AI and your charity: getting ready for what's next

AI is already changing how charities work, from summarising meeting notes to answering supporter queries. The pressure to 'do something with AI' is real, but so are the risks to the trust your beneficiaries, donors and volunteers place in you. The question is not whether to engage, but how to do it well.

As part of the Sector Support programme at Community Foundation North East, we are delighted to offer this practical half-day session for charities and voluntary organisations. After a fully booked session in September, we are repeating the workshop, with updated content to reflect how quickly things are moving.

Your host is Colette Harrison, Sector Support Manager at Community Foundation North East and this session will be facilitated by Dr Yulia Dzenkovska of Service Design North - an AI Trust and Customer Experience Specialist working with people-centred organisations across the North East.

We will cover where AI sits in the charity sector right now, what is changing and how this may affect your organisation. We will share real case studies of charities and people-centred organisations putting AI to use thoughtfully, and finish with hands-on training so you leave with something you can put into practice straight away.

The hands-on part will focus on Microsoft Copilot, as it is the AI tool many charities already have access to through Microsoft 365. If your organisation uses other tools, such as ChatGPT or Claude, you are very welcome to bring your questions about those too.

Every AI decision is a trust decision in disguise. This session is about making those decisions deliberately, so AI strengthens the relationships at the heart of your work rather than putting them at risk.

By the end of the session you will:
• Understand the current picture of AI in the charity sector and what is coming next
• Have a practical framework of questions for building your own AI policy and guidelines
• See how other organisations are using AI responsibly, with concrete examples
• Have tried a relevant AI tools with guidance and support

Please bring a laptop if you can, along with your work Microsoft 365 login if your organisation has one.

Refreshments and pastries will be provided.

Please note there is no on-site parking, nearest parking is Salters Road car park (2 hours), Sainsbury's multi storey on the High Street or Regent Centre which is a five minute walk.

If you have any questions before booking please contact Colette: ch@communityfoundation.org.uk

We look forward to seeing you there.