Web 2.0 has been variously hailed as the vehicle that would revolutionise charity communications – and as a resource-intensive tool that would be monopolised by a few irritating comment whores and put your organisation’s reputation at risk. But while some charities have no doubt experienced the latter, the Blue Cross animal charity says its All About Pets networking site has proved an unqualified success.

The National Autistic Society’s finance team needed to simplify its business intelligence to improve budgeting and staff input. The National Autistic Society (NAS) has a staff of around 2,500, and runs six specialist schools and 17 clusters of residential and support services for adults with autism, which account for 85 per cent of the organisation’s expenditure.