The Impact Coalition has launched a 'transparency manifesto' to help charities respond to media attention and address the perception gap between how the public think charities operate and the reality.

Speaking at the launch, Stephen Bubb, CEO of Acevo (pictured), said: "One of the main reasons the Impact Coalition moved homes to Acevo was its ambition to put transparency and accountability at the centre of CEOs' agendas.

"Recent events in the media have shown us that we still have a long way to go on that front. We cannot afford to continue to be complacent about the high levels of trust the public installs in us. That trust is fragile and we have a duty to demonstrate why we deserve it.

"We want the manifesto to be more to the sector than just  a statement about what a charity needs to do to be accountable and transparent, we want it to become the benchmark by which all charities measure their progress."

The transparency manifesto has been drawn up by the Impact Coalition's steering group following a consultation process with members.

The Impact Coalition, which is made up of 380 charities and trade bodies, was established in 2005 in a bid to support charities to become more transparent and to encourage them to have the confidence to talk about issues they have traditionally shied away from.