate local issues, contribute experiences, and influence positive changes in policy and practice.
• Giving Time Project supporting trained mentors into volunteering following release from prison, working in partnership with the University of York on the AMICABLE research project.
• Training and Events Training offers and events for community organisations including DBS workshops, funding information sessions, and risk management training.
• Health & Wellbeing Support for voluntary and community organisations to build connections across the health system, representing VCSE sector on Health and Wellbeing Forums and Networks locally, regionally and nationally.

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• VONNE (Voluntary Organisations' Network North East)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022VONNE represents the VCSE sector as a regional strategic partner within the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System. Durham Community Action works closely with VONNE on health and wellbeing programmes.
• North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System (ICS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Since 2022, the ICS brings together health and care organisations. VONNE coordinates VCSE sector involvement as regional strategic partner, with Durham Community Action contributing to health and wellbeing forums.
• Durham County CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership in multiple initiatives including REACH County Durham (examining wider determinants of health) and support for the Cree Network. Durham County Council's Public Health Team co-supports the Cree Network with Durham Community Action.
• Durham UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in REACH County Durham alongside Durham County Council. Durham University's Wolfson Research Institute for Health and Wellbeing is involved in this research and engagement initiative.
• University of YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership on the AMICABLE project (Addressing Mental Health In Custody: A Brief Learning Environment) examining implementation of Problem Support Mentor schemes in prisons.
• Rural Design CentresupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Rural Durham Community Research Network, supporting community-led research in rural areas.
• Point NorthsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Rural Durham Community Research Network, contributing to research capacity building in rural communities.
• Insights North EastsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Rural Durham Community Research Network, supporting community research initiatives.
• Newcastle UniversitysupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Rural Durham Community Research Network, contributing academic expertise to community research.
• Office of Durham Police and Crime CommissionercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership providing Community Peer Mentors at HMP Low Newton for the Giving Time project supporting ex-offenders into volunteering.
• ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded through the ACRE Defra National Rural Housing Enabling Programme, providing free support to rural communities for affordable housing solutions.
• Durham Key OptionssupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerHousing register partnership - Durham Community Action refers those in housing need to register with Durham Key Options for affordable rental housing in County Durham.
• The Forge (Stanley)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative practitioners Bob Beagrie and Sheryl Jenkins from The Forge worked with Poverty Truth Commission 2 commissioners to help them tell their stories through poetry and animation.
• Poverty Truth NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network that supports Poverty Truth Commissions across the UK. County Durham has two commissions running alongside each other as part of this network.
• Food DurhamsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership network promoting sustainable food practices and improving access to nourishing food across County Durham. County Durham received a Sustainable Food Places Silver award in 2025 through this partnership.
• HMP Low NewtonsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrison partnership for the Giving Time project where Durham Community Action supports Problem Support Mentors to find volunteering opportunities after release.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): UK national umbrella body for the voluntary sector. NCVO sits above local infrastructure bodies like DCA, providing national policy voice, research, and sector data - overlapping on the "providing a voice" pillar but at national rather than county scale.
• Citizens Advice: National advice services network with local bureaux. Overlaps with DCA on the advice and information service pillar for community members, though Citizens Advice focuses on consumer/rights advice while DCA focuses on VCSE organizational support.

Direct peers

• Community Voluntary Sector (CVS) organisations (e.g., Cumbria CVS, Bradford CVS): County-level VCSE infrastructure bodies performing the same infrastructure role as DCA in other UK geographies. They share the same four-pillar model (advice, networks, volunteering, voice) and compete for similar local authority funding streams.
• NAVCA (National Association for Voluntary and Community Action): National membership body for local VCSE infrastructure organizations like DCA. NAVCA represents the same category of local infrastructure bodies that DCA exemplifies, advocating for the model nationally.
• ACRE (Action with Communities in Rural England): National rural community support network that directly funds Durham Community Action's Rural Housing Enabler Programme via the Defra partnership. ACRE operates as a national umbrella for rural community action organizations like DCA.
• VONNE (Voluntary Organisations' Network North East): Regional VCSE infrastructure network for the North East. VONNE coordinates the same VCSE sector engagement with the Integrated Care System that DCA participates in, making them the closest peer in both function (infrastructure body) and geography (overlapping North East footprint).
• Groundwork UK: Federated network of local Groundwork trusts delivering community environmental and regeneration programmes. Operates with a similar grant-funded, partnership-driven model focused on community infrastructure in defined geographies.
• Poverty Truth Network: National network supporting Poverty Truth Commissions across the UK - County Durham hosts two of these commissions delivered by DCA. Operates the same model of bringing lived-experience commissioners together with civic leaders.
• Locality: National membership network supporting community-led organizations, social enterprises, and community anchors. Locality operates a near-identical service mix (advice, networks, advocacy) to DCA, with rural housing, community asset support and policy voice functions.

Emerging players

• Rural Design Centre: Partner in DCA's Rural Durham Community Research Network. Smaller specialist organization focused on rural community research and design - emerging player in the same rural infrastructure space DCA occupies.

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/DurhamCommunityAction
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/durham-community-action-limited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Durham Community Action