Time to put their money where their mouths are?
Howard Lake | 22 May 2008 | Blogs
I was at the Professional Fundraising Awards last night, firstly to support Michael Dent from WRVS on his thoroughly deserved Highly Commended award in the Fundraiser of the Year category, and also to see Joe Saxton once again take his place at the top of the PF 50 Most Influential Poll.
Now this maybe a bit of fluff and nonsense in the great scheme of things, but Joe did get to say a few words and as well as commending his imminent successor Paul Amadi as Chair of the IoF, he spoke about the importance of the Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB). And, in my view, rightly praised the fundraising sector for its efforts in building trust and transparency with donors.
Later I spoke to Jon Scourse of the FRSB and he told me of the 860+ members the FRSB now has, only 35 are suppliers to the sector (and many of these are sole traders and freelancers). This struck me as pretty pitiful given the amount of time many of our main agencies and consultancies spend also extolling the need for openness, transparency, and accountability with supporters.
Indeed, we are certainly a supplier amongst those promoting these values, and (he writes with a small degree of smugness) we have been members of the FRSB for a while. In fact we encourage any new clients we work with who are not members to consider joining as a priority.
We all know our sector is a relatively small one, but also one, by and large, filled with good people who are working to raise the funds needed to deliver social justice in all its forms, and to speak up and support those who need it the most. Establishing the FRSB as a credible, trusted, and respected voice should be a priority for us all in the sector – and by all I mean charities and their suppliers.
The FRSB has faced a number of challenges and criticisms since its inception, and in many respects is an easy target. However, that is precisely why we should all be getting behind it – if, as a sector, we are not encouraging, nurturing, and supporting it as a fledgling body then no-one else will, and given the recent relative good news in terms of public trust and confidence, that would be a huge own goal and a great opportunity missed.
So, perhaps it is time for the tables to be turned. I cannot see any reason why any agency or consultancy working in our sector would not want to support the FRSB and demonstrate their support by paying their dues.
Therefore I would urge you next time you meet with your supplier to ask them if they are members and if not, why not, or better still, when they will be joining. Even if you work for a supplier delivering fundraising services then be brave, and ask your boss whether you are members or not.
If the answer is not – tell them to go here.
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.