Charity

The Charity Commission has opened inquiries into two connected conservation charities amid concerns about their governance and financial management. The regulator said it had opened separate statutory inquiries into the Aspinall Foundation and the Howletts Wild Animal Trust, which share two trustees: Damian Aspinall and his daughter Tansy. The commission said its inquiry into the

A major educational charity has been the victim of an ongoing ransomware cyber attack that has paralysed its email, devices and telephone system. The Harris Federation, which runs 50 primary and secondary academies in London and Essex, said the attack was discovered on Saturday and had left about 37,000 pupils unable to access emails or

An organisation set up to build a museum dedicated to Britain leaving the European Union has been granted charitable status and launched a £1m fundraising drive.  The Museum of Brexit was granted charitable status in January, according to the Charity Commission’s online register.  The museum is yet to be built, but is expected to be located

More than a quarter of charities have suffered cyber security breaches or attacks in the past 12 months, new figures show.  The Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021, published by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, found that 26 per cent of the almost 500 voluntary sector organisations surveyed had reported such activity over

Charities are unlikely to receive much of the funding earmarked through the government’s “levelling up”agenda because there are fewer charities in areas where the fund is targeted, new research indicates. The not-for-profit think tank NPC found there were 28 per cent fewer local charities per 1,000 people in areas prioritised for the government’s £4.8bn Levelling

Kate Allen, director of Amnesty International UK for the past two decades, has announced plans to retire later this year.  She had intended to step down last year, but decided to stay on to help the organisation maintain stability during the pandemic, according to an Amnesty statement. Allen has been director of the organisation since

Volunteering committees should help spearhead and permanently embed volunteering management and practice in the health and social care system in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. New research published today argues that the volunteer resources made available during the pandemic must become ingrained in the NHS and social care to help deliver on proposed healthcare

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising’s response to the claims it failed to act on sexual harassment allegations has been “reactive and defensive”, according to a group of influential fundraisers. A tweet from Lucy Caldicott, founder of the social justice consultancy ChangeOut and a fellow of the CIoF, said she and a small group of fellows

Content warning: This episode contains discussion of sexual harassment and assault. In this month’s bumper special episode, features and analysis writer Rebecca Cooney and editor Emily Burt look at sexual harassment and assault in fundraising. A week ago, allegations were made that the Chartered Institute of Fundraising had ignored allegations of sexual assault occuring at one of

Tech for Good initiative launched in North of England is tackling longstanding issues of digital inclusion exacerbated by the pandemic SHEFFIELD and LONDON – March 24, 2021 – Blancco Technology Group (LSE: BLTG), the industry standard in data erasure and mobile device diagnostics, today announced it has partnered with WANdisco (LSE: WAND), the live data

The Official Receiver will not appeal the High Court’s decision to dismiss the disqualification proceedings brought against former senior leaders of the collapsed charity Kids Company. The charges brought against the charity’s founder and former chief executive, Camila Batmanghelidjh, and a group of former trustees of the defunct charity were rejected at the High Court

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising has pledged to set up a new panel with an independent chair to oversee its complaints and disciplinary process as part of an overhaul of how it handles serious allegations against members.  The membership body has been under public pressure over the past couple of weeks from high-profile fundraisers after

A veterans charity that lost almost £700,000 through mismanagement or unauthorised payments to trustees has been wound up by the Charity Commission. The regulator has published the findings of its long-running inquiry into Afghan Heroes, which found former trustees failed to take reasonable care in managing its finances and gained significant unauthorised private benefit from

Press Release At the request of their close friend and colleague, Michael Farquhar, contractor management specialists Orange Genie Group will be making a donation of £5,000 to the Boys Brigade Charity Project Stedfast, to go towards their ongoing work to build and support a school in Kenya. Orange Genie Group and Boys Brigade Charity The

