The Institute of Fundraising has declared itself in good financial health, despite posting a deficit worth more than £500,000 for 2011/12.
At the organisation’s annual general meeting yesterday, the Institute released its accounts which showed a deficit of £548,860 for the last financial year - up from a deficit of £240,600 in 2010/11 - but attributed the vast majority of this deficit to Remember a Charity, which is spending down a £1m legacy left to it some years ago.
Honorary treasurer of the Institute, Kevin Geeson, said: “It’s important to say that the major contributor to the deficit is Remember a Charity spending its money.
“I would say it's good news, because Remember a Charity is doing its job and the Institute is doing its job [in investing].
"It’s all very positive in a hostile external environment.”
The membership body's leadership last year agreed to budget for a core budget deficit of just shy of £150,000, and came in firmly under budget. “Against this budget a deficit of £109,004 was delivered on unrestricted funds reflecting a strong performance across the year,” the annual accounts read.
Total revenue for the Institute in the year was £4.24m against expenditure of £4.79m. The Institute identified the relaunch of its website, as well as the expansion of its marketing and communications capacity and database as planned activities responsible for the deficit.
Geeson said that the Institute had not been able to secure ‘blue chip’ partners to help bring in additional income, but that the organisation had checked off its two other core financial aims for the year: to deliver on its Office for Civil Society strategic partner grant and continue its training and development. Indeed the training and development activities of the Institute had a strong year, with income increasing 33 per cent over 2011/12.
Institute of Fundraising chair Mark Astarita (pictured) said: “Our journey continues onwards and upwards.
“We’re in pretty good shape financially.”
Speaking to civilsociety.co.uk, Astarita said that he is confident that the Institute has put itself on solid footing, and is not concerned about the deficit. “We’re investing in things that will generate income in the future,” he said.
He said that investing in things such as the Institute’s academy, which require significant spend up-front and is behind some of the growth in learning and development income for the last financial year, “will be brilliant going forward”.
