PFRA welcomes recommendations on Draft Charities Bill
Howard Lake | 29 September 2004 | News
The Public Fundraising Regulatory Association (PFRA) has welcomed the recommendations made by the Joint Committee on the Draft Charities Bill issued today. Its Chief Executive Sue Brumpton said that the recommendations on fundraising represented important steps towards ensuring transparency and public confidence in face-to-face fundraising.
Brumpton said: “Any guidelines issued by the Home Office for the regulation of the sector, provided they are practical, workable and not unduly burdensome to charities, are welcomed by the PFRA membership.”
The PFRA especially welcomed the recommendation that the Charity Commission, rather than local authorities, should act as the ‘lead authority’ for granting certificates of fitness to carry out public collections as this will minimise the burden on both charities and local authorities.
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The committee has recommended that fundraisers make the public aware of the cost of recruiting donors by ensuring that face-to-face fundraisers are explicit about the method by which they are paid. Brumpton commented on tis recommendation: “Our members’ fundraisers already provide information about the fact that they are paid and we would be happy to include further information about the whether it is by means of a flat fee, salary or commission.
“We are also satisfied that this can be delivered on written materials and via identity cards. We would warn however that the Home Office needs to be practical about the detail of information required from individual fundraisers but can see the value of more detailed information being published in annual reports. In this regard PFRA would like face-to-face fundraising to be treated in line with other forms of fundraising.”
The PFRA expects to work with the Home Office to finalise this section of the Bill.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.