The fundraising sector is predominantly unhappy with membership bodies' response to the crisis in regulation, according to a poll conducted last week.

Of the 141 respondents to the snap poll by Civil Society News, 101 respondents - over 70 per cent - said they were “very unsatisfied” or “unsatisfied” when asked: ‘How satisfied are you with how the Institute of Fundraising responded?’ to the controversies of the summer.

When asked to answer the same questions concerning the performance of the Fundraising Standards Board and the Public Fundraising Association respectively, 64 per cent of respondents had a negative response to the FRSB, while just over half responded negatively about the PFRA.

Conversely, respondents answered questions regarding the performance of their own organisations much more positively. Over 80 per cent of respondents said they were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the ethics of their charity’s primary fundraising. Just under half of respondents were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the way their organisation responded to the controversies.

When asked ‘has your charity public spoken out during any of the recent controversies?’ 71.9 per cent of respondents said ‘no’. Over half of respondents also responded ‘no’ when asked ‘do you feel you have been included in the debate about the future of self-regulation?’ with less than a third responding in the affirmative.

Well over three quarters of respondents said they worked in ‘fundraising’. Other respondents worked in communication, public relations and as chief executives and trustees.