Five charities have signed up to a new Child Sponsorship Charter designed to clarify confusion over child sponsorship programmes and safeguard the fundraising product from any future public complaint.

The new charter replaces a 2001 version which the sector felt was out of date, and covers the principles behind, and the suggested marketing of, ‘sponsor a child’-style fundraising propositions. The code emphasises that the schemes allow donors an individual relationship with a child, but that the donation is funnelled into the charity’s unrestricted funds.

The Fundraising Standards Board pulled together a committee to discuss updating the charter after Plan UK approached it last April following a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority over a Plan DRTV ad for child sponsorship. While the complaint was dismissed by the ASA, Plan, the FRSB along with other umbrella groups and charities felt that the sector needed to take action. This new code is designed to clear up any public confusion over child sponsorship that could lead to further complaints.

Samantha Wilson, head of communications at the FRSB, said, “The aim is to help improve child sponsorship fundraising with greater transparency and, above all, clarity so the public can be confident in their giving choices. We would encourage all charities that work in this area to commit to and adopt the Charter into their practices.”

World Vision, ActionAid, EveryChild and SOS Children’s Villages joined Plan UK both in the ten-month process leading up to the Charter’s publication, and in being the first charities to commit to it.

Louise Richards, director of policy and campaigns at the Institute of Fundraising which was also involved in the Charters development, said, given how critical the programmes are to securing income for such charities, she hoped the Charter would secure its future. “It is great to see further safeguarding of this valued fundraising technique,” she said.

Plan UK has been promoting child sponsorship since 1937, said its fundraising director Jeremy Cooper as he welcomed the decision on how to promote it in the future.