Online payroll giving company launched as sector brays for reform of system 4

Fundraising | Celina Ribeiro | 24 Jun 2011

An online payroll giving service is ready for launch amid Philanthropy Review and government enthusiasm for the potential of payroll giving and calls from fundraising directors for structural changes to the system.

Big Change, set up by company CCWorks, enables charities to set up their own payroll giving web pages in order to promote and process payroll giving via their corporate partners. Charities are able to access their donor data directly and will not be charged processing fees – which will be charged to corporate partners at £25 per month - but pay a £50 set-up fee.

The site has launched with some high-profile charity partners, including Make-A-Wish, Help the Hospices and the British Red Cross.

Payroll giving has had a good year, the Charities Aid Foundation told CivilSociety.co.uk. Ahead of its official figures on give-as-you-earn, a CAF spokeswoman said it appears there will be a year-on-year increase in total income generated via payroll.

But still, there is much demand within the sector for a significant overhaul of the system.

One of the Big Change launch partners, the British Red Cross' director of fundraising – and chair of the Institute of Fundraising - Mark Astarita was recently asked to step down as keynote speaker of the Institute's Payroll Giving Conference on Monday after he expressed his frustration with payroll giving, suggesting the model disenfranchised charities and that government should stop "bleating on" about it.

Karen England, director of fundraising at Make-A-Wish, said that while payroll giving is a "fantastic way to give… the system needs urgent attention."

"The way it's presented to individuals is so complicated," she added, arguing an online payroll giving system, as set up by Big Change, is the "way forward". She said the government should make the system both mandatory and portable.

Liz Tait, director of fundraising at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, backed their sentiments. "There are so many complications with payroll giving that despite best intentions it will be very difficult to achieve what [the government] are hoping it will," she said.

"You just can't invest in it [as a fundraising director] in any clear way. Maybe if there was a complete overhaul of the way payroll giving works, but it doesn't necessarily feel like there is an appetite in the sector to do that at the moment because it's not the biggest opportunity we've got."

Directory: British Red Cross | Charities Aid Foundation | Institute of Fundraising
Who's Who: Liz Tait | Mark Astarita

Place a comment

Elena Joseph
Head of New Projects
Workplace Giving UK
27 Jun 2011

We too have a similar tool available to charities which we developed in response to one of the problems that smaller charities have in accessing the services of a PFO specialising in recruiting donors in the workplace.

We also offer a model, similar to Big Change, which gives companies the option to pay for such services, however, it must be stressed that simply having an online facility is not enough in itself, whether the charity has an online facility or a company has one, the traffic still needs to be driven there using creative communications.

I would also add that some of the perceived complications and critisisms of the mechanism of giving from pay coming from some in the charity sector may be down to not understanding it and also often asking the most junior member of the fundraising team to own it, this coupled with quite a high turnover of contact doesn't help. I am in no way denying that improvements are needed and indeed are overdue but it remains a simple proposition which is popular with donors and it apparently attracts a higher percentage of men than other ways of donating.

It would be refreshing if some of the large charity employers encouraged their own employees to give via their pay, this would give them first hand knowledge of how the scheme works from a company persepective and perhaps would inform them of the changes that are needed.

[Reply]

Rarry Revan
Ranter
Rantingrules
24 Jun 2011

ooooOOOOoooo, the knives are out already...

Rarry

[Reply]

Jeremy Colwill
Payroll Giving in Action
24 Jun 2011

Payroll Giving in Action have a similar product called Giving Online. This a free tool for employers to promote Payroll Giving and has already generated £1.5 million since launch. Why pay when you can get it for free!

[Reply]

Alison Smyth
head of fundraising
aware defeat depression
5 Jul 2011
Response to [Jeremy Colwill]

would like to know more about this product please.

[Reply]

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