February 13, 2025

Rebecca Guy, Third Sector Referral Coordinator (TSRC), discovered that colleagues are often having to explain what The Third Sector means to those receiving the team’s support… and to NHS and Adult Social Care staff too. Not sure yourself? Let Rebecca explain…

 

Over here in the Third Sector Referral Coordinator (TSRC) team, we have recently been having a conversation about how we describe the third sector to both the patients we support and potential referrers, alongside the challenges we face when trying to do so.

Our role involves receiving referrals from NHS and Adult Social Care (ASC) colleagues for individuals who could benefit from third sector support, and having that patient-centred conversation with the individual to ascertain what needs they have and which organisations could help. This means that, on a daily basis, we are aiming to explain the third sector and the vast array of support that is provided by our sector to members of the public. No mean feat.

We also present to NHS and ASC services about our work, and we have been asked to describe the third sector during these sessions. It’s easy, when working in a particular sector, to assume that others understand what it means (much like the many acronyms within the NHS to which we as a team also contribute), but as a colleague recently learned from her Project Management course; assumptions are one of the biggest mistakes we can make in our communication with others.

 

So, how do we describe the third sector?

When faced with this dilemma, we did of course turn to a trusted search engine for the answers:

‘The ‘third sector’ is an umbrella term that covers a range of different organisations with different structures and purposes, belonging neither to the public sector (i.e., the state) nor to the private sector (profit-making private enterprise)’

‘In relation to public services, the voluntary sector is the realm of social activity undertaken by non-governmental, not for profit organizations.’

‘The third sector covers charity and voluntary work, and is also known as the ‘not-for-profit’ industry.’

If said search engine can’t even clear this up for us, what hope do we have?!

The approach within our team is often to briefly explain the sectors; public, private and third, along with examples of organisations and the support provided. A couple of us decided to research the general understanding of the sectors on unknowing family and friends, and this highlighted that these sectors are not always easily understood. Therefore having to explain the sectors before expanding on the third sector is often necessary, but it also adds another a layer of complexity to our communication. Does this also create a barrier to our service and further third sector support?

My personal approach is often to state that it refers to non-profit organisations such as charities and voluntary organisations including *insert third sector organisations here*, but that can often be met by ‘what support is out there?’. Cue the next challenge of explaining the vastness of support available, although this is more about us supporting a person to identify their own needs first and signpost accordingly, rather than sharing a never-ending list of options.

Ultimately, there appears to be no perfect way to explain the third sector, and we have to be flexible and organic in our approach based on the individual or team with which we are communicating. We must also ensure that we are not making assumptions about a person’s current knowledge or understanding. Health literacy awareness has also highlighted the importance of our understanding (as patients and as the TSRC team) of health services, so that we can make informed choices regarding our healthcare. This highlights the complexity of communicating both our service and the third sector which may create a barrier to accessing support, and this is something we are continually working to reduce, hence my reason for writing this rambling post.

This leads me to pose some questions for you to ponder: How do you describe the third sector to both colleagues and members of the public? Do you have any suggestions for our team? Do your family members and friends really know what you do?

Your thoughts are most welcome so please do get in touch via email: rebecca.guy@cumbriacvs.org.uk