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Professional Fundraisers and Cause-Related Marketing - implementing the new rules
On 1 April 2008 new rules on fundraising and solicitation statements came into force. The Charities Act 2006 introduces the following requirements:
- professional fundraisers must now state the actual amount they will be paid or a reasonable estimate of that amount;
- commercial participators must make a similar statement in relation to the amount that will be given to a charity;
- charity employees and paid officers or trustees need to make specified statements including the fact that they are paid by the charity.
Charities which work regularly with professional fundraisers or regularly undertake cause related marketing will be familiar with these changes.
Other charities will need to ensure that staff and trustees are aware of the implications of the changes. It will often be appropriate to combine training on the new rules with a review of the background law. The rules on dealing with professional fundraisers and commercial participators are not very well known and it is all too easy for charities to break the rules inadvertently.
The Office of the Third Sector ("OTS") has issued guidance on the new rules for consultation. Click here for details.
A number of detailed responses have been made and the OTS aims to issue revised guidance shortly. Meanwhile, charities will need to consider how best to respond to questions which the guidance does not address.
These include:
Professional Fundraising
- Whether the rules on professional fundraising apply to requests for names and addresses rather than money.
- A fundraising appeal may have a number of distinct phases and the nature of the appeal may vary widely. In order to comply with the rules, charities will need to be clear about the nature of the 'appeal' on which the fundraisers are working. Fundraisers retained on an ongoing basis will have to give this issue particular attention.
- How and when will the necessary statement be made? Will face to face fundraisers hand over a written statement?
- How frequently will it be necessary to update the solicitation statement in order to meet the requirement that it is as accurate as 'reasonably possible'?
- There may be arbitrary results depending on the nature of the brief given to the professional fundraiser - how will that be managed?
Commercial Participators
How will the amount paid to a charity be calculated and described where a trading subsidiary is involved?
- The rules provide different methods of identifying the 'notifiable amount', which commercial participators must make a statement about. How will you determine which method to use?
- How will the 'notifiable amount' be calculated where the charity is to receive a percentage of the purchase price and that price is uncertain e.g. charity auctions?
Charities will need to review their fundraising procedures and ensure that all relevant staff are familiar with the new rules.
For more information, contact Shivaji Shiva on 01392 687542 or tss@michelmores.com