In June, Charity Commission chair William Shawcross said that the charity sector was in a crisis after the outcry over fundraising that followed the death of Olive Cooke.
Posts Categorized: Charity fundraising
The Manchester Dogs’ Home tragedy takes charity back to basics
Extraordinary. I don’t use this word lightly, but the public response on JustGiving to the fire at the Manchester Dogs Home last night has been quite literally extraordinary. And not just under the allegedly controversial newfangled definition of the word “literally”, either. The total raised for the charity running the home was £130,000 when I… Read more »
I did the ice bucket – and I donated as well
Earlier this week, I joined the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Victoria Beckham and George W Bush and participated in the ice bucket challenge. I can’t say I was surprised when a clip of a friend doing the deed and nominating me to go next popped up on my Facebook account; having seen my feed gradually… Read more »
Fundraising critics keep chugging away… so watch out
It’s been a tough old week for fundraising. First, Channel 4’s Dispatches programme sends a couple of undercover reporters to dish dirt on the internal goings-on at two of the country’s best-known fundraising agencies. Then a disgruntled volunteer fundraiser launches a tirade about “chugging”, as he persistently calls it, claiming that paid street fundraisers are… Read more »
The irritations of online giving
A squabble between a charity and an online giving site last week aptly demonstrates the nervousness that many charities feel in the wake of the collapse of the CharityGiving site last year. The row – in which the two parties squared up through the media (i.e. me) – took place after George Overton of the… Read more »
Tea with Simon Cowell, and why the Health Lottery is no bad thing
Simon Cowell asked me to go to tea with him this week. Actually that’s only partially true: more accurately, I was invited by a PR person to a rather civilised afternoon tea hosted by the TV talent guru and the media mogul Richard Desmond to celebrate the Health Lottery. The lottery, which manages 51 society… Read more »
Was my dry January for the wrong cause?
It wasn’t hard, but I’m glad it’s over: that’s the best summary I can find for taking part in the Dryathlon for the second January running. Life without alcohol felt calmer, but lacked the sharpening of mood and thought that a glass of wine can provide. The secret, of course, is to keep things moderate… Read more »
Ethical investment is more than beating one bastard while funding three others
As part of ethical investment week, now drawing to a close, the Charity Finance Group published a survey of its members that found that just over half had any sort of ethical investment policy, and that of those who did, most only used “negative screening”, where they avoid companies which have activities that go against… Read more »