# Research into impact of new Gift Aid rules on charitable visitor attractions

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2007/03/13/research-impact-new-gift-aid-rules-charitable-visitor-attractions/
- Published: 2007-03-13T00:00:00+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**How have the new Gift Aid rules relating to charitable visitor attractions affected
these charities since they were introduced in April 2006? A new research project
is aiming to assess their impact.**

Charities nationwide which allow the public to view their work, including small 
and large visitor attractions, museums, galleries and heritage properties, are being
surveyed through quantitative online surveys and qualitative telephone interviews.

The initiative, which is being undertaken by Tourism South East with the support
of major charity, tourism and cultural bodies and the other regional tourist boards,
will provide the first national indicator of the financial and operational implications
of the new rules on charities.

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Charitable organisations which make admissions charges or invite donations can participate
in the research, whether they are currently claiming Gift Aid or not, online.

HMRC is responsible for implementing the new legislation. Some attractions, that
are registered charities, are able to accept donations from visitors and provide
free admission in return – in other words, donations that attract the right of free
admission. The attraction can then claim an amount from HM Revenue and Customs equal
to the value of tax on the donation – 28p for every £1 given.

Chris Melia, a Director at Tourism South East, who is leading the initiative, said:“
We aim to discover whether the sector as a whole, across the country, is better,
or worse, off as a result of the new rules and what other impacts the changes have
had on charitable attractions.

“The results will be shared with the attractions sector and we hope they will be
useful both to operators as well as to policy makers. The research will help us 
understand the value as well as the costs of Gift Aid under the new rules and will
provide ‘baseline’ data for the sector.”

The research is due to be completed by the end of May 2007. The results will include
feedback from case studies, which will be shared with charitable organisations throughout
the sector to help them determine the most effective strategies for encouraging 
donations and claiming Gift Aid under the new criteria.

Tourism South East has worked with organisations including AGALG (Attractions Gift
Aid Liaison Group), the Museums Association, the Association for Independent Museums(
AIM), the Historic Houses Associations (HHA) and EcSite UK (the trade body for science
centres) to develop the research structure and help encourage participation.

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