IoF members back new accreditation programme
Howard Lake | 13 February 2017 | News
Members of the Institute of Fundraising have shown their support for the introduction of a new public fundraising accreditation programme for members.
The Institute, the professional membership body for fundraisers in the UK, issued a consultation on the subject at the beginning of this year. Of those members who responded, 92% indicated their support.
The accreditation programme is designed to provide Institute members with greater levels of information and transparency about those with whom they work. Its aim is to demonstrate the high standards found in public fundraising, but also help drive up the consistency of professional standards across the charity sector.
At first, the programme will focus on those organisations carrying out regular individual giving by direct debit. It will then expand to cover those charities with in-house fundraising teams as well as agencies.
Consistency monitored
To receive accreditation, the Institute will ask applicants to demonstrate a high degree of understanding when it comes to the laws and regulations that apply to public fundraising. They will also be required to submit evidence that they are implementing this with strong policies and robust training programmes.
To ensure consistency of standards, IoF compliance managers will regularly observe accredited members’ training programmes.
Peter Hills-Jones, Director of Compliance at the Institute of Fundraising, commented:
“Ultimately what we’re focussed on is ensuring members understand the rules and are training their fundraisers well. If members are doing that consistently, then their staff can have the confidence to be both compliant and great fundraisers at the same time. This programme is about how the IoF can use compliance to support members and give even greater reassurance to the public that real action is being taken.”
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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.