Not-for-profit organizations work well in caring services. But expectations of their playing an increased role in Big Society changes may not be well-founded

The beleaguered Big Society concept argues that not-for-profit organizations can and should deliver a much larger proportion of the ‘caring’ services in education, social care and the health sectors. Sarah Smith finds that these providers do have clear advantages over for-profit organizations in these sectors. But they also often have high costs, and their ability to do more looks unclear.