The Institute of Fundraising and the Public Fundraising Association are considering a merger in order to simplify the current system of fundraising self-regulation, Richard Taylor, chair of the IoF, said today.
Taylor (pictured) was giving evidence as a witness to the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee in London today, as part of its investigation into fundraising regulation.
He said that the “IoF and PFRA may merge, as we want to be seen as the body that drives regulatory change in the sector”.
Taylor was responding to a questions from the panel asking why the fundraising sector needs so many regulatory bodies.
Peter Hills-Jones, chief executive of the PFRA, who was also giving evidence, agreed that the current system needs simplification.
“It’s a piecemeal system at the moment," he said. "I think in the long term we would look to move to having two regulatory organisations rather than the current set-up of three.”
In July, the IoF and the PFRA announced a joint “strategic partnership” to focus on three key areas of fundraising: policy research, communication and compliance with the Code of Fundraising Practice. The two organisations also announced they would pool their collective resources and deliver joint projects.
In a statement given to Civil Society News this afternoon, Peter Hills-Jones said: “The PFRA is in complete agreement with the chair of the IoF that we need a simplified regulatory system.
"A successful strategic partnership between our two organisations could potentially lay the groundwork for that simplification through a future merger. Although we are still at the very early stages of discussions, our aim is to put a proposal to both memberships over the autumn.
"Any final decision however, will have to be voted on at next summer’s AGMs.”
- This morning the chief executives of Oxfam, Save the Children, the RSPCA and the NSPCC gave evidence to the same committee. A full report into their evidence is available here.
- A full report into the three fundraising regulatory bodies' evidence to the committee will be published later today.
