Real Times: an in-depth study of third sector organisations over time

There are four main focal points to the research:

Fortunes - What influences the fortunes of third sector organisations?

Challenges - What challenges do third sector organisations face and how do they respond? 

Strategies - How do third sector organisations regard and negotiate the environments in which they operate? 

Performance - How is the 'performance' of third sector organisations understood by different stakeholders? 

The rationale and design of Real Times was developed during 2009 and is discussed in more depth in the working paper: ‘Seeing things differently? The promise of qualitative longitudinal research on the third sector’ (TSRC Working Paper 56, March 2011). 

In its first phase (2009-2013), Real Times worked with a diverse group of 15 core case studies of third sector activities, alongside a wider group of associated ‘complementary’ case studies. Data was generated primarily through interviewing people in and around each case study, but also observing activities and analysing key documents. 

The research consisted of five waves of fieldwork visits – roughly every nine months - to each core case study. The fifth wave was given an opportunity to gain an update on the fortunes of each case study, but also to engage in a two-way feedback discussion about the research findings. The case studies are introduced in the working paper ‘First Impressions’ (TSRC Working Paper 67, November 2011).  

The Real Times research programme coincided with a period of significant economic and political change; a period we characterise as an ‘unsettlement’. Hence the research has followed how case studies have attempted to cope and keep going amidst the prospect of diminished resources, increased demands and changing political priorities. Some case studies have been more vulnerable than others, but they have mostly survived in some form or another. We discuss some of the strategies that case studies have adopted - namely restructuring and redundancies, considering mergers and rebranding - in ‘The third sector in unsettled times – a field guide’ (TSRC Working Paper 109, August 2013). 

The Real Times dataset is a unique resource for longitudinal analysis of the third sector. We are currently engaged with colleagues at the Timescapes initiative at the University of Leeds in an ESRC-supported knowledge exchange project, ‘Changing Landscapes for the Third Sector’, which places Real Times at the heart of a collaborative network of qualitative third sector research studies, all with some form of temporal dimension to their work. The aim is to bring qualitative longitudinal research on the third sector together to enhance dynamic and narrative forms of evidence for policymakers and practitioners working in and alongside the third sector. 

Real Times publications

Paper 109:
The third sector in unsettled times: a field guide, Rob Macmillan, Rebecca Taylor, Malin Arvidson, Andri Soteri-Proctor, and Simon Teasdale (August 2013)

Paper 90:
Making sense of the Big Society: perspectives from the third sector, Rob Macmillan (January 2013)

Paper 76:
Third sector leadership: the power of narrative, Rob Macmillan and Vic McLaren (March 2012) 

Paper 67:
First impressions: introducing the ‘Real Times’ third sector case studies, Dr Rob Macmillan, Dr Malin Arvidson, Dr Sobrina Edwards, Dr Andri Soteri-Proctor, Dr Rebecca Taylor and Dr Simon Teasdale (November 2011) 

Paper 56:
Seeing things differently? The promise of qualitative longitudinal research on the third sector, Rob Macmillan (March 2011) 

Paper 31:
Black boxes in the wreckage? Making sense of failure in a social enterprise, Duncan Scott
Briefing paper 

Paper 20:
The third sector delivering public services: an evidence review, Rob Macmillan (July 2010)
Briefing paper  

A monthly series of reports from the Real Times project was launched in 2014. Unfolding tales of voluntary action began with the story of third sector activities in "Larch" – a relatively deprived village in the north of England in mid-2010. Qualitative data collected for Real Times gives a unique vantage point to observe the main influencers of change, and how organisations respond and adapt over time.

Part One

Divine Intervention The story of third sector activities in 'Larch', a relatively deprived village in the north of England. 

Part Two

'The Boss' Surviving organisational crisis in a family support project: 'Hawthorn'. 

In the coming months this series of short papers will be telling some of the unfolding stories arising from our longitudinal case study work.

Each instalment draws on some of the rich data generated through the research, linking it to wider debates and literature about the sector.

The aim is to add to conversations about the everyday realities of voluntary action in different contexts.

Please send us your feedback:

• how do your experiences compare with the stories told here?
• does what you read in these instalments resonate with your knowledge and experience? 

Please email Rob Macmillan, Real Times research lead: r.macmillan@bham.ac.uk 

This series is produced in partnership with the Changing Landscapes for the third sector project at the School of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Leeds.