# Charity raffle falls foul of ‘outdated’ charity law

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2019/08/07/charity-raffle-falls-foul-of-outdated-charity-law/
- Published: 2019-08-07T08:19:14+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**A sports club in Northern Ireland has been forced to cancel a major fundraising
raffle to win a house following concerns over its legality.**

The draw offered a chance to win a three-bedroom home worth £150,000 and other prizes
including a new Honda CRV vehicle, £10,000 in cash and a Mediterranean cruise.

The raffle money was collected by specialist sports club fundraising company [Klubfunder](https://www.klubfunder.com/)
which has raised over £5 million for 700 clubs. A £100 fee was required to enter
the raffle, with funds raised going towards extending playing fields and facilities
at Mayobridge Gaelic Athletic Club (GAA).

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It is understood the competition was pulled because the prizes exceeded the maximum
level permitted under the Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements (NI) Order 1985.
The competition, organised by Friends of Mayobridge GAC, had been running since 
October and was due to be drawn this month on August 17.

The organisers, Friends of Mayobridge GAC, said it was “with huge regret that we
need to inform you that our planned A1 House Draw is not going to proceed”. The 
club has offered to refund ticket holders.

The [PSNI confirmed to the BBC](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-49111868)
it had offered advice to Mayobridge GAC about their house draw without launching
a formal investigation.

“Our view was that this was a lottery competition with the result that it potentially
breached a number of areas of the current legislation,” a spokesperson said.

“This has again highlighted that this legislation does not reflect modern society
or technology and is in urgent need of update.”

The spokesperson added that they also met sporting organisations across Northern
Ireland, including Sport NI, in recent months to advise about running lottery competitions.
Ulster Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) has also called for the reform of “restrictive
and outdated” legislation that had placed Mayobridge GAC at risk of prosecution.

 

## Risk of possible prosecution

If the draw had gone ahead, organisers could have been in breach of the order and
faced possible prosecution. Rory McShane, solicitor for Mayobridge GAC, said the
club was disappointed its fundraising efforts were “thwarted by legislation, which
is totally outdated and not fit for purpose.”

Mr McShane’s view was echoed by the governing body of the GAA which called on political
representatives to make the reform of the Betting, Gaming, Lotteries and Amusements(
Northern Ireland) Order 1985 an urgent priority as part of their ongoing programme
for government negotiations.

A spokesperson for the Department for Communities, which is responsible for charitable
lotteries, said: “The Department recognises that the operation of a society lottery
is an important means through which many charities, sporting clubs and other organisations
raise funds.

“The Department recommends that any organisation seeking to establish a lottery 
should seek legal advice before moving forward,” the spokesperson said.

[Neil Irwin](https://twitter.com/neilirwin), fundraising advisor and expert on charitable
lotteries, said it is very unfortunate that Mayobridge GAC are unable to run a draw
of this size in this way in Northern Ireland, especially considering the greater
freedom in Britain.

“It will be more galling for them to know the widespread scale of society lotteries
in NI that also potentially break the law but run everyday,” Mr Irwin said.

“We need the law to change urgently so hard working volunteers trying to keep their
amateur clubs and charities going can use this fundraising tool to its fullest potential
without the risk of investigation of prosecution,” he said.

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