Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited

What Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited does

Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited (VAR) is a registered charity (no. 1075995) and company limited by guarantee (no. 02222190) operating as the designated lead body for the voluntary and community sector (VCS) in the Rotherham borough of South Yorkshire, United Kingdom. The organisation supports over 900 VCS member organisations through a free membership programme, coordinating nine distinct sector networks including the Food In Crisis Partnership, Migration Operational Providers Network, CYPF Consortium, and VCS Strategic Reps. Its core service portfolio comprises health-focused commissioned programmes (the Rotherham Social Prescribing Service and Mental Health Community Connectors, funded by NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board), professional support services (Payroll Bureau, Community Accountancy, HR), community infrastructure (Rotherham GISMO online directory, meeting rooms at The Spectrum, photocopying), and culture/engagement initiatives (Flux Rotherham with Arts Council England, Community Achievement Awards, Rotherham Community Lottery).

VAR generates revenue through a hybrid model combining grant-funded commissioned services, fee-based professional services (payroll bureau at competitive rates, volume-based photocopying pricing, meeting room hire), and a freemium membership structure. Its go-to-market operates through healthcare referral pathways (Primary Care Networks, hospital discharge teams, GP Mental Health Practitioners), direct service delivery at its Rotherham headquarters, and a free VCS membership programme. Customers include statutory commissioners (NHS, Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, Arts Council England), SMB voluntary organisations across sectors spanning health, social care, advice services, arts and media, BME support, faith, and family services, as well as individual adults in Rotherham referred for non-medical support.

There is no proprietary technology platform underpinning VAR's services; the organisation functions as a service-based charity delivering advisory, administrative, and coordination work. Technology footprint is limited to a Wix-hosted website, basic social media presence (LinkedIn, Facebook), and the Rotherham GISMO directory. Distribution relies on direct in-person engagement, referrals from healthcare partners, and convening power through networks and events rather than technology-led channels.

Name

Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited

Legal name

Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited

Website

https://varotherham.org.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Voluntary Action Rotherham is a registered charity serving as the lead coordinating body for over 900 voluntary and community sector organisations in the Rotherham borough, delivering social prescribing, mental health connectors, payroll bureau, networks coordination, and arts engagement programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Voluntary and Community Sector Support Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Individual and Family Services (6241), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300), Lessors Of Real Property, Nec (6519)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

Keywords

• Voluntary sector support
• Social prescribing services
• Payroll bureau
• Community accountancy
• Volunteer coordination

Headquarters

HQ city

Rotherham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Services: Free membership providing access to advice, representation, training, job advertising, publicity, and profile on Rotherham GISMO directory. Revenue derived from enabling member engagement rather than direct membership fees.
2. Payroll Bureau Services: Comprehensive payroll services for VCS organisations and businesses. Includes bespoke payroll preparation, RTI filing, pension processing, statutory payments, and tax year-end filing. Competitive rates with additional charges for redundancy calculations and auto-enrolment support packages.
3. Meeting Room Hire: Multi-purpose meeting spaces at competitive prices. The Spectrum offers wheelchair accessible rooms with lift access, cycle storage, and parking including disabled spaces.
4. Commissioned Services: VAR receives funding to deliver specific programs including the Rotherham Social Prescribing Service (commissioned by NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board) and Connect to Work IPS programs (funded through Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee that acts as the lead infrastructure body for the voluntary and community sector (VCS) in Rotherham borough. It delivers a portfolio of services including social prescribing, mental health community connectors, payroll bureau, community accountancy, HR support, meeting room hire, volunteering coordination, and network facilitation to over 900 member organisations. It also runs commissioned programmes such as the Rotherham Social Prescribing Service funded by NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board.

