Andrew Hind presentation

1. The future direction of
fundraising - retaining
public trust in charities
Andrew@andrewhind.co.uk
Andrew Hind

2. We should take the long view:
597AD - Canterbury

3. Over 1,400 years of history
• King’s School, Canterbury 597
• Order of St John 11th century
• Statute of Elizabeth 1601
• The Victorian philanthropists – NSPCC 1884
• Oxfam 1942
• Samaritans 1953
• The hospice movement 1967
• ChildLine 1986
• Help for Heroes 2007

4. Out in the wider world the storm
clouds have broken
• Over the last 5-10 years, trust has been
disintegrating in many areas of national life –
bankers, MPs, journalists, the BBC
• We have seen a transfer of power to the
informed consumer, a transparency agenda
fuelled by rolling 24-hour news / social media,
and the death of corporate paternalism.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

5. Olive Cooke – May 2015, when the storm
clouds broke over charity fundraising
• Fell to her death in Bristol.
• 92 year-old, long-serving
poppy seller.
• Received award from PM.
• Gave interview to Bristol
Post saying she was
“overwhelmed” by charity
mailings.
• Her death acted like a
lightning conductor
Copyright: Andrew Hind

6. What the FRSB found – part 1
• A horrifying story.
• Generous supporter of c.20
charities in 2000.
• Receiving 3,000 mailings pa by
2015 – how did it happen?
• 70 of 99 charities got Mrs
Cooke’s details from other
charities or list brokers.
• Only 14 of the 99 provided an
opt-out ‘tick box’
Copyright: Andrew Hind

7. First fallout from Olive Cooke –
The Mail on Sunday 7/6/15
Copyright: Andrew Hind

8. The assault continues – Mail 7/7/15
Copyright: Andrew Hind

9. What the FRSB found – part 2
• Undercover reporters got jobs
in Listen and GoGen.
• Big charities were not properly
supervising their agencies.
• NSPCC 660,000 calls,
monitored only 0.16%.
• BRC, Macmillan, Oxfam had
no record of calls monitored.
• Donors misled about the way
their personal data would be
used – see also Diabetes UK,
Age UK, Dogs Trust reports.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

10. What the FRSB found – part 2
• Misleading privacy/fair processing notices:
• British Red Cross: “We like to keep supporters in
touch with our work, if you do not wish to
receive further communications from the British
Red Cross, or agencies working on our behalf,
please write to…, or email…”
• Macmillan: “We will contact you from time to
time by phone, email, text or post to tell you
about how we can support you and how you can
get involved with our team.”
Copyright: Andrew Hind

11. Lessons from the fundraising meltdown
• ‘Industrial’ practices of
some large charities.
• Exchange of personal data.
• Inadequate opt-outs.
• Agencies unsupervised.
• CEOs and Boards failed to
provide strategic oversight.
• Ends justified means, core
values compromised.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

12. And then there was Kids Company
• Lack of board rotation
• Insufficient board challenge
• Over-dominant CEO
• Financial policies ignored
• Demand-led strategy
• No proper focus on user impact
• Complicit donors
• No whistle-blowers
• Inadequate regulatory oversight
Copyright: Andrew Hind

13. Kids Company’s woes were on front
pages for months – Guardian 29.10.15
Copyright: Andrew Hind

14. Open season on charities in the media -
eg. Age UK criticised in The Sun 9.2.16
Copyright: Andrew Hind

15. Help for Heroes criticised in MoS 7.2.16
Copyright: Andrew Hind

16. Criticism of high salaries – Times 17.12.15
Copyright: Andrew Hind

17. No let up every weekend – 29.5.16
Copyright: Andrew Hind

18. Public trust in charities appears to
finally be falling
• Until now, research has repeatedly
shown that public trust was holding up
• Charity Commission surveys
Copyright: Andrew Hind

19. Source: Ipsos MORI
Don’t trust
them at all
Trust them
completely
1%
6%
3%3% 3%
5%
23%
10%
5%
19%
20%
2%
1%
4%
18%
11%
8%
22%22%
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
2005
2008
2005 Mean Score: 6.3 2008 Mean Score: 6.6
And improved in 2012: 6.7
Public trust in the
distinctive brand of charity

20. Public trust appears to be falling
• CC 2016 research is in the field right now
• Report in November 2015 from
nfpSynergy suggests that only 48% of
people trust charities.
• A decline of 18 points since 2013.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

21. February
2016
research by
YouGov
• Only 38% of people say
charities are trustworthy
(down from 54% in 2013)
• 45% say charities have high
ethical standards (56%)
• 67% believe fundraising
criticism was fair
• 62% say large charities are
damaging sector’s image
• Charities complacent in
responding to accusations of
high pay (72%) and
aggressive fundraising (61%)
Copyright: Andrew Hind

22. This leads us to an inescapable
conclusion:
‘Unconditional’ public trust
can no longer be taken
for granted.

23. Future developments
• Launch of the Fundraising Regulator, to replace
the FRSB, and introduction of the Fundraising
Preference Service.
• Charities Act 2016.
• Publication of CC20.
• NCVO opt-in working party.
• New European data protection law requiring
unambiguous consent from donors by 2018 (EU
General Data Protection Regulation – GDPR)
Copyright: Andrew Hind

24. First line of defence - trustees
• Charities must re-establish the appropriate
balance between their right to ask for funds and
the public’s right to say no.
• Does your board own the fundraising practices
being undertaken in your charity’s name?
• How are you making sure your charity’s values
are always non-negotiable?
• Have you read and actioned CC20 – Charity
fundraising: a guide to trustee duties (published
only this week)?
Copyright: Andrew Hind

25. First line of defence - trustees
• The six principles in CC20 – June 2016
Planning effectively
Supervising your fundraisers
Protecting your charity’s reputation
Complying with laws and regulations re
fundraising (eg DPA, Charities Act 2016)
Following the Code of Fundraising Practice
Being open and accountable
Copyright: Andrew Hind

26. Second line of defence – the new
Fundraising Regulator
• Recommended in the Etherington report
• Going live in ‘early summer’- ie next month
• A last chance for self-regulation
• Controlling the Fundraising Code of Practice
• Introducing the Fundraising Preference
Scheme
• Bigger budget, tougher powers and sanctions
• But still a ‘voluntary’ system
Copyright: Andrew Hind

27. The proposed FPS
• Proposed in Regulating Fundraising for the Future
because Mrs Cooke couldn’t stop the deluge.
• A ‘reset’ mechanism to stop all fundraising
communications (n/a for those under £1m).
• In: addressed mail; phone (incl mobile); email.
• Out: unaddressed mail; door-to-door; face-to-face.
• FPS working group trying to achieve ‘granularity’.
• Might cost charities £2bn if implemented; what
would cost be if not implemented?
Copyright: Andrew Hind

28. Third line of defence – the
Charity Commission
• The Commission will engage with serious
fundraising matters referred to it by the
Fundraising Regulator.
• Will continue to sharpen up guidance.
• Public trust in charities depends in large
part on public trust in the regulator.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

29. Behaviours to restore public trust
• Respect the right of the public to control how
they wish to engage with us.
• Always focused on the charity’s values.
• Transparent and accountable.
• Independent, non-political.
• Brave and innovative.
• Collaborative, not competitive.
Copyright: Andrew Hind

30. The future direction of
fundraising - retaining
public trust in charities
Andrew@andrewhind.co.uk
Andrew Hind