Large charities should band together to create cloud solutions for the sector as a whole, a leading IT expert has said.

Speaking at the Charity Technology Conference this morning, Roger Camrass, IT expert and futurist, said the charity sector could learn from lessons from the building society world.

Nationwide, which Camrass said dominates the building society market, is planning to develop a cloud solution that the entire building society sector can use.

"In developing economies of scale, particularly in areas in which no market advantage is given away, the sector as whole can better compete against the banks."

He called on the charity world to follow that lead. “One or two of you who are big should form the centre or anchor point for cloud services in the sector,” he said

He said the “the NSPCC, the Alzheimer’s Society, the Barnardo’s of this world” could work out a solution.

“If we had say five of those around the table even among themselves they could find efficiencies.”

Those efficiencies could then be passed to the rest of the sector, he said.

“I would really encourage that.”

Camrass said: “There is no question that today many of the large charities are at the leading edge of technology.”