Directory of Social Change

We’re a fully remote working organisation (having moved out of our former London office in December 2020 and our unused Liverpool office in September 2023).

Our registered/ public office address is Directory of Social Change, First floor, 10 Queen Street Place, London, EC4R 1BE.

Please note this is not an operational office, so you can’t sadly come to visit us. But you can still post things if you need to, and we will receive them. The quickest way to get in touch still is by emailing our friendly team at [email protected].

But of course, we all look forward to seeing you perhaps on one of our online courses or conferences, free Funds Online webinars, face-to-face In-House training, or maybe out at an event where our CEO Debra is speaking, or where we are exhibiting – there’s still plenty of chances for us to see you 

We’re still very much here, as always, ready to help you help others.

So you’re named after a book?!

That’s right. It all started over 45 years ago at a kitchen table in Maida Vale, London, where Michael Norton our founder sat down to research and write ‘The Directory of Social Change’. A directory, the first of its kind, full of ideas, information and contacts for those wanting to explore alternatives for creating better communities and a better society.

And then what?

Four directories were published on community, education, housing and women. In 1977, Michael organised his first fundraising training and started publishing practical information on fundraising, marketing, management and legal issues for charities.

In 1984, looking for a more sustainable source of income, Michael created the first “Guide to Company Giving” and then asked Luke FitzHerbert to create a “Guide to the Major Trusts”.

This was how the Directory of Social Change started, adopting the principles of social enterprise in structuring how it operated and was funded.