A London-based grant-giving charity has pledged an additional £22m in support for children and young people over the next six years to help tackle the impact of Covid-19. The John Lyon’s Charity, which gives grants to organisations operating in nine boroughs in the capital, has ring-fenced the multimillion-pound funding from its endowment with a new

Barclays, Marks & Spencer and Deliveroo are among the companies shortlisted for this year’s Business Charity Awards. The awards, run by Third Sector, recognise the outstanding support given by businesses to UK charities and voluntary organisations. More than 80 companies have made this year’s list across 25 categories. Barclays has been shortlisted in the Long-term

A new scheme could help prevent voluntary sector organisations from having their bank accounts withdrawn due to incorrect implementation of anti-terrorism legislation.  The international money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog the Financial Action Task Force is calling for responses from civil society to help it understand the unintended consequences that arise from the incorrect implementation

The government’s biggest coronavirus emergency support fund for charities was more than £140m oversubscribed after money originally earmarked for it was reallocated, the National Audit Office has found. A report examining the delivery of government funding to charities during the pandemic, published by the spending watchdog today, says £310m of the government’s £750m support package

Peter Lewis, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, has announced he is to step down after almost 10 years in the role.  Lewis said in a statement today that after the death of his father from Covid-19 last year, he had decided to follow his example and take stock of his life before

The government has rejected recommendations that would make it easier for charities to challenge Charity Commission decisions. The Department for Media, Culture and Sport has responded to the 43 recommendations made by the Law Commission report in 2017. The Technical Issues in Charity Law proposals were designed to ease the administration and regulation of charities

The management of the homelessness charity St Mungo’s has been accused of fostering a “bullying and anti-union culture”. Unite, which has more than 500 members at the charity, said a disproportionate 44 per cent of union stewards at St Mungo’s were engaged in formal processes concerning their own employment, while also dealing with similar matters

Grants of up to £2m are being made available to environmental charities after the government announced a second funding round aimed at restoring nature and tackling climate change. The £40m Green Recovery Challenge Fund is open for applications for charities and their partners across England. It aims to create and retain jobs and help “build

The government has begun advertising for the next chair of the Charity Commission, five months after the previous incumbent announced her intention to step down. Baroness Stowell said in October that she would not seek a second three-year term as chair of the regulator, and left the post at the end of last month. Ian

The founder of a countryside charity has claimed he is being ousted by a group of what he called “dreadful” trustees in a bitter dispute over the running of the charity. Robin Page, founder of theCountryside Restoration Trust and a former presenter of BBC sheepdog trials programme One Man and His Dog, said on Twitter

The former head of the charity HIV Scotland has been charged with a voyeurism offence. Nathan Sparling pleaded not guilty to the charge at Edinburgh Sheriff Court last week. A trial date has been set in August. Sparling was chief executive of HIV Scotland from December 2018 until December last year. The charity said it

Five former trustees have been disqualified from senior charity positions after they were unable to account for £1m of charitable funds that was purportedly sent to Iraq. The Charity Commission said it had concluded its statutory inquiry into the Orphan Relief Fund and Charitable Trust, which was registered in 1990 with objects of supporting young

An appeal by sleep-in care workers to receive the minimum wage when on call had been dismissed by the Supreme Court, saving charities an estimated £400m. The decision today by Lady Arden brings an end to the long-running battle about the legal status of sleep-in care workers, who often stay overnight with vulnerable people in

The entire community advisory board of the organisation behind the London LGBTQ+ Pride event has resigned, citing “bullying, gaslighting and marginalisation” of volunteers – particularly those who are black or people of colour.  The 10-strong team of volunteers accused Pride in London of failing to respond to allegations of racism and bullying in a resignation statement published

The 2021 Purpose Awards from PRWeek, Campaign and Third Sector 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 EMEA. There are two new categories for 2021: Comms Professional of the Year and

The chair of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising has said the organisation needs a “seismic shift in the whole culture” amid a row over its handling of reports of sexual assault and harassment. In a statement on Twitter today, Claire Rowney, who took up the role of chair of the CIoF board in July, said