Shaping the ethical use of AI in the charity sector

This is an invitation for leaders in the sector to join us and learn together.

Not too long ago, I was sat in a conference session listening to people talk about AI. Prior to the conference, I thought AI would be a passing phase, or at least something totally irrelevant to our work and the wider charity sector. But I remember quietly realising that the discussion I was hearing was less about digital technology and more about leadership. 

Afterwards, I spoke with our Group Operations Director, who’d come to a similar conclusion. We agreed that AI wasn’t something we could sit on the sidelines of. We needed to start thinking about if and how we could approach it in line with our values. 

Since then, I’ve been increasingly more involved in sector-wide conversations about AI. Most notably, I’ve been part of the Charity AI Taskforce convened by Zoe Amar and Dan Sutch, chaired the Large Charity AI subgroup, and contributed to the Future Forward Forum. 

We’ve developed in-house guidelines at TLC on the ethical use of AI and for many of our staff, it’s become a daily working tool. Some teams have seen a 50% increase in efficiency, allowing them to take time away from repetitive tasks to focus on work that requires more critical thinking and action. 

A more (not less) human approach

AI has been incredibly useful for reducing time spent on administrative duties.  

It’s been particularly helpful for our operations department. Writing, improving, and working through errors in complex code is now faster and simpler. Notes can be thematically structured with the click of a button. If the team needs a fresh perspective on a technical problem, they can prompt AI for suggestions, leading to solutions they might not have considered before. 

AI is also helping us with thematic and sentiment analysis in data. The process can now be done in a matter of minutes rather than days, which allows us to provide service managers with better insights into programme outcomes. Our staff are acquiring more time to spend on direct client services and human-to-human interactions. 

One other area it’s helping with is equality and inclusion. Staff with different cognitive needs are finding it easier and less time-consuming to complete tasks like writing emails to colleagues. 

Creating space for honest, collective learning

As Chair of the Large Charity AI subgroup, my role has become less about having answers, and more about creating space. Space for people to share openly where they are on their journey, space to talk about what’s working and what isn’t, and space to name the tensions, the uncertainties, and the ethical questions. 

We’ve been meeting regularly, bringing together organisations who are all approaching AI in different ways. What has struck me most is the generosity in the room. People are willing to share their thinking, their challenges, even their missteps, so that others don’t have to start from scratch. 

In a landscape that is moving so quickly, that kind of collaboration feels not just helpful but essential. 

A commitment to opportunity, an invitation to collaborate

One of the things I find myself coming back to repeatedly is the question of how we embrace the opportunities that AI brings while staying rooted in our values. Where does efficiency enhance our work and where does it risk diminishing it? How do we protect space for critical thinking in a world that increasingly values speed? What are the things that only people can do, and how do we protect and prioritise those? 

We’re still learning ourselves, of course. And if there’s one thing I would say to others in the sector it’s that however you feel about AI, whether its curious, cautious, excited, or overwhelmed, this is a journey we should all take together. We have an opportunity and a responsibility to shape it in a way that strengthens our sector and deepens our impact. And that’s why charity leadership in AI is so important. 

I’m extending an open invitation to leaders in the sector to join the conversation, share what you’re learning, share what you’re finding difficult, and collaborate, not compete. It’s new territory for all of us, but the best way forward is together.