Business School students and communities working together on decision-making

Voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations form a key part of Bristol’s identity, supporting communities, often while dealing with limited resources, rising demand, and complex operational decisions. These challenges can be explored through data‑informed insights that complement the local expertise, experiences and stories that define the VCSE sector.

This initiative connects local VCSE organisations with both undergraduate and postgraduate Business School students, creating opportunities to explore such challenges together. By working together, organisations and students co-design projects that reflect the organisation’s context and priorities.

Organisations bring their deep knowledge of their communities, services, and challenges. Students bring analytical skills to explore questions - such as those related to service delivery, resource use, income streams, and planning - and offer insights and recommendations to strengthen decision-making.

The projects form part of our commitment to working with communities across Bristol, so that student learning contributes positively beyond the University.

Benefits for organisations and students

For organisations, the projects bring fresh perspectives on their challenges, offering structured analysis that can support decision-making and create space to reflect on future plans.


For students, the projects create opportunities to put theory into practice, gain insight into the particular operational pressures faced by VCSE organisations, and understand how practical decision‑making affects the local community.

Undergraduate projects (November–December 2026)

First-year Business School students will work with organisations as part of their Quantitative Analysis in Management unit. These projects focus on analysing data to understand factors influencing organisational outcomes, such as service costs, operational performance, or resource use through statistical analysis and interpretation of data.

Postgraduate projects (January–May 2027)

MSc Business Analytics students will work on projects as part of their Optimisation & Algorithms unit. These projects focus on how organisations can use limited resources more effectively, fairly, and sustainably, for example, by exploring capacity planning, demand uncertainty, efficiency, or trade-offs between priorities.

A collaborative and flexible approach

We recognise that organisations have limited time and capacity. Participation is designed to be flexible and collaborative. Typically, this involves an initial conversation to shape the project and a later session to discuss findings.

Get involved

We are currently inviting expressions of interest from VCSE organisations. Please complete the Business School student projects form and give details of your organisation, objectives and proposed project.

Your proposal will be considered for both undergraduate and postgraduate projects unless you choose just one option on the form.

Get in touch

If you’d like to understand more about any element of the projects, please get in touch: