Your Good Numbers good news newsletter for May 2026 — a quick round-up of the what's happening in the world of small nonprofits, and the tools we’re building to support them.
We’re excited to share that the Good Numbers app has passed its independent security testing, a big milestone as we get ready to move beyond our pilot phase. The testing was completed by Wise Fox Security, who reviewed the app and helped us check that we’re taking the right steps to keep small charities’ financial information safe.
With this milestone behind us, we’re on track to begin opening the app more widely next month. We’ll start carefully, bringing on new organisations in stages so we can keep learning, improving, and making sure Good Numbers continues to work well for the small charities and incorporated societies it has been built for.
Part 2 of the Good Data Series looks at paid and volunteer hours across Tier 3 and Tier 4 charities — and one of the questions we explored was: do charities get bigger as they get older?
Intuitively, it feels like they should. The longer an organisation has been around, the more time it has had to build awareness, trust, community support and buy-in around its kaupapa. You might expect that to naturally lead to more volunteers, more paid staff, and a bigger organisation overall.
But interestingly, the data says that’s not really the case. Using time on the Charities Register as a rough proxy for age, we didn’t find a strong or consistent relationship between how long a charity has existed and the amount of paid or volunteer time it receives. Some newer charities already have large workforces and volunteer bases. Some long-established charities remain almost entirely volunteer-led. Many appear to settle into a relatively stable operating size, regardless of age.
That tells us something important: there isn’t just one pathway to impact or sustainability in the charitable sector. Bigger and older doesn’t automatically mean “better” or “more supported”. Growth usually requires deliberate strategy, resourcing and focus, it doesn’t just happen with time. And sometimes small organisations stay intentionally small while still delivering enormous value to their communities.
This is just one of the findings in Part 2 of the Good Data Series, focused on paid and volunteer hours in Tier 3 and Tier 4 charities. Read the full report here.
Last week, simpact AI and Fundsorter hosted the “AI for Good in Aotearoa NZ” virtual workshop as part of Tech Week 2026 - exploring how AI can be used practically and responsibly in the community sector. The session covered everything from AI fundamentals and governance through to real-world examples of organisations already using AI to save time and strengthen their impact.
Duncan joined the panel of founders sharing Good Numbers as one example of how good-tech is already helping small non-profits reduce admin and simplify financial reporting.
One of the strongest themes from the workshop was that AI doesn’t need to be overwhelming or futuristic to be useful. Small, practical things - such as helping draft policies and summarise meetings - are already making a meaningful difference for community organisations with limited time and resources.
If you missed the live session, or want to revisit the practical demonstrations and discussions, you can watching the recording above!
Accidental personal purchases on an organisation card can happen easily - a Paywave tap, a saved card online, or two similar-looking cards in a wallet. The important thing is not to panic or ignore it, but to deal with it quickly and transparently: check whether the payment can be reversed, let the right person know, set the money aside, confirm the final amount and reimbursement details, then repay the organisation with a clear reference.
For organisations, these situations are also a useful reminder to keep good financial controls in place. The original transaction should not be deleted or hidden; it should be recorded clearly, with the reimbursement offsetting it so there is no impact on reported income or expenses. Good notes create a clean audit trail, while simple card controls, such as turning off Paywave, disabling online or overseas transactions when not needed, or keeping cards locked by default, can reduce accidental misuse and strengthen fraud prevention. Read the full guide here.
CommunityNet Aotearoa is one of those long-running community sector gems that’s worth bookmarking if you haven’t come across it before. It brings together hundreds of practical resources for charities, incorporated societies and community groups in one place — from governance templates and funding advice through to digital tools, case studies and how-to guides. Instead of digging through dozens of Google results, CommunityNet makes it much easier to find trusted, NZ-relevant resources created by and for the community sector.
Till next time! Thanks for reading
Ngā mihi nui,
Duncan @ Good Numbers
Ask Duncan anything — big or small. He’ll get back to you ASAP, and your questions will help improve the information here for everyone.
