Doing more with less: how the Charity Learning Consortium enabled Barnardo’s strategic overhaul of L&D
This case study shows how Barnardo’s used its Charity Learning Consortium membership to overhaul its L&D strategy, avoiding costly new technology while benefiting from a shared platform, sector collaboration and community support to do more with limited resources.
Barnardo’s is a longstanding member of the Charity Learning Consortium (CLC). When Jodie Pritchard joined the organisation as director of learning and development she carried out a review of their CLC membership as well as a review of the learning technologies market to guide her approach and next steps.
Pritchard’s review showed that investing in a new platform would be a considerable financial undertaking – the difference between investing in two front line practitioners or an updated platform.
As well as the potential cost savings, CLC membership also provided a range of other benefits beyond the platform including community support, feedback loops and events.
Barnardo’s decided that the potential savings and added benefits combined with the CLC’s collaborative and supportive approach would help the organisation deliver on its goals.
Focus on value
From prior experience and her own research of the learning technology market, Pritchard could see that investing in a premium learning management system with extensive features would come at a significant cost. “It was a two-salary difference,” says Jodie Pritchard, director of learning and development. “Or a couple of practitioners working in one of our community hubs, rather than spending it on a platform.”
Using CLC’s Moodle-based platform created space for reinvestment in L&D initiatives, particularly extending learning to Barnardo’s 18,000 volunteers.
The platform now underpins compliance training – from safeguarding to health and safety – and allows Barnardo’s to track completions and meet regulatory requirements. “We describe Moodle as ‘Ronseal’ – it does what it says on the tin,” Pritchard adds. “It delivers what we need from a compliance and reporting perspective.”
Through SharePoint integration and blended use of CLC content with internal resources, Barnardo’s has also built a learning ecosystem that supports wider development needs across departments and roles.
Cost-saving with impact
Achieving approximately 80% savings on platform spend allowed Barnardo’s to redirect funds toward extending development work across the organisation. “It allows us to do other things with our learning budget that we wouldn’t be able to do if we had to invest, for example, in a really expensive commercial platform,” says Pritchard.
More than a platform – the community benefits
For Barnardo’s, the true value of CLC lies beyond the technology. “It really does feel like a community. We know that because we are helping each other we are going to get something out of it.”
That includes:
- Member events that showcase peer-led case studies and external speakers
- A vibrant WhatsApp group for daily knowledge-sharing
- Participation in the Charity Mentoring Network
- Responsive support and regular contact with a dedicated membership manager
“Martin Baker, the CEO of CLC, is really future focused in what he does, and he is receptive to feedback. And the team act on it and that makes a big difference.”
Supporting a cultural shift
Barnardo’s is also using this transformation to shift its learning culture from a traditional, course-based approach to a more contemporary model that includes digital content, mentoring and social learning. Pritchard says that a key next step is to embed these new approaches across the organisation, especially for their large volunteer base.
“Development used to mean going on a course but now we are thinking about learning culture and how we change that and what that looks like,” Pritchard says.
“A part of this has been to introduce more digital content. This year we’re looking at coaching content and we are also thinking about accessibility and inclusion in more of what we do.”
Pritchard is also preparing for the future impact of generative AI on learning and development. “My biggest thought strategically as a charity is to understand how we set ourselves up so we’re on the front foot with AI. I think we really seriously need to be thinking in five years’ time, what is my L&D team going to look like, and so therefore, where do we invest or where do we support ourselves and our team now to be ready for that?”
“One of the big things that I think we get from CLC is the networking and the member meetings and the support. They listen and they understand what we need as a sector and that’s what they focus on. That’s the bit that’s the most valuable.” Jodie Pritchard, Director of Learning and Development, Barnardo’s
Key results:
Significant cost savings
An estimated 80% cost saving created room for reinvestment in strategic learning areas.
Compliance confidence
The platform provides secure, auditable training records for safeguarding, health and safety, and regulatory requirements.
Flexibility and integration
Moodle integrates with SharePoint and supports both custom and off-the-shelf content in a way that suits Barnardo’s scale and complexity.
Sector-relevant support and networking
The wider CLC network, including member events and the WhatsApp group, offers practical, sector-specific insight and problem-solving.
Responsiveness and collaboration
CLC actively responds to feedback and co-develops solutions – from new content themes to support for learning pathways.
Cultural fit
CLC understands the needs of third-sector organisations, making it a better cultural and operational fit than commercial vendors.
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