Aussie charity register adopts SmartyGrants classification system
Posted on 19 Oct 2022
By Matthew Schulz, journalist, Our Community
Our Community’s social sector classification system, CLASSIE, is now being used to power Australia’s official charity register.
The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) has just launched an upgrade to the register using the CLASSIE taxonomy. The upgrade enables donors, volunteers, not-for-profits and others in the sector to quickly search by:
- type of activity or service
- location
- online status
- who the charity helps.
ACNC commissioner Dr Gary Johns said the enhancements would enable more groups in the sector to “connect, collaborate and innovate”.
“For the first time, new charity register search features allow you to look up the kind of charity program you would like to support, in your local area or your preferred location anywhere in Australia,” Dr Johns said.
The CLASSIE system, which has evolved since its release in 2016, classifies organisations in the social sector by type, subject, population, activities and transaction type (or how support is provided).
Our Community executive director Kathy Richardson welcomed the adoption of the CLASSIE system by the register, after attending the official launch in Melbourne.
“For years the Australian not-for-profit sector battled against non-existent or third-rate systems of classification. That made it so hard to compare apples to apples and find the data you need,” Ms Richardson said.
“I am delighted to see our social sector taxonomy being used to great effect to help donors, volunteers, grantmakers and not-for-profits find the organisations that are doing the heavy lifting to build stronger communities.”
CLASSIE is already built into the SmartyGrants system, allowing grantmakers to better understand their areas of focus and their beneficiaries.
More platforms relying on CLASSIE
CLASSIE is also embedded in the Centre for Social Impact’s new Amplify platform, which is designed to help the for-purpose sector measure their impact and was officially launched on March 16.
Charity assessment site Changepath, which rates charities based on transparency, financial management, and impact reporting has also just adopted the CLASSIE system. The not-for-profit is using CLASSIE for its charity identification tool and search/filter system.
SmartyGrants has regularly updated the taxonomy since its 2016 launch.