The PFRA will now regulate prospecting as well as face-to-face fundraising after making changes to its regulatory procedures and charging structure.

Prospecting, which involves the collection of contact details of potential donors on the street with a view to asking them to give at a later date, came into the PFRA’s remit when it was included in the Institute of Fundraising’s code on face-to-face in Dcecember 2009.

Charities will now need to bid for prospecting sites in the same way that they bid for street fundraising sites.

Previously this was done on the basis of how many donors they wish to recruit, whereas now it is based on the number of ‘recruiter days’, which equals the number of fundraisers multiplied by the number of days they will be on the street.

Charities operating prospecting sites will pay a fixed levy of £6.75 per site per day in order to fund the PFRA’s work.

Michael Naidu (pictured), PFRA’s vice chair, said: “To potential donors on the street, and of course to local authority licensing officers and town centre managers, prospectors are indistinguishable from street fundraisers.

“As this is undoubtedly a form of fundraising – because the street contact is followed up with a telephone call or other communication asking them to become regular donors – it is important that prospecting is fully integrated into the mainstream of self-regulation of face-to-face fundraising.

“I am pleased that this is now the case.”