Product overview

Voluntary Action Rotherham operates as a suite of interconnected voluntary and community sector support services, not a single unified software product. The portfolio includes the Rotherham Social Prescribing Service (RSPS) and Mental Health Community Connectors for health and wellbeing support; Payroll Bureau Service for financial administration; the CYPF Consortium and various networks for sector coordination; Flux Rotherham for arts engagement; Rotherham Gismo as an online community directory; Meeting Room facilities; and a free Membership Programme. These services are designed to support, develop and promote the voluntary and community sector across the Rotherham borough.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rotherham Social Prescribing Service (RSPS) A commissioned service targeted at adults in Rotherham aged 18+ providing non-medical support to maintain and improve health and wellbeing. Social Prescribers (VCS Advisors) offer advice on community services and supported referrals to help individuals maintain independence and reduce dependency on statutory health and social care services.
• Mental Health Community Connectors One-to-one support service for people living with Severe Mental Illness (SMI) across Rotherham, helping them access physical health checks, community connections, and statutory services. Referrals are accepted via GP Mental Health Practitioners.
• Payroll Bureau Service Comprehensive payroll bureau service for organisations employing staff, including PAYE, NICs, statutory payments, HMRC RTI compliance, and workplace pensions/automatic enrolment support. Offered at competitive rates with additional charges for redundancy calculations and tailored auto-enrolment support packages.
• Networks and Projects Coordination Coordination and facilitation of nine VCS networks including Food In Crisis Partnership, Migration Operational Providers Network, Volunteer Coordinators Network, VCS Strategic Reps, VCS Family Hubs Network, CYPF Consortium, Social Prescribing Community of Interest, RSPS Provider Network, and VCS Adult Health and Care Network.
• Children, Young People and Families (CYPF) Consortium Unites 30+ VCS member organisations to engage as partners in developing projects and services for children, young people and families, with strategic representation and coordination between the voluntary and community sector and the Local Authority.
• Flux Rotherham Action-research programme engaging Rotherham's communities in arts and culture, part of Arts Council England's Creative People and Places programme focusing on areas where cultural involvement is below national average.
• Rotherham Gismo Online Directory Online directory for community groups and services across Rotherham borough, providing profile visibility for member organisations.
• Meeting Rooms at The Spectrum Multi-purpose meeting spaces at competitive prices in Rotherham town centre, with wheelchair accessibility, lift access, cycle storage, and parking including disabled spaces.
• Membership Programme Free membership programme supporting over 900 voluntary and community organisations across Rotherham with advice, representation, training, publicity opportunities, job advertising, profile on Rotherham GISMO directory, and access to funding searches.
• Rotherham Community Lottery Fundraising lottery supporting the Rotherham community, allowing supporters to contribute while potentially winning prizes. Operates as a fundraising vehicle for community groups in the borough.
• Community Accountancy Service Specialist accountancy support service tailored for voluntary and community sector organisations in Rotherham, delivered as part of the Finance and HR Support portfolio.
• Human Resources Support HR advisory and support service for voluntary and community sector organisations in Rotherham, covering workforce development and HR management.
• Photocopying Service Photocopying service offering volume-based pricing for A4 and A3 documents in black and white and colour, available at The Spectrum.
• Volunteering Coordination Service Service coordinating and supporting volunteering activity across the Rotherham borough, including the Volunteer Coordinators Network and volunteering promotion.

Quantifiable outcome

• People accessing RSPS are more likely to continue living at home independently and become less dependent on statutory health and social care services

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommissioned and funded the Rotherham Social Prescribing Service (RSPS), which operates at VAR. The service is targeted at adults in Rotherham aged 18+ needing non-medical support to improve health and wellbeing. Referrals come from Primary Care Networks, community services, and hospital teams.
• Arts Council EnglandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVAR hosts Flux Rotherham, one of 39 programmes developed across England under the Creative People and Places programme. This arts and culture engagement programme transforms local people's involvement in leading and shaping cultural provision in areas where engagement is significantly below national average.
• Rotherham Metropolitan Borough CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCouncil partners with VAR for Connect to Work Individual Placement Support programmes, appointing VCS organisations to assist disadvantaged groups into sustainable paid employment through to 31st March 2027. Also funds the Best Start Family Hubs Community Fund for 2026/27 to strengthen the Best Start Family Hub Network.
• Rotherham Metropolitan Borough CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRotherham MBC has launched the Best Start Family Hubs Community Fund (26/27) to strengthen and sustain an inclusive Rotherham Best Start Family Hub Network by supporting community partners to work collaboratively with statutory provision.
• National Rail EnquiriesminorOthersVAR provides travel information referencing National Rail Enquiries website for visitors arriving by train to Rotherham Central station.
• South Yorkshire TravelminorOthersVAR provides bus travel information referencing South Yorkshire Travel (Tel: 01709 515151) for visitors arriving by public transport.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Locality: National membership network supporting local community organisations and social enterprises with a comparable mission to VAR but operating at national scale across England.
• NAVCA: National membership body for local VCS infrastructure organisations across England, providing the sector-level umbrella and policy representation that VAR engages with as a local infrastructure body.
• NCVO: National Council for Voluntary Organisations — the broader national voice for the UK voluntary sector with which VAR aligns on policy, training, and sector development.
• Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE): National umbrella for rural community development organisations, providing comparable VCS infrastructure support but focused on rural geographies rather than urban boroughs like Rotherham.

Direct peers

• Doncaster Community Insight: South Yorkshire-based VCS infrastructure body in Doncaster offering comparable membership, training, representation, and sector support services to local voluntary organisations.
• Voluntary Action Leeds: Direct peer operating as the lead infrastructure body for the voluntary and community sector in Leeds, providing similar membership, payroll, training, and sector representation services to local VCS organisations.
• Voluntary Action Sheffield: Direct peer providing infrastructure support to the voluntary and community sector in Sheffield with comparable services including membership, payroll, HR support, and network coordination.

Regional players

• Rotherham Hospice: Rotherham-based voluntary sector organisation delivering health-related services in the same borough. While distinct in service focus (palliative care vs. sector infrastructure), it operates in the same commissioning and member ecosystem as VAR.
• CVS Cheshire East: Regional Council for Voluntary Service in Cheshire East offering comparable membership, training, and infrastructure support to voluntary organisations in a different UK region.
• Voluntary Action North Somerset: Regional peer providing VCS infrastructure support including membership, payroll, and HR services in North Somerset, demonstrating the same local infrastructure model but in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/VoluntaryActionRotherham
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/voluntary-action-rotherham

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 Voluntary Action Rotherham Limited