Abstract
This study of non-government welfare organisations (NGWOs) is the first of its kind undertaken in Australia, and as far as we are aware, the first comprehensive national overview of any country's NGWOs. This volume is the result of a long and protracted research process and reports only a fraction of the data collected. It does not emphasise interpretation but this is an obvious next step from the reporting of data. It does however produce highly original material on two counts. First it presents a new classification system for describing NGWOs. Second it presents a compendium of the accumulated data about the number of NGWOs 1n Australia, about what they do, and to whom, why and where they do it. There is also detailed information about NGWO income and staffing patterns.