Charities should be made to share data about the effectiveness of their services via a Charities Data Act, according to New Philanthropy Capital.

NPC chief executive Martin Brookes has proposed a new law requiring charities to release information about their performance, arguing that because charities exist for public benefit and receive “some financial benefits which imply public money is used to create data”, that the public can claim ownership over some of that data.

In a series of blogs directed at new civil society minister Nick Hurd, Brookes said that there is popular demand for all charities, including grantmakers, to share such data.

“Strikingly, the greatest demand seems to come from charities themselves, who want to understand what works, as well as where they fit into the sector. But there is also a desire for more and better information from private donors, foundations and the public sector,” he wrote.

Brookes told Civil Society that NPC has already received some unsolicited support from organisations within the sector for the idea, but will be looking to get more backing before it takes the proposal forward. He said that given the coalition’s commitment to open government data, he expects the government “should be keen on it”.