Regulator to offer charities support on child sponsorship marketing following Penny Appeal investigation

Melanie May | 17 June 2024 | News

• Tagged with:
• Code of Fundraising Practice
• Fundraising Regulator

The Fundraising Regulator has said that it will provide more support for the sector on child sponsorship marketing following an investigation into Penny Appeal that found three of its programmes had committed breaches of the Code of Fundraising Practice.

Five breaches were committed in total across the programmes. OrphanKind and Hifz Appeal invited donors to sponsor individual children, implying that the money raised would be used exclusively for the benefit of that child. However, it was not made clear that, in reality, those children may not benefit directly from individual donations but would instead benefit indirectly from the accumulated money raised.

Thirst Relief Appeal was also examined as part of the investigation, and was not found to have misled donors by failing to highlight the potential for reallocation of funds donated for a specific well. However, this appeal was found in breach of the Code over the use of Direct Debits. The Regulator found that the FAQs supporting the campaign were ambiguous and did not make it clear that a monthly Direct Debit would continue after 12 months until the donor cancelled it.

The Regulator has made a number of recommendations to Penny Appeal regarding its communication with donors and potential donors, its use of funds, and its complaints handling, and the charity has agreed to comply with all.

Further to this investigation, the Fundraising Regulator’s proactive regulation team looked at the fundraising materials of other charities which run similar schemes to help raise funds for international development projects. This, it says, has highlighted a need for further engagement to support the sector on child sponsorship marketing to make sure it is transparent and clear. As a result, the team will offer sector workshops and advice in the coming months.

Gerald Oppenheim, Chief Executive of the Fundraising Regulator, said:

“We will continue to engage with Penny Appeal as it implements the recommendations outlined in our decision to ensure its compliance with the code.  We understand that fundraising appeals encouraging donors to raise money for a particular individual can be very effective. However, we urge all charities that pool the money raised through such appeals to ensure their fundraising material clearly reflects this and informs donors that their donations may not be used exclusively for the benefit of a specific individual or project.”

About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.