If you're a Locality Essentials or Membership Plus member you can access Lighthouse for free. If you're a Network member, you can upgrade your membership at any time to access Lighthouse, or pay £75+VAT for one Lighthouse Assessment.

Not yet a Locality member? Choose the level of support that’s right for you, with unlimited Lighthouse access included with Essentials and Membership Plus options.

Find out more about Locality membership and join today

2. Is Lighthouse relevant for me?

Lighthouse has been designed for established community organisations - large and small, rural and urban, staffed and run by volunteers. It should be relevant for any community organisation that generates income.

We appreciate that every organisation is unique and operates differently, so we have provided detailed notes within the tool to help you to complete the assessment.

3. Who should complete the assessment?

To get the most out of the Lighthouse assessment, we strongly recommend that Lighthouse is completed by a mix of Board and staff members together. This can be done at a meeting specifically to talk about the assessment, or as part of a Board meeting.

It is an opportunity to share information and compare views on a range of issues. There is a real value in the discussion. We recommend allowing 2-3 hours to complete the assessment tool.

If you find that you need support to complete the tool, we can help.

4. When should you take the assessment?

There is no specific time that you should take the assessment, but it is better to take the assessment sooner rather than later to help you understand if there any potential risks for your organisation's future.

5. What documents do you need for the assessment?

You will need some financial information to carry out the assessment:

Your last set of annual accounts
Your most recent set of management accounts
Your financial projections for the next four years

It is fine to complete the Finance Section in advance as long as the figures are shared with everyone participating in the Lighthouse assessment.

If you do not have four years financial projections, see the FAQs for guidance.

6. How long does it take?

There are six sections of the assessment, with up to 15 questions in each section. It is up to you how long you would like to spend on each question, but if you are answering as a group, try to keep your discussions structured and timed so that you don't spend too long on each question.

7. Who can see my report when it's generated?

You can view and download your report as a PDF in your account dashboard, so you control who sees your report.

Locality will be able to access all data entered into Lighthouse, but we will only use it for the following specific purposes:

To support you if you request a Lighthouse package of support.
To benchmark trends within our sector to inform our lobbying and product development.

The provision of data is a confidential business support relationship between your organisation and Locality.

We will not disclose any information about your organisation, or disclose it to a third party unless you have given explicit consent for us to do so (e.g. as part of a funding agreement).

Any communication based on trends identified from the data will not mention individual organisations. Data will be stored on a secure server in line with Locality’s privacy policy.

8. What if I don't know how to answer a question?

For more complex questions, guidance is provided about the reasoning behind the question to help you think about how you might answer it. This should help you respond even if the answers do not fit your situation perfectly.

The assessment only works if you answer all the questions – so it is important to ensure that you complete all the questions.

9. Can I save my progress and come back to it later?

Yes. You can save your progress on each section as many times as you like until you are ready to submit your assessment. Once you have submitted your assessment, you will not be able to access it again, so please make sure you check your answers thoroughly before submitting them.

10. Once I have my report, what should I do?

Once you've got your report, you can use it to prioritise any actions needed to strengthen your organisation, and create an action plan to address any key issues identified. You should act immediately if you have any red indicators on your short-term sustainability report.

If you need help, you can get expert support from the Locality team. Our team are spread across England, with the local knowledge and connections you need to be strong and successful.

Find out more about our expert support

Lighthouse assessment support

11. I don’t know how to answer a question

Most questions in the Lighthouse assessment have short boxes of text that explain what the question is asking you. You may find that opinions differ between those involved answering the questions. Try to reach a consensus, but keep a note of areas where there was a difference of opinion so that this can be explored in more depth at a later date.

Apart from the initial page which requires some information about your organisation, the questions fall into three categories:

Yes or No
Financial questions where you need to enter figures
Questions with a slider

Where a question is answered with a slider, look through the potential answers and use the slide bar to the position that most closely meets the current situation for your organisation. That may be between two statements.

If, as we strongly advise, you complete the Lighthouse assessment as a group, you may find that opinions differ between those involved about the answers to some questions. Try to reach a consensus in order to complete the Lighthouse assessment, but keep a note of areas where there was a difference of opinion so that this can be explored in more depth at a later date.

12. I don’t have four years of income projections, what should I do?

It is fine to use rough estimates for income in future years. Work out the amount of income you need based on your expected expenditure. You can estimate your expenditure in future years based on what you spent this year or last year and your future plans. Use the instructions in the question to work out secured, probable and still to find.

13. What is meant by engage with and positively include all sections of your community?

Locality has a vision of a fair society where every community thrives. Part of achieving this is building inclusive organisations so we are asking how well you engage with all sections of your community.

Consider people who may be discriminated against because of religion, nationality, race, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability, and ethnicity. What steps do you take to be positively inclusive of all sections of the community? What steps do you take to engage with sections of the community who may be hard to reach?

14. How do I answer section six, financial figures?

You can download our guide which helps you understand how to answer section 6 of the assessment.

For non charitable organisations

Download the guide for non charitable organisations(.pdf)

For charitable organisations

Download the guide for charitable organisations(.pdf)