Charity

Charities should read the new Non-Party Campaigner Code to “feel equipped” ahead of the upcoming election period, the chair of the Charity Commission has urged. Orlando Fraser, chair of the Charity Commission, and John Pullinger, chair of the Electoral Commission, have stressed the importance of knowing the new code’s implications for the charitable sector, in
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The Purpose Awards EMEA 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 Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Sarah-Jane Rumford, managing partner and PR director at the communications agency 89up (pictured, below),
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Charity regulators have warned people to do their research when giving to charity after more than £2.7m worth of donations was stolen by fraudsters over the past year. The Charity Commission, the Fundraising Regulator and Action Fraud have launched their annual campaign reminding people how to give safely to charities. Data from Action Fraud, the
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Heidi Travis is to step down as chief executive of Sue Ryder next year.  Travis, who has worked for the palliative care charity for 14 years, the past 11 as chief executive, said she would “semi retire” in the spring.  The charity said that under Travis’s leadership, it had “significantly expanded its palliative and end-of-life
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The Royal National Lifeboat Institution has pledged to act when “standards fall short” after allegations of abuse and assault in the charity. The Times newspaper reported last week that staff and volunteers had accused the RNLI of “assault, bullying and misconduct by volunteers”. There are also accusations of “rampant sexism” among the organisation’s ranks, according
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The arts charities Culture24 and The Audience Agency have merged after both organisations lost long-term funding contracts from Arts Council England. Culture 24, which promotes the cultural sector online, had a total income of £468,296 for the financial year ending March 2023. The Audience Agency, which provides support services for arts, cultural and heritage organisations,
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Real-terms public spending cuts of £19.1bn and an increase in the National Living Wage could force charities to cut services or eat into their reserves, experts have warned. This week’s Autumn Statement included no additional spending for public services, despite charity bodies calling for an uplift to public service contracts involving charities.  The Office for
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A dyslexic employee was discriminated against and unfairly dismissed by his charity employer, an employment tribunal has ruled. Robert Debont, the former facilities manager at the charity-run community building Marsh Farm Futures, was dismissed after clashes with members of the organisation’s management and its chief executive, Mohammed Rafi. The tribunal found that Debont experienced disability
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The 13,000 staff and volunteers working in Cancer Research UK’s shop division are being offered free wellbeing support through a new partnership with the retail staff welfare charity the Retail Trust. The organisations said staff and volunteers at CRUK shops would be able to access personalised wellbeing support from the trust, including counselling and cognitive
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The government will reintroduce VAT relief on energy-saving materials in buildings used for charitable purposes.  The Treasury announced in the Autumn Statement today that it was “expanding VAT relief available on the installation of energy-saving materials in residential buildings or those used solely for a relevant charitable purpose”.  It means that equipment such as heat
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A bill tackling “subscription traps” will not affect charity lotteries after concerns they would be caught up in the legislation, according to the Lotteries Council.  The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill was introduced to parliament earlier this year with the aim of “making it easier for consumers to end subscription contracts”, according to Sarah
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Legacy bodies have welcomed potentially “transformative” new government measures aimed at streamlining the legacy income process for charities.  The charity legacy consortium Remember A Charity and the Institute for Legacy Management said the changes being introduced by His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunal Service would include the addition of a new charity indicator on digital applications
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The Big Help Out volunteering event will return over a three-day period in early June 2024, organisers have announced.  The event, which first took place on the bank holiday Monday after the King and Queen’s coronation in May this year, will be held from 7-9 June to coincide with the end of Volunteers’ Week.  Organisers
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The Charity Commission is assessing “a significant number” allegations of antisemitism and hate speech linked to the behaviour of some charities amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, its chair has revealed.  In a speech given at the commission’s annual public meeting in Liverpool yesterday, Orlando Fraser said the sector had a responsibility to bring
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More than half of not-for-profit organisations are struggling to attract skilled staff, a global survey has revealed. Research carried out among 1,100 not-for-profit organisations from 115 countries by the Personio Foundation and the consulting firm Impact46 found that 52 per cent of respondents said attracting skilled staff was a major problem.  It found that a
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The UK’s three charity regulators have criticised major high street banks for providing “poor customer service” to charities and abruptly closing or suspending their accounts. An open letter signed by the Charity Commission for England and Wales, the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator has called for “big
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