Michael Grade to chair new fundraising regulator
Howard Lake | 18 November 2015 | News
Broadcasting executive Lord Michael Grade is to chair the new fundraising regulatory body which is expected to replace the Fundraising Standards Board.
The former Chief Executive of Channel 4 and former chair of the BBC Board of Governors will run the body that will be responsible for improving fundraising practices and public confidence in charities.
He has been appointed by the Government for an initial period of 12 months and will work at least four days a month on establishing and running the regulatory body. He will appoint the board and a Chief Executive, and will be paid £500 a day.
Lord Grade of Yarmouth CBE has been a Conservative Party life peers in the House of Lords since 2011.
The new fundraising regulator was one of the proposals produced by the Etherington review of fundraising self-regulation published in September this year. The Government accepted all the review’s proposals.
On his biography on the Parliament.UK website only one charity sector role is listed: he has served as a trustee of the Science Museum Group since 2011. In addition he has been involved in Band Aid and Samaritans.
On his appointment Lord Grade said:
“The people of Britain are amongst the most charitable on earth. Their continuing generosity depends on their trust in the charities who fundraise, which is why I intend to work with charities to ensure that this trust is not abused.”
Minister for Civil Society, Rob Wilson, said:
Advertisement
“The new chair has a vital role in restoring public trust in the charity sector”.
IoF and PFRA welcome appointment
Chief Executive of the Institute of Fundraising, Peter Lewis, warmly welcomed Lord Grade’s appointment. He said:
“The establishment of the new, stronger independent regulator is an important change, one which IoF members called for, and one which many of our larger organisational members have already said they are willing to support. There is no time to waste in rebuilding public confidence in charity fundraising, the vast majority of which is already done to a very high standard. We look forward to working closely with the new chair to ensure the views of fundraisers across the UK are part of a new system that better protects vulnerable members of the public whilst ensuring charities are able to raise vital funds for their good causes.”
Peter Hills-Jones, CEO of the Public Fundraising Association added:
“The PFRA are committed to play a full part working with the new chair to build a better environment for fundraisers and fundraising. We are already moving to expand our respected compliance work from street and door to door to other methods of fundraising to support raising standards and improve public confidence.”
Sir Stuart Etherington, chair of NCVO, welcomed the appointment too, saying:
Lord Grade is a substantial figure with the experience to drive through the changes that must be made. He is a highly experienced chair and he has a clear commitment to public service along with a strong understanding of marketing, not least from his seven years as chairman of Ocado. I have every confidence that under his leadership the new fundraising regulator will become the body it needs to be in order to secure public trust.
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.