The role of geographic data in third sector service provision: developing a framework for research and practice

社会政策的一个核心问题是了解如何最好地促进社会需求需求与适当服务的供应和提供之间的平衡（Baldock等人，2011）。随着国家提供的减少，人们对第三部门应对需求的能力的期望正在上升，但这些需求也呈现出空间特征：长期证据（例如通过丹尼·多林和其他人的工作）表明，劣势集中在小地区。通过采用地理视角，明确了满足相关社会政策需求背后的过程，例如社区和志愿行动团体如何最好地分配资源（无论是志愿者还是资助项目），以最大限度地发挥其影响，或最大限度地减少服务提供者之间的重叠和竞争。宏观层面第三部门服务的供需不匹配已经得到了很好的证明（Mohan和Breeze， 2015）。， Lindsey, 2013)，然而，对微观层面努力克服这一点的研究很少。越来越多地关注大数据和数据处理（Kitchin, 2014）以及地理信息系统（GIS）的扩散（Goodchild, 2009），特别是在tso中。确定这些组成部分如何协同作用以应对第三部门内部的社会政策挑战，不仅在理论上令人兴奋，而且对该部门本身也有益。尽管New Philanthropy Capital （de las Casas, 2013）、NCVO （2016a）和Just Giving（2015）等人的工作已经引起了人们对改善影响证据的重要性的关注，但他们和其他人（例如Data Evolution(2016)）对该部门使用地理信息的探索很少。因此，本研究的目的是：a)解决TSO参与地理数据的实证理解的研究空白。b)制定一个分析框架，详细说明服务组织如何利用地理数据，有效地分配资源，以响应服务用户的需求。c)根据现有的数据可用性和技术能力，探索地理数据在第三部门服务提供中的潜在用途。本文采用的研究问题是：RQ1：服务用户需求的地理空间参考数据在配置第三部门资源时扮演什么角色？RQ2：哪些组织目标需要使用地理数据来实现？RQ3：有哪些技术和分析能力可以进一步利用地理数据来实现组织目标？

A central concern of social policy is understanding how best to facilitate an equilibrium between the demands of social need and the supply and provision of adequate services (Baldock et al., 2011). As state provision declines expectations of the third sector's ability to respond to needs are rising, but those needs are also taking on a spatial character: long-term evidence (e.g. through the work of Danny Dorling and others) suggests a concentration of disadvantage in small areas. By employing a geographic lens, clarity is provided on the processes behind meeting pertinent social policy demands such as how best can community and voluntary action groups allocate resources (whether volunteers, or funded programmes) to maximise their impact or minimise overlap and competition between providers of services. The macro-level mismatch between supply and demand of third sector services has been well documented (Mohan and Breeze, 2015., Lindsey, 2013) however research into the micro-level efforts to overcome this are scarce. Increasingly, focus on big data and data processes (Kitchin, 2014) has occurred as well as the proliferation of geographic information systems (GIS) (Goodchild, 2009), especially amongst TSOs. Identifying how these components interact synergistically to meet social policy challenges within the third sector is both intellectually exciting and beneficial for the sector itself. Although the work of New Philanthropy Capital (de las Casas, 2013), NCVO (2016a) and Just Giving (2015) and others has drawn attention to the importance of improved evidence on impact, they and others (e.g. Data Evolution (2016) show little exploration into use of geographical information in the sector. Therefore, the aims of this study are:a) To address the research gap in empirical understanding of TSO engagement with geographic data. b) To develop an analytical framework that details how geographic data can be used by TSOs to efficiently allocate resources in response to service user demand. c) To explore the potential uses of geographic data in third sector service provision, in accordance with existing data availability and technical capabilities. The research questions employed are:RQ1: What role does geospatially referenced data on service user demand play when allocating third sector resources?RQ2: Which organisational aims necessitate the use of geographic data for their delivery?RQ3: What technical and analytical capacity exists for further use of geographic data to meet organisational aims?