Charities should welcome growing public and media interest in how they raise and spend their money, Charity Commission chief executive Sam Younger said today.

Younger told a conference in London that charities must take steps to make themselves more accountable and transparent to the public, and that the Charity Commission is introducing measures to make this happen.

Younger said that despite a series of uncomfortable headlines last year, charities should recognise scrutiny as a positive thing.

“There are wider signs of a growing public scrutiny of charities,” he said. “Although most people in most areas of life don't welcome intense media interest, it's a sign of the importance of the area you are in. So in principle it should be welcome.”

He said there had been scrutiny of ethical investment, campaigning and senior pay, and that “these are all areas that aren't going to go away”.

“At the Charity Commission we are looking to improve accountability,” he said. “So far we have looked at what's required in the annual return, and we also have a new Sorp. And we are publishing a new version of our online register in the next six weeks or so.”

Younger said charities should be going beyond what was required by law and publishing more information that supporters and beneficiaries would want to know.

He gave the example of Sightsavers which publishes monthly updates on whether it was hitting targets.

“Charities must think about their supporters and beneficiaries and whether they are doing what they need to do to keep faith with people and build up their confidence,” he said.

“Think beyond what the law requires to your reputation and what your supporters think of you. Is what you're doing, even if permitted in law, in the best interests of your charity's reputation?

“That's not to say you shouldn't get into controversial areas but look at what you're doing and make sure you can justify it.”

The gloves are off

Caron Bradshaw, chief executive of the Charity Finance Group, also told the the Govtoday conference that charities should take steps to be open with their supporters.

“Charities are now fair game for the media,” she said. “The gloves are off and you are in the spotlight. You are going to be scrutinised more and more. People are more and more interested in how charities raise their money, how they invest it and how they spend it.

“But that doesn’t mean you should try to hide stuff because sooner or later you will be found out.

“A lot of people think your stakeholders won’t know or care what investments you hold. But they do. Sooner or later it will hit the news.”

She said that charities should be happy to tell their stakeholders about every investment in their portfolio.

Choose your board to complement your managers

Bradshaw also said that charities must review their boards to make sure that the trustees had skills which complemented the executive staff.

“For example I’m not an accountant, so I think whoever chairs my organisation, while I’m in charge, should be an accountant,” she said.

“If your executive staff change, you should change your board to fill in the gaps.”