Data Sources & Attribution

Primary Data Source

Our primary source of charity data is the New Zealand Charities Register, maintained by Charities Services, a business unit of the Department of Internal Affairs.

The Charities Register contains information about all registered charities in New Zealand, including:

• Charity name, registration number, and contact details
• Charitable purposes and activities
• Officer and trustee information
• Annual return data including financial statements
• Sector classification and geographic focus

Licensing

The data from the New Zealand Charities Register is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 New Zealand (CC BY 3.0 NZ) License.

This license allows us to:

• Share - copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
• Adapt - remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, including commercial

Under the following terms:

• Attribution - We must give appropriate credit to Charities Services as the data source

Our Methodology

CharityData NZ processes and analyses the raw data from the Charities Register to provide:

• Charity Ratings - Our proprietary scoring system evaluates charities across financial health, governance, and transparency dimensions
• Financial Analysis - We calculate key metrics like program spending ratios, reserve levels, and revenue trends
• Red Flag Detection - Our system identifies potential governance concerns or unusual patterns that may warrant further investigation
• People & Network Analysis - We map relationships between trustees, charities, and funders

Independence Statement

CharityData NZ operates independently. Our ratings, analysis, and opinions are our own and are not endorsed by, affiliated with, or approved by:

• Charities Services
• The Department of Internal Affairs
• The New Zealand Government
• Any charity listed on our platform

We do not receive funding from any charity or government agency for our ratings work. Our goal is to provide independent, transparent information to help donors make informed decisions.

Gaming Trust Grant Data (DIA Class 4)

Gaming trust grant data is sourced from the Department of Internal Affairs Class 4 Grants Dataset, published under the NZGOAL Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

This dataset covers all Class 4 (pokies) grant applications and distributions in New Zealand:

• 64,334 grant records across 44 gaming trusts (2021-2024)
• $660M total distributed to community organisations
• Application status (accepted/declined), grant amounts, decline reasons
• Category breakdown (sport, community, health, education, arts)
• Regional and territorial authority distribution
• Beneficiary demographics (gender, ethnicity)

Approximately 49% of gaming trust grant recipients are matched to registered charities on our platform. The remaining 51% are predominantly sports clubs, schools, and incorporated societies that are legitimate grant recipients but not registered under the Charities Act 2005.

Data Accuracy & Limitations

While we strive for accuracy, users should be aware that:

• Data may be outdated - charities update their information at different intervals
• Financial figures are as reported by charities and may contain errors
• Our ratings are opinions based on available data, not guarantees of charity quality
• Some data fields may be incomplete or unavailable for certain charities

For the most up-to-date official information, please visit the official Charities Register.

Contact Us

If you have questions about our data sources, methodology, or believe any information is incorrect, please contact us. We take data accuracy seriously and will investigate any reported issues promptly.