Charities inadequately prepared for Gift Aid audits

Fundraising | Gemma Ware | 1 Nov 2006

Four out of five charities believe they are not fully prepared for a Gift Aid audit, according to new research from fundraising database provider Blackbaud.

Out of almost 100 charities questioned, only 17 per cent believed they would be prepared for a Gift Aid audit from HM Customs & Revenue even though 62 per cent believed they were happy with the current administration of their Gift Aid programme and the income it generated.

The survey found that fundraisers bear most of the responsibility for administrating Gift Aid with 52 per cent of charities leaving fundraisers to maintain records and information.

However, only 18 per cent of charities employed a full time member of staff who is considered a Gift Aid expert, with almost 50 per cent stating that these duties fall as part of someone's job. Five per cent had no one with any specific Gift Aid knowledge working for them.

When asked about the main concerns they would have if HMRC turned up to do a Gift Aid audit tomorrow, a third of charities said they were not sure all their Gift Aid declarations would be recorded properly in their database and a third thought they had inadequate Gift Aid audit trails.

For more on how you can make the most of Gift Aid turn to our special report on taxeffective giving.

Blackbaud has also appointed Martin Jervis as its new managing director after 15 months without a leader at the helm. The announcement comes at the same time as the organisation relocates from Glasgow to London in order to be closer to its client base.

Directory: Blackbaud Europe Ltd | HM Revenue & Customs

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