Peterborough CVS (Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service)

What Peterborough CVS (Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service) does

Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service (PCVS) is a registered charity and the recognised umbrella body for the voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) sector in Peterborough, United Kingdom. Established in 1980, the organisation supports more than 500 charities and volunteering groups through a membership of 400+ non-profits, community interest companies, social enterprises, and parish councils. It operates from a single headquarters at the Allia Future Business Centre in Peterborough with 19 staff under CEO Kirsteen McVeigh, who also serves as Data Protection Officer.

PCVS delivers its mission through a portfolio of interconnected programmes built around a membership platform. Core digital offerings include a searchable Members Directory, a funding newsletter and portal aggregating grants by closing date and area of interest, an events calendar, and online training resources distributed via Mailchimp and the pcvs.co.uk website. Beyond the platform, PCVS operates Direct Payments and Personal Health Budgets administration, Group Payroll Services, a Personal Assistants Register, Community Forums (Disability Forum, Health Forum), volunteering coordination, a Digital Inclusion Project, a Poverty Truth Commission, and the Pride in Place community regeneration programme investing up to £20 million across five neighbourhoods over ten years. The technology stack is conventional and non-proprietary - comprising a WordPress-based website, Mailchimp email infrastructure, and partner integrations such as the Joy App referral platform.

PCVS operates on a grant-and-donation-funded non-profit model with no traditional revenue mechanics. Membership is provided free to eligible VCSE organisations, and core support services are delivered at no charge. Income streams include grants from Peterborough City Council, NHS, the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA), the National Lottery Community Fund, and corporate sponsors (National Gas, Cadent Gas), supplemented by corporate/civic sponsorship packages, direct donations, and legacies/bequests. Major multi-year programme funding - including the Pride in Place initiative (£20m over 10 years) and the Poverty Truth Commission (£40m over 10 years) - flows through PCVS as administrative lead, making the organisation's effective gross throughput materially larger than its retained operational budget.

Name

Peterborough CVS (Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service)

Legal name

Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service

Website

https://pcvs.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Peterborough CVS is a registered charity and the recognised umbrella body for the voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector in Peterborough, supporting 400+ member non-profits through training, funding advice, a members directory, direct payments services, and community regeneration programmes funded by grants and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Peterborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Grants and Funding: PCVS relies primarily on grants and donations to fund operations. They receive support from organizations including Peterborough City Council, NHS, National Gas, CPCA, Community Fund, and Cadent Gas.
2. Membership Fees: Membership is provided free of charge to eligible VCSE organizations, charities, CICs, social enterprises, and parish councils.
3. Corporate Partnerships and Sponsorship: PCVS offers corporate and civic sponsorship opportunities where businesses can provide financial support, time, resources, employee volunteering, or donate products/services.
4. Legacies and Bequests: PCVS accepts gifts left in wills to support long-term sustainability of their work.
5. Direct Donations: One-off donations from individuals and organizations to support vital work.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Peterborough CVS is a registered charity that acts as an umbrella and membership body for the voluntary sector in Peterborough, providing free training, funding advice, networking events, a members directory, and direct operational services including group payroll, direct payments administration, and a personal assistants register. It also runs community investment programmes (Poverty Truth Commission, Pride in Place), digital inclusion support, community forums, and volunteering coordination for over 400 member non-profit organisations.

