It has been another full and fulfilling year at nfpSynergy, providing research to support a diverse range of charities with a diverse range of needs. Naturally, many of these needs reflect the ongoing climate of a competitive and relatively austere market place.

My ceramic poppy arrived in the post today – one of the 888,246 made for the “Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red” at the Tower of London, a poignant commemoration of the centenary of the start of the First World War.

There are many things that go together at Christmas: mince pies and brandy butter, carols and candles, presents and Father Christmas, TV and falling asleep and, hopefully, charities and giving.

Some call it ‘digital activism’, others refer to it less favourably as ‘slacktivism’. Either way, there’s little doubt that what we’re able to do to support a cause with only a mouse and a laptop has changed the charity sector dramatically.

A recent Ipsos Mori report found that the UK was the fifth most accurate country of 14 included in a study of the gaps between perception and reality. Despite this relatively high ranking, the report reveals a dizzying array of under and overestimations.

As a Scot living in London, I largely watched the referendum debates from a distance and was amazed by what was happening, and is continuing to happen, among friends and family back home. Over the past two months, I’ve watched the posts on my Facebook newsfeed change.