Month: March 2024

Charities need “more insight” from the probate service so they can plan better, MPs have heard.  Charity representatives have been giving evidence to members of the House of Commons Justice Committee as part of its inquiry into the probate service.  Angela Morrison, chief operating officer at Cancer Research UK, said the charity was waiting for

The Fundraising Regulator must prepare for challenges posed by the misuse of artificial intelligence in fundraising, its chief executive has warned. Speaking at a question and answer panel discussion at the regulator’s annual event yesterday, held at the British Museum in London, Gerald Oppenheim said: “Inevitably, with the advent of all these new technological advances,

The deadline to enter the Purpose Awards EMEA has been extended to 14 March. The Purpose Awards EMEA, which is run by Third Sector, PRWeek and Campaign, recognise campaigns that use creative ideas successfully to further positive causes and acknowledge the organisations behind them. The awards are open to agencies, brands, public sector bodies, charities and NGOs throughout

[embedded content] Third Sector is set to launch a limited podcast series that explores the challenges faced by modern charities and the disruptors shaking up the for-good landscape at a time of heightened need.  The End of Charity is hosted by multimedia reporter Lucinda Rouse and features a range of leading voices from across the

Tributes have been paid to the voluntary sector leader Elizabeth Balgobin, who has died at the age of 58.  Balgobin, who worked in a range of senior roles in UK charities during a career of more than three decades, died last week after receiving a cancer diagnosis in January.  She had a long spell as

A family support charity has appointed Ali Stathers-Tracey as its chief executive. Child Action North West is based in Blackburn and Bolton, Greater Manchester, and supports children, vulnerable adults and families facing inequality. Stathers-Tracey will succeed Sue Cotton, who will retire at the end of March. Cotton is retiring after a 40-year career in social work

Almost half of charities have experienced banking issues in the past year,  a major survey by the Charity Commission has found.  Of about 2,500 trustees surveyed by the regulator, 42 per cent said their charity had experienced poor service from their banks in the past 12 months. The survey found 32 per cent of respondents said

The Charity Commission has opened an statutory inquiry into a faith-based charity because of “serious concerns” about a Facebook video post. The regulator said it was looking into the Al-Manar Centre Trust, which was founded in 2009 to “educate the public about the Islamic faith” and is based in Cardiff, after the charity posted a

The latest set of changes introduced by the Charities Act 2022 has come into effect.  The Charity Commission said the new rules, which came into force yesterday, would make it easier for unincorporated charities to change their governing document and for merged charities to receive gifts left for one of their former organisations.  The regulator

The Charity Commission is being urged to investigate a gambling awareness charity that receives most of its funding from gambling industry. The Good Law Project, a not-for-profit organisation that uses the law to protect the interests of the public, has called for the regulator to investigate whether GambleAware “is failing in its charitable duties”.  The

A humanitarian aid charity has been ordered to pay an ex-employee more than £31,000 following an unfair dismissal complaint. An employment tribunal in Manchester ruled that the Human Relief Foundation had unfairly dismissed Farah Ahmad after a hearing that concluded in early February.  It also found that Ahmad had been subject to detriment for making

Guy’s & St Thomas’ Foundation has appointed Laurie Lee as its next chief executive.  Lee has been interim head of the charity since April 2023, after Kieron Boyle announced he would leave after seven years in the role to take up the top job at the Impact Investing Institute.  Before joining the Guy’s & St

The founder of a legal advice charity has been referred to police after he continued to act as a trustee despite being disqualified, the Charity Commission has said.  The regulator has published a report into its statutory inquiry into the now-defunct Joint Armed Forces Legal Advocacy Service, which was established to provide free legal advice

The government has pledged to introduce new measures to protect charities claiming Gift Aid before it implements new consumer protections around membership subscriptions. Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, delivered his Budget before MPs in the House of Commons today.  Documents published alongside the speech say that the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill, which

Leukaemia Care has appointed Colin Dyer, former head of Special Olympics Great Britain, as its next chief executive.  The charity, which provides national advice and support services to anyone affected by leukaemia, said Dyer would take up the role on 2 April. He succeeds Zack Pemberton-Whitely, who left the charity last year to take up

The upcoming increase to the national minimum wage could cost charities and voluntary organisations about £200m over the next six years, parliament has heard. A debate in the House of Lords last week covered how the wage increase could affect the voluntary sector. The national minimum wage is set to increase by 9.8 per cent

The scale of the crisis in government funding for charities delivering public services has been laid bare in a new report.  The True Cost of Delivering Public Services, which has been published by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations today, reveals the situation faced by charities in England that run services through contracts with local

The RNLI has disputed newspaper claims accusing the charity of “harbouring a toxic culture of bullying”. The Mail On Sunday carried an article yesterday – the day before the charity’s 200th anniversary – in which former RNLI volunteers accused the charity of creating an atmosphere where volunteers were “mistreated” and bosses did “anything to silence

The Wales Council for Voluntary Action has appointed the head of the homelessness charity The Wallich as its next chief executive.  The membership body announced today that Lindsay Cordery-Bruce will succeed Ruth Marks in May.  Marks announced in November that she would retire after nine years in the role.  Cordery-Bruce, who has been at The Wallich

The National Secular Society has urged Scotland’s First Minister to review the advancement of religion as a charitable purpose, arguing that it is “impeding the Scottish government’s attempts to combat misogyny”. The organisation has called for the Scottish government to review charity law and the inclusion of ‘the advancement of religion’ as a charitable purpose,

One of the key figures in the response to the Covid-19 pandemic has stepped down as a trustee of the charity behind Parkrun after less than a year in the role.  Professor Sir Jonathan Van-Tam was announced as a director at Parkrun Global last January, officially assuming his position in March. But he said in

Philanthropy models must be “developed around the country” to maximise social impact, the Minister for Civil Society has said.  Speaking yesterday at the philanthropy charity Beacon’s Philanthropy and Impact Forum, Stuart Andrew said: “We want to encourage more philanthropy, particularly at a regional level.” He pointed to the West London Zone, a social outcomes partnership

The National Council of Voluntary Organisations has criticised the Treasury’s failure to respond to calls to uplift public service grants and contracts, saying that the “stark warning from the charity sector has gone unheard”. In November, the NCVO co-ordinated a letter, signed by more than 1,400 charity representatives, urging the government to address a sector-wide

A Cambridge-based cancer charity has received £750 in compensation after NatWest closed its account for six days in error.  Please Take Me There, a volunteer-led charity that provides transport to hospital treatments for children with cancer in the UK, Myanmar and Ghana, said it was unable to operate for six days after its NatWest bank