The new minister for civil society will have to decide what he thinks about chuggers and telephone fundraising, says Ian Allsop.

People don’t have to read my blog. It is up to them.

But if I felt that not enough folks were paying it attention, would it be acceptable to stop them in the street and brandish it in their face? Or ring them up and start reciting it? Or even knock on people’s doors holding a copy?

It is not directly comparable, I know, but the reason I pose the question is because certain fundraising techniques are under the spotlight. Again. That spotlight sure gets through some bulbs.

Undercover investigation

Last month Channel 4’s Dispatches ran one of those undercover investigation-type programmes, which paints a picture of an entire profession from the base colours of a couple of miscreants.

Commercial fundraising outfits were shown to be extorting money from petrified, housebound citizens by repeatedly swearing at them down the phone in a Brummie accent until they promised to sign up for a monthly payment. At least, that’s what I assume was revealed given the reaction the broadcast received.

It is shocking, apparently, that charities ask for cash unbidden. And everyone disapproves, we are told – though I don’t think that is necessarily the case. Perhaps the only proper way to formulate a representative view of how the public feels about telephone fundraising is to ring them up and ask them.

It seems that living in a world where we are constantly bombarded by uninvited advertising to buy things we don’t need from profit-making entities is fine, but trying to raise money to do good stuff is not.

The cold-calling practices highlighted by the exposé fall into the same category as chugging or door-to-door fundraising, in that they are slated, but effective.

Whatever the arguments are for and against these fundraising methods, it is clear that charities need to articulate the positives better, or risk the definitive word being left with people like Brandon Lewis who, when minister for local government, said street fundraising techniques were “deeply unpleasant” and “a menace”. In response, chuggers said that government legislative techniques were precisely the same, which is why the shiny new minister for civil society will need to get a grip on the issue.

Whatever your view on the effectiveness of Nick Hurd – who history already seems to have recorded as having been an eloquent and passionate advocate of charities, whose main achievement was that things didn’t get any worse, which they may well have done under a less committed watch – we can all agree that Brooks Newmark is an excellent name.

It lends itself to many semi-amusing distortions but, as this is a serious column, I won’t resortto calling him things like Knicks Bookmark, or Nuke Primark, or Bricks Newport.

Worryingly for the sector, Knocks Bismarck is quoted as once saying that chugging is akin to armed robbery, and that all chuggers should rot in a fiery hell overseen by Eric Pickles. Alright, Books No-mark never said anything of the sort but the fact that you probably believed he may have done, and still got the charity job, says a lot about him already. Or at least his bosses.

Ignored on Regent Street

Me? I used to be neutral about chugging, but an incident recently has changed my mind. I was strolling down Regent Street in central London, mid-morning, the sun was shining, hope was in the air.

I spotted a chugger (naming no names but his tabard was branded with an international aid organisation beginning in Uni and ending with cef). I walked towards him, not too quickly – I think I even smiled at him. I was in that kind of mood. He smiled back. But he didn’t say anything to me, and just let me walk by.

Outrageous. How lazy is that? What is wrong with me? Do I not look like the sort of man who can handle a monthly direct debit? I was dressed smartly and everything.

I was so incensed that I had half a mind to turn back and force the chugger to accept my signature, after giving me five minutes of scripted, guilt-inducing spiel.

Chuggers, eh? What can you do?

Ian Allsop is a freelance editor and journalist, and regular contributor to Charity Finance.