Charity Complaints Body Launched
A new self-regulatory body for fundraising has been launched in the UK to handle complaints about charities. Members of the public unhappy with a charity’s money-raising activities will now be able to complain to the Funding Standards Board.
The board will also give a “mark of reassurance” to charities which sign up to a code of practice so donors know they operate in an honest and fair way.
Shelter, Barnardos and the RSPCA are among 200 charities to have joined.
Charities volunteer to become members and must pledge to treat the public with respect and be fair and clear in how they raise funds.
In return, their materials can carry a “tick” logo designed to reassure the public that they are safe to give to.
Jon Scourse, chief executive of the board, said: “For the first time there is an independent body you can go to if you are unhappy about how a charity raises money.
“So the next time you put money in a tin, sponsor someone to run a marathon or receive a mails hot in the post, look for the tick, it’s your mark of reassurance.”
Jane Tomlinson, campaigner for cancer and children’s charities and founder of Jane’s Appeal, said: “Anything that encourages high standards in fundraising has got to be a good thing for both sides.
“But it’s the people and the causes for whom the charities strive that stand to win most.”
Nearly 90% of people in the UK gave to charity last year, but only a fifth said they knew who to contact with a complaint, research commissioned by the Funding Standards Board suggests.
In a poll of 1,000 people, the top reasons for making a complaint was if a charity continued to contact them after being asked not to or if a charity exaggerated or misled them.