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Engagement in the Sector 4

Fundraising | Michael Naidu | 11 Nov 2008

In the November Issue of PF, Stephen George calls for our sector’s leaders to find a common voice and the commitment to promote legacy fundraising. At a time when disposable income is declining for many, investing in (the most) long-term fundraising shows surprising foresight for the charity sector. But there is much that can be done now to protect current income streams that we take for granted.

I attended the recent Remember A Charity relaunch and was impressed and enthused by Stephen’s passion for legacy marketing and the power of his call for unity. But undoubtedly, the fact that he represents the NSPCC gave weight to his argument. Other big brands forcefully had their say, especially when someone referred to “small gifts in wills”.

Another interesting article in PF showed the amazing results that Mick Aldridge at the PFRA is having, starting site management agreements (SMA) with local authorities across England. Leeds City Council now allows street fundraising as part of a PFRA-managed diary, stating that it brings vibrancy to quieter areas of town. This - coming from a Council who tried to take Caring Together to court for doing doorstep fundraising - is a huge indicator of the future potential for face-to-face.

Now some for you may choose to respond with your concerns about saturation of face-to-face, but more sites don’t necessarily mean more fundraisers. Initially it will mean a better spread of fundraisers, and the opportunity to talk to people who have rarely, if ever, met a street fundraiser.

One thing the PF article failed to mention was the impact that charities can have in supporting Mick to open more SMAs with local authorities. I have met with local councillors, licensing officers and town centre managers across England, stared them in the eye and told then that face-to-face works and funds services that support their local residents. There isn’t much they can say to that.

Now don’t get me wrong, Mencap is a well-known, well-respected charity with a large local affiliated presence, but we don’t pack the punch of NSPCC when it comes to fundraising and the number of people we have signed up over the years using face-to-face is small fry compared to NSPCC. When I joined the PFRA board in 2002 Tim Hunter was there representing a different charity and was vocal about the direction and role of the PFRA. Soon after he left, bound for the NSPCC.

Over the following six years, board members came and went, Joel Voysey took over as chair while at Amnesty and VSO, Morag Fleming from Quarriers single-handedly promoted face-to-face in Scotland from the start and Robbie Buscombe (when working for Mencap) and Anna Walsh of Sense inspired passion and a willingness to share amongst charity members.

And how, you may ask, did the NSPCC contribute to the progression of face-to-face? Well, they haven’t joined the board, do not attend the user group and (to my knowledge, but happy to be corrected) have not gone on record to defend or promote face-to-face fundraising. They have invested a lot of time in stewardship, making their fundraisers take responsibility for their role in their organisation. Stewardship of the sector however, doesn’t seem to be on the radar.

So Stephen, Mencap supports your call to action and will continue to engage with RAC at all levels, but I think you should have a word with Tim’s successor and make sure that you aren’t seen to be giving with one hand and taking with the other.

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