The Institute of Fundraising has had to put people on a waiting list for a course designed to prepare private and public sector employees for a transition into a fundraising career.

The Career Change Programme, developed by the Institute, promises attendees it will help them match their skills from the corporate and public sector to the charity world, and teach them about the place of fundraising within charity organisations. It is pitched towards senior management level professionals.

Thirty people attended the Institute's first such event, with another one scheduled for October forced to put eager would-be fundraisers on a waiting list.

The interest from outside the sector in a fundraising career comes as some charities report finding qualified fundraisers. A report released early this month by the Foundation for Social Improvement reported that more than half of small charities found fundraisers one of the hardest types of staff to recruit.