Product overview

PCVS operates as a membership-based charity support organisation rather than a technology product company. Its service portfolio is organised around a membership platform providing directories, training resources, funding information, and event management, supplemented by direct service programmes including Direct Payments management, Group Payroll Services, a Personal Assistants Register, Digital Inclusion initiatives, Community Forums, Volunteering coordination, Research services, and community investment programmes such as the Poverty Truth Commission and Pride in Place. The core offering for members includes access to a directory, funding portals, training materials, and events calendar, while non-members can access some resources and basic information. The organisation functions as an umbrella body for the voluntary sector in Peterborough rather than as a software or technology product provider.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PCVS Members Directory A searchable online directory of over 400 member non-profit organisations across Peterborough, enabling community groups, registered charities, CICs, social enterprises, and parish councils to showcase their profiles, services, and contact information.
• Funding Newsletter and Portal A funding newsletter service for members detailing the latest grants available, combined with funding portals listing funders by closing date and area of interest, accessible to both members and non-members.
• Training and Infrastructure Support Online resources, face-to-face training courses, downloadable spreadsheets and templates, presentation video links, slide packs from training days, and networking events for PCVS members.
• Group Payroll Services Payroll services provided to support charities and voluntary sector organisations in Peterborough in managing employee payroll administration.
• Direct Payments and Personal Health Budgets Service A direct payments service helping individuals manage their care funding, including regular coffee mornings for direct payment customers.
• Personal Assistants (PA) Register A registration service for personal assistants working in social care in the Peterborough area, providing visibility and connection to direct payment employers.
• Digital Inclusion Project Initiatives to address digital exclusion, including one-to-one support for filling electronic forms and promoting digital literacy among community members.
• Community Forums Forums including Disability Forum and Health Forum that serve as established community voices used by government and other bodies for consultation.
• Volunteering Opportunities A platform connecting volunteers with opportunities at PCVS and other member organisations.
• Research Services Research capabilities including community research, data collection, and helping get research into communities.
• PCVS Events Calendar

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• People Powered ResearchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization supporting research and community engagement initiatives.
• Joy AppcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Joy App is a service bringing together organizations that support people with social prescribers who can make referrals. PCVS works with the Joy App for community referrals.
• Peterborough CitizenscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for the Pride in Place community engagement programme, working together on community listening activities across Peterborough neighborhoods.
• Poverty Truth NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network supporting the development and implementation of Peterborough's Poverty Truth Commission following the established commission model.
• MediaTrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMediaTrust provides training courses for charities including communications, digital, podcasting, LinkedIn, SEO, TikTok, and inclusive communications. PCVS members receive 20% discount on courses.
• St John the Baptist ChurchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChurch partner providing meeting venue for Poverty Truth Commission gatherings and supporting community initiatives.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Cambridge Council for Voluntary Service: Direct peer operating as a CVS providing membership, training, and funding support to the voluntary sector in Cambridge. Closely comparable structure, service model, and member base to PCVS.
• Manchester Community Voluntary Services: Manchester-based CVS providing membership, training, and advice services to voluntary and community organizations. Directly comparable structure and service portfolio to PCVS.
• Norfolk Community Foundation: County-level voluntary sector support and grantmaking organization serving Norfolk VCSEs. Comparable to PCVS in providing funding information, training, and infrastructure support to local charities.
• Birmingham Voluntary Service Council: Birmingham-based CVS providing training, funding advice, and infrastructure support to local VCSE organizations. Closely comparable service model and operational scale to PCVS.

Emerging players

• Small Charities Coalition: UK membership organization providing support, resources, and training to small charities. Comparable capacity-building and training services to PCVS members but focused specifically on small charities nationwide.
• Foundation for Social Improvement: Provides training, resources, and support to small charities and community groups across the UK. Comparable training and capacity-building focus to PCVS's training and infrastructure support services.

Regional players

• Bone Cancer Research Trust: While a UK voluntary sector charity, it is a single-cause organization rather than a CVS. Included as a comparable grant-receiving VCSE in the UK charitable ecosystem PCVS supports.

Broad incumbents

• Locality: National membership network for community-led organizations, social enterprises, and community charities. Comparable member support and advocacy role but at a national scale.
• NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): National umbrella body for the voluntary sector in England. Comparable mission of supporting VCSEs but operates at national scale rather than serving a single local geography like PCVS.
• Community Foundations UK: UK-wide network of community foundations supporting local VCSE funding and grantmaking. Comparable grantmaking and local funding support role but operates as a national federation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PeterboroughCouncilforVoluntaryService
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/peterborough-council-for-voluntary-service
• Instagraminstagram.com/peterboroughcvs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Peterborough CVS (Peterborough Council for Voluntary Service)