Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway

What Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway does

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway (legal name: Dumfries and Galloway Third Sector Interface; SCIO SC043832) is a Scottish charitable organisation founded in 2013 that serves as the statutory Third Sector Interface (TSI) for the Dumfries and Galloway region. Its core function is convening and supporting the regional third sector — charities, community groups, social enterprises and volunteering organisations — by providing training, governance resources, funding discovery, volunteer management infrastructure, and themed forums across four priority areas: employability, community health and wellbeing, children and young people, and tackling poverty. TSDG operates from Monreith House at The Crichton in Dumfries and has between 11 and 50 employees.

The organisation's product surface is a portfolio of free-to-access digital tools and services rather than a single commercial product. Core digital assets include DGLocator (a service discovery application and website for finding third sector services across the region), a Funding Finder built on the idoxopen4community platform, a Governance Tool, and VolunteerWiki / Governance Wiki knowledge resources. Complementary services include the SEDG social enterprise network, a free Jobs Board, themed forums, membership services, Saltire Awards administration for young volunteers, and case-study–driven volunteer and partnership programmes with named organisations such as The Salvation Army, Citizens Advice, and A Listening Ear.

TSDG's business model is grant-funded rather than commercial. Core funding comes from three named public sector partners: the Scottish Government, Dumfries and Galloway Council, and the Dumfries and Galloway Health and Social Care Partnership. Revenue, contract values and pricing are not publicly disclosed. The organisation also holds formal seats on the Community Planning Partnership, the Local Employability and Skills Partnership, and contributes to the national No One Left Behind employability framework and the new regional Public Social Partnership for health and social care commissioning. Services to third sector organisations and individual volunteers are provided free of charge, with no transactional pricing model.

Name

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway

Legal name

Dumfries and Galloway Third Sector Interface

Website

https://tsdg.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway is the statutory Third Sector Interface for the Dumfries and Galloway region of Scotland, supporting charities, community groups, social enterprises and volunteers through free training, funding discovery (Funding Finder), service directory (DGLocator), themed forums and policy representation, funded by the Scottish Government and local public partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Third Sector Support Services

NAICS

Business Support Services (5614)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

Keywords

• Third sector support
• Volunteer development
• Social enterprise advice
• Community development
• Charity advisory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Dumfries

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: Core funding received from public sector partners including the Scottish Government, Dumfries and Galloway Council, and Dumfries and Galloway Health and Social Care Partnership to support the third sector interface operations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway is a Third Sector Interface organisation that supports charities, social enterprises, community groups, and volunteers across the Dumfries and Galloway region. Its offering includes one-to-one advisory work, training and resources, governance support, a Funding Finder tool, volunteering services, themed forums (e.g., the Employability Forum), and the DGLocator service-discovery platform. It also convenes member networks such as the SEDG Network and runs a Jobs Board for the sector.

Product overview

Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway operates as a Third Sector Interface organization offering a platform of interconnected services rather than a singular software product. The core offerings include DGLocator (a service discovery tool), the Social Enterprise Dumfries and Galloway (SEDG) Network, Funding Finder, Governance Tool, and Volunteering Services. These are complemented by themed forums (Employability, Community Health and Wellbeing, Children and young people, Tackling poverty), training programs, a jobs board, and membership services. The organization functions as a hub connecting charities, community groups, and social enterprises with resources, funding, volunteers, and collaborative opportunities across the Dumfries and Galloway region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Social Enterprise Dumfries and Galloway (SEDG): Network providing support for social enterprises in Dumfries and Galloway
• DGLocator
• TSDG

