News

CFG is the go-to community for charity finance and our members are the beating heart of our organisation.

In November 2025, we launched our online member survey. Open to all charity members for three months, it was designed to understand more about our members, the key challenges they are facing and how they use and value CFG’s services and products.

The survey also explored what CFG is doing well and where we can improve, to ensure our membership community continues to meet members’ needs and deliver value for money. A total of 120 CFG members took part. Thank you to you all and to those who entered our prize draw!

Why become a CFG member?

“CFG was invaluable in helping me navigate all the new things I was having to deal with. The training is second to none in the sector.”

The results of our survey showed that members highly value the networking and engagement opportunities that CFG membership gives them and that they enjoy being part of the vibrant community. But that’s not all…

• Nearly half (43%) said their organisation joined CFG so that they could access member discounts on events and CPD opportunities.

• More than one third (37%) said they joined to become part of CFG’s community.

• One quarter of members (25%) joined to access CFG’s sector news and insights.

How satisfied are our members?

“CFG is a brilliant resource and excellent value for money.”

We are delighted to see that the majority of those who responded to the survey were happy with their CFG membership.

• Nearly nine out of ten (89%) members said they are satisfied with their CFG benefits, resources and support services.

• 84% rate CFG membership ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ value for money.

• 63% of members believe every charity should be a member of CFG.

• CFG has a Net Promoter Score of +63.5%, categorised as ‘excellent’ within the membership sector.

Most valued member benefits

“I find CFG an essential network to be in touch with finance professionals facing similarissues and challenges in the workplace, to be able to discuss and work through them together.”

Members told us that being able to access affordable learning opportunities is one of the main benefits of being part of the CFG community. But that’s not all...

• More than nine in ten (93%) survey participants rated CFG’s events and training as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ value.

• One third (64%) access CFG’s website for the Knowledge Hub and more than a third (38%) visit the website for updates on specific topics.

• Sector representation and advocacy are highly valued, particularly CFG’s work to directly engage parliamentarians and policymakers. Consultations are seen as an essential way for CFG to provide a voice for the sector.

• Access to CFG’s expert advice, helplines and guidance is also a valued membership resource.

• Where there was awareness, members spoke highly of CFG’s Special Interest Groups, the Finance Journey, the Peer Mentoring Scheme, and CFG’s flagship course, Inspiring Financial Leadership.

We are listening

The CFG team is delighted to see that the level of member satisfaction remains high, but we’re not resting on our laurels!

We’ve identified several areas for improvement and development work, and the member survey results have helped us to prioritise this work over the coming months.

The feedback provided by those who completed our member survey has been invaluable to how we shape our ongoing digital transformation project. Our vision is to develop more personalised learning experiences for members and establish online spaces where members can share, connect and self-serve.

In summer 2025, we will be launching the first iteration of a new website. It will be the third phase of our major digital transformation project, following on from us launching our new CRM and finance system - all within a few months of each other. These essential projects will deliver fundamental improvements and transform how we operate.

“ Until I completed the [member] survey, I was unaware of lots of the resources and benefits that are apparently available to me.”

You said: We are not aware of the full range of CFG’s membership benefits.

What we’re doing: We have launched an at-a-glance guide that handily sets out the value of membership, and launched a series of online drop-in webinar sessions for those wanting to learn more about the benefits of membership and importantly how to easily access them, and share with colleagues. More improvements to the way we talk about membership are on their way.

How you can help: We will continue the work to promote all the benefits of CFG membership, and value any and all suggestions on how we can promote our benefits more clearly (without clogging up your inboxes – see below).

You said: CFG can sometimes over-communicate, particularly via email, and at times shares too much general or promotional content.

What we’re doing: The team is now looking at how we can streamline our marketing and communications as part of our digital transformation project. With better systems and a more easily navigable website, we are aiming for greater balance in our marketing and communications.

How you can help: New events and training opportunities are being added to our website all the time, along with new expert articles and updates in our Knowledge Hub. Visit the website regularly to browse and book events and find our latest useful sector updates.

You said: We’d like more free content, including on-demand training, short webinars and learning resources such as case studies, benchmarking tools and template policies. Other members would like to see a reduction in the number of online events and attend more in-person events.

What we’re doing: The team has recently expanded so that we have more capacity, and we are now conducting a content audit to update resources and spot gaps. We’re also looking for ways to create more learning resources and tools whilst still delivering our regular content and newsletters.

What you can do to help: If you’d like to submit an idea for an article, best practice case study, presentation or something else, please email the Comms Team. Or you can submit your idea online via our form. By sharing your work and knowledge, we can help more charities like yours. We also encourage you to take a look at The Finance Journey which we will be digitising as part of our digital transformation work. This is an excellent development tool and framework for charity finance teams and professionals. Please take a look!

You said: We’d like more inclusive, specialist networks and groups within the CFG community, and to be able connect and network online more easily.

What we’re doing: As part of our digital transformation work we’re looking at how we can bring members together online to share experiences, insights and ideas. We are exploring how our new website can support online discussion forums and our Specialists Interest Groups, meaning that you only have to log in to one site, once, to discuss, share, network and learn with others.

What you can do to help: The more we share, the more we grow. We are a thriving membership community that’s thanks to you, our members and partners who share their time and expertise so generously. We want to spread the word about all that CFG membership offers to charities and we need your help, please do recommend the CFG membership community to other charities and finance professionals you work with and know, and Please look out for details about our Member Get Member campaign, coming soon!

In the meantime, if you have any questions or thoughts you’d like to share with the team, we are always keen to hear from you, so please get in touch. Email the Membership Team.

Thanks again to those who participated in our 2024/25 member survey and well done to the winners of our prize draw!

The winners:

Rachael Baker, Collections Trust
Martin Clemmey, Relief International
Andrew Whitehead, Lloyds Bank Foundation

A huge thank you to all our members and partners who have renewed their membership with CFG so far this new membership year starting 1 April. Your ongoing support means that we can continue to lead the way in charity finance together.