This digital strategy aims to support OSCR’s risk-based regulatory activities and deliver a quality service for charities in Scotland, while developing and nurturing an efficient, motivated, and flexible workforce. It will promote increased trust in Scottish charities and support charities to improve and retain public confidence by complying with their regulatory responsibilities.
OSCR’s five overarching strategic priorities for the next three years, as detailed in our Corporate Strategy are:
To support these goals, our priority will be to ensure that our data and digital systems are safe and secure.
Our digital security strategy which was developed in November 2022, states:
Effective cyber security is crucial in ensuring that OSCR is able to carry out our work efficiently, and that we are able to perform our regulatory duties as set out in the legislation.
Effective security is also vital in ensuring the public and charities trust OCSR with their information, some of which is special category data (including racial or ethnic origin, religious and philosophical beliefs).
A cyber-attack could potentially have very serious consequences, both in terms of disrupting our work of providing effective regulation of the sector, in causing potential harm to the charities we regulate, their staff, trustees and beneficiaries, and through damage to the OSCR’s own reputation (which may in turn undermine our ability to be an effective regulator).
That’s why we commit to the following mitigations to manage this significant risk:
In addition, throughout the life of this strategy we will demonstrate our commitment to managing this risk by achieving Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation annually.
We will ensure the public have access to the information OSCR holds, that they need – relating to charities in Scotland and how they are regulated.
We will maintain an accurate register and increase the level of information we provide to stakeholders about charities, using our new powers under the Charities (Regulation and Administration) (Scotland) Bill. This will help to provide everyone with an informed view of Scotland’s charities.
Should the relevant funding be made available:
By ensuring that the public has access to accurate, relevant information on the register, we will contribute towards our goals of:
We will provide charities with the tools and guidance they need to meet regulatory obligations.
By making charities’ interactions with OSCR digital by default, improving accessibility of information on our website, and targeting our engagement activity, we will better equip charities to fulfil their obligations.
We will deliver smart, responsive and effective regulation that positively impacts on Scotland’s charity sector and its beneficiaries.
By increasing our use of technology, being explicit about what to expect when submitting information to us and targeting our regulation, we will make sure we have the right resources to focus on our core activities and to use our powers to hold charities to account where required.
We will focus on our people and seek to develop a motivated, flexible and well-supported workforce. We will support our people to the best they can be by continually building individual and team capabilities, ensuring the organisation is agile when reviewing priorities, listening to everyone’s ideas and maintaining a hybrid working environment to provide flexibility in how work is carried out.
We will maintain a focus on best value, continuous improvement and collaboration.
To ensure OSCR is as effective and efficient as possible we will review how we manage our contracts and share services with other public sector bodies. The overall regulation of charities will be improved by removing duplication where charities are regulated by multiple bodies, through defined agreements with other regulatory bodies.
In this period, we will also: