Eastside People
Eastside People is a UK charity-sector consultancy and recruitment firm offering ten specialist advisory service lines (governance, strategy, ESG, AI, digital, mergers, etc.) and executive/board/interim recruitment to approximately 150 charity clients annually from its London headquarters, supported by a 100+ consultant network.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Eastside People does
Eastside People, legally Eastside Consulting Ltd, is a UK-based consultancy and recruitment firm specialising exclusively in the charity and not-for-profit sector. Founded over 20 years ago and headquartered in London (Canopi, 82 Tanner Street, SE1 3GN), the firm serves approximately 150 charity clients annually and operates through a central team of roughly 65 staff supported by a network of 100+ specialist consultant associates. Its core products comprise ten consultancy service lines — AI, Culture & Workforce, Digital, ESG, Governance, Income Generation & Fundraising, Impact Measurement, Merger & Partnership, Social Investment, and Strategy & Transformation — alongside three recruitment services (Board Recruitment, Executive Search, Interim Management) and a charity vacancies job board. Notable proprietary assets include the free ESG Assessment benchmarking tool and the annual Festival of Trusteeship event.
The firm generates revenue through professional service fees across both advisory and recruitment engagements. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, with revenue mechanics driven by project-based and retainer consulting work, retained executive search fees, and interim placement margins. Its go-to-market combines direct client engagement (phone, email, website enquiries, free consultations) with content-led demand generation through a knowledge base, blog series, Charity Merger Guide, ESG survey, and the annual Festival of Trusteeship. Distribution is UK-only, sold direct to charity CEOs, boards, and leadership teams.
The firm has completed 3,007 change projects and 587 recruitment projects across 1,271 client organisations, holds a 9.2/10 outstanding client rating for skills and know-how, and was included in the 2024 NatWest SE100 Index of UK top 100 social enterprises. Strategic partnerships span sector infrastructure bodies (Charity Commission, NCVO, ACF), diversity initiatives (ATRD, Young Trustees Movement, Board Racial Diversity UK), and social-investment intermediaries (Good Finance, Charity Bank, Big Issue Invest), positioning the firm as a deeply embedded governance and capacity-building partner to the UK charity ecosystem.
Eastside People firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Eastside People
- Legal name
- Eastside Consulting Ltd
- Website
- https://eastsidepeople.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Eastside People is a UK charity-sector consultancy and recruitment firm offering ten specialist advisory service lines (governance, strategy, ESG, AI, digital, mergers, etc.) and executive/board/interim recruitment to approximately 150 charity clients annually from its London headquarters, supported by a 100+ consultant network.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Eastside People industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Charity Consulting and Recruitment Services
- NAICS
- Human Resources Consulting Services (541612), Executive Search Services (561312), Management Consulting Services (54161)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Culture, Engagement & Employee Experience (EX) Consulting (BPAHAGAI), Performance Management & Productivity Consulting (BPAHAGAL)
Keywords
Where Eastside People is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Eastside People business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Charity Consultancy Services: Providing expert consultancy to charities and not-for-profit organisations across areas including strategy, governance, mergers, income generation, ESG, AI, digital, impact measurement, and culture & workforce. Revenue generated through professional service fees for advisory and consulting engagements.
- Recruitment Services: Providing recruitment services including board recruitment, executive search, and interim management placement for charities and not-for-profit organisations. Revenue generated through recruitment fees, typically a percentage of candidate salary for executive search or fixed fees for board appointments.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Eastside People product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Eastside People provides specialist consultancy and recruitment services to UK charities and not-for-profit organisations. Its consultancy practice spans strategy and transformation, governance, mergers and partnerships, income generation and fundraising, ESG, AI and digital transformation, impact measurement, culture and workforce, and social investment. Its recruitment practice places trustees, board chairs, senior executives, and interim managers via retained executive search, board recruitment, and interim management services. The firm operates as a network of 100+ specialist consultants coordinated from its London headquarters.
Product overview
Eastside People operates as a consultancy and recruitment firm offering a portfolio of specialist services for charities and not-for-profit organisations. The core offering consists of 10 consultancy service areas (AI Consultancy, Culture & Workforce, Digital Consultancy, ESG Consultancy, Governance, Income Generation & Fundraising, Impact Measurement, Merger & Partnership, Social Investment, and Strategy & Transformation) and 3 core recruitment services (Interim Management, Board Recruitment, and Executive Search), supported by a Vacancies job board. A key free resource is the ESG Assessment Tool for benchmarking. The company also hosts the annual Festival of Trusteeship event. Services are delivered through a network of experienced consultants and are targeted at helping charities develop strategy, improve governance, increase income, and build organisational capacity.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Charity Consultancy Services A portfolio of specialist consultancy services for UK charities and not-for-profit organisations covering AI, culture and workforce, digital transformation, ESG, governance, income generation and fundraising, impact measurement and evaluation, merger and partnership support, social investment, and strategy and transformation. Delivered through a network of 100+ experienced consultants.
- Board Recruitment
- Executive Search
- Interim Management
- Vacancies Job Board
- Free ESG Assessment Tool
- Festival of Trusteeship Annual conference and learning event for charity trustees, featuring sessions on governance, recruitment, EDI, and sector best practices. Ticketed event with super early bird pricing.
Quantifiable outcome
- 3,007 change projects completed
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Eastside People
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Eastside People technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Eastside People partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Charity CommissioncoreThe Charity Commission is referenced as a key regulatory body in the UK charity sector. Eastside People aligns its services and guidance with Charity Commission frameworks, including The Essential Trustee (CC3) and regulatory requirements. Their consultants provide guidance on Charity Commission compliance and best practices.
- NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations)coreNCVO is referenced as a key sector infrastructure body providing guidance on trustee recruitment and charity best practices. Eastside People's services and thought leadership align with NCVO frameworks and research on the charity sector.
- Association of Charitable Foundations (ACF)coreACF is a membership organisation for foundations and independent grant makers across the UK. Eastside People worked with ACF on their 5-year strategic plan development (2021-2022), supported by Eastside People consultant Ruth Dwight.
- Association of ChairsminorReferenced as a partner organisation offering online training for trustees. Eastside People recommends their resources to charity clients seeking governance training and development.
- Directory of Social ChangeminorReferenced as a training provider for trustees alongside the Association of Chairs. Eastside People recommends their resources to clients seeking governance development.
- Women on BoardsminorSpecialist recruitment platform for board positions. Referenced as a resource for charities seeking diverse trustee candidates.
- Young Trustees MovementminorMovement focused on increasing young trustees on charity boards. Referenced as a resource for diversifying trustee recruitment.
- EvenbreakminorSpecialist inclusive recruitment platform. Referenced as a resource for attracting diverse trustee candidates including disabled candidates.
- Board Racial Diversity UKminorOrganisation helping boards become more racially diverse. Referenced as a resource for broadening trustee candidate pools.
- Action for Trustee Racial Diversity (ATRD)coreEastside People is a partner in the ATRD initiative, working to improve racial diversity on charity boards. This partnership aligns with their EDI commitments.
- Good FinancecoreGood Finance is a platform helping charities and social enterprises understand social investment. Eastside People partnered with Good Finance on social investment webinars and resources, providing expertise to clients seeking social investment.
- Charity BankcoreSocial sector savings and loans bank. Eastside People partnered with Charity Bank on social investment webinars, providing clients with access to social finance expertise.
- Big Issue InvestcoreInvestment arm of the Big Issue group. Eastside People partnered with Big Issue Invest on social investment webinars and resources, connecting clients with social investment opportunities.
- Own MeritcoreCommunity Interest Company providing accommodation and support for prison leavers. Eastside People partnered with Own Merit on social investment webinars, demonstrating their expertise in helping social enterprises access funding.
- What Works for Children's Social Care (WWWCSC)coreEastside People provided consultancy services to WWWCSC for digital transformation and systems assessment during their merger with the Early Intervention Foundation to form Foundations.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Eastside People competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Baringa Partners: UK-headquartered consulting firm with sector-specialist practices; representative of the broader management consulting category that increasingly competes for charity ESG, digital and transformation work.
Direct peers
- Saxton Bampfylde: UK executive search consultancy with a recognised not-for-profit practice recruiting chief executives, trustees and senior leaders for charities—competing head-to-head for similar mandates.
- TPP Not-for-Profit Recruitment: Specialist UK not-for-profit and charity recruitment firm covering executive, interim and direct hire roles; a direct competitor in Eastside People's recruitment revenue stream.
- Peridot Partners: Executive search and interim management firm focused exclusively on the charity and social sector in the UK, offering board, chief executive and senior leadership recruitment directly comparable to Eastside People.
- Prospectus: UK specialist recruitment and consulting firm dedicated to the not-for-profit sector, with executive search, interim and advisory practices that directly overlap Eastside People's core offering to charities.
Regional players
- NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): UK membership body for charities and voluntary organisations that publishes sector research and runs consultancy-adjacent programmes; overlaps with Eastside in governance and capacity-building content but is not a direct for-profit competitor.
Broad incumbents
- Russell Reynolds Associates: Global leadership advisory and executive search firm with a UK social purpose and charity practice, competing for senior charity leadership mandates alongside Eastside.
- Deloitte UK: Big Four professional services firm with significant UK not-for-profit consulting practice across strategy, ESG, digital and HR consulting; competes for larger UK charity mandates where scale and brand matter.
- PwC UK: Big Four firm with a UK charities practice covering strategy, governance, ESG and digital transformation; a credible substitute for larger UK charity clients evaluating consulting partners.
- Odgers Berndtson: Global executive search firm with a dedicated UK not-for-profit practice; competes with Eastside People on larger charity CEO and board appointments while serving many other sectors.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Eastside People social profiles
Digital presenceEastside People compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Eastside People financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Eastside People leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Eastside People funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Eastside People M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Eastside People
What does Eastside People do?
Eastside People provides specialist consultancy and recruitment services to UK charities and not-for-profit organisations. Its consultancy practice spans strategy and transformation, governance, mergers and partnerships, income generation and fundraising, ESG, AI and digital transformation, impact measurement, culture and workforce, and social investment. Its recruitment practice places trustees, board chairs, senior executives, and interim managers via retained executive search, board recruitment, and interim management services. The firm operates as a network of 100+ specialist consultants coordinated from its London headquarters.
Is Eastside People a public or private company?
Eastside People is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Eastside People founded?
Eastside People was founded in 2004. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Eastside People based?
Eastside People is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Eastside People make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Charity Consultancy Services are the primary driver. The others are recruitment Services.
Who are Eastside People's main competitors?
Baringa Partners is listed as an others. Direct peers are Saxton Bampfylde, TPP Not-for-Profit Recruitment, Peridot Partners and Prospectus. NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations) is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Russell Reynolds Associates, Deloitte UK, PwC UK and Odgers Berndtson.
Does Eastside People have an API?
No public API is recorded for Eastside People.
What industry is Eastside People in?
Eastside People's product category is Charity Consulting and Recruitment Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHACAE, Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting, with a secondary code of BPAHAGAI, Culture, Engagement & Employee Experience (EX) Consulting. Its NAICS code is 541612 and its SIC code is 8742.