Products and services

• DGLocator An online service discovery tool that helps residents, organisations, and partners find third sector and community services across Dumfries and Galloway.
• Funding Finder A search facility that helps third sector organisations in Dumfries and Galloway identify and apply for relevant grant funding opportunities.
• VolunteerWiki A volunteering platform that supports volunteer recruitment, management, and matching for third sector organisations and prospective volunteers.
• Governance Wiki A governance resources portal providing charity trustees and committee members with guidance, templates, and tools to support good governance.
• SEDG Network A member network convened by TSDG for social enterprises and Dumfries and Galloway sector organisations to share practice and coordinate activity.
• Employability Forum A themed forum bringing together third sector organisations and partners to coordinate employability activity across the region.
• Training and Resources Training courses and resource materials delivered to third sector organisations and volunteers on topics such as governance, funding, and operational management.
• Jobs Board A jobs listing service advertising employment opportunities within Dumfries and Galloway's third sector organisations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Connecting third sector organisations with policy development and strategy influence at local and national levels
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Local Employability and Skills PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTSDG is a member of this partnership which supports the aims and objectives of the No One Left Behind employability strategy. TSDG represents the third sector at local board and delivery group meetings.
• Community Planning PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership board backing the Fair Funding commitment for the region's voluntary sector. TSDG connects third sector organisations into community planning processes.
• Public Social PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA new approach bringing charities, community groups, carers and people with lived experience together to shape health and social care commissioning earlier in the process.
• No One Left BehindcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational employability framework. TSDG supports the coordination and design of the No One Left Behind Dumfries and Galloway framework and participates in the national Third Sector Employability Forum.
• The Salvation ArmyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between TSDG and The Salvation Army Dumfries Donation Centre and High Street shop for volunteering and sector collaboration.
• Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice ServiceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration between TSDG and Citizens Advice Service on sharing best practices and volunteering support.
• A Listening EarminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting organisational growth through TSDG's volunteer and organisational support services.
• Saltire AwardscoreOthersNational awards scheme for young volunteers aged 11-25. TSDG promotes and supports the Saltire Awards which recognise volunteering achievements with certificates endorsed by the Scottish Government.
• Volunteer ScotlandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational centre for volunteering providing resources and PVG disclosure services. TSDG refers organisations to Volunteer Scotland for PVG questions and support.
• SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational membership organisation for Scotland's charities. TSDG connects local organisations to SCVO resources and represents the sector at national level.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations): National umbrella body for Scotland's charities, offering policy, funding, and capacity-building services that overlap with TSDG's role but at a national level. SCVO is the closest national-tier analogue to TSDG's intermediary function.
• Social Enterprise UK: UK-wide membership body for social enterprises, providing policy advocacy and business support — overlapping with TSDG's SEDG Network function but at UK scope.
• NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): The England-wide equivalent of SCVO, providing funding advice, research, and policy influence for the voluntary sector — comparable in remit to TSDG's convening and capacity-building work.
• WCVA (Wales Council for Voluntary Action): National umbrella body for Wales's third sector with similar intermediary, funding, and policy functions to TSDG, operating at a national rather than regional scale.
• NICVA (Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action): Northern Ireland's national voluntary sector infrastructure body delivering policy, funding support, and capacity building — analogous in role to TSDG at national scope.

Direct peers

• Edinburgh Voluntary Organisations' Council (EVOC): Edinburgh's Third Sector Interface performing the same regional TSI convening, capacity-building, and policy-influence role as TSDG in a different Scottish council area — the closest functional peer.
• Fife Voluntary Action: Fife's TSI offering volunteer coordination, training, funding support, and policy engagement to member charities and social enterprises — directly comparable in mandate and structure.
• Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector (GCVS): Glasgow's regional TSI delivering membership, training, funding advice, and policy advocacy to third sector organisations — a like-for-like TSI operating in Scotland's largest urban centre.
• Volunteer Scotland: National centre for volunteering in Scotland providing PVG, volunteer recruitment, and Saltire Awards — overlapping directly with TSDG's volunteering services and referenced as a strategic partner.

Regional players

• Cumbria Council for Voluntary Service: A rural, cross-border CVS serving Cumbria with training, funding advice, and volunteer infrastructure analogous to TSDG's services — most comparable as a similarly rural and dispersed regional infrastructure body.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/third-sector-dumfries-and-galloway

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Third Sector Dumfries and Galloway