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Examples: All fundraising

Section 1: Behaviour when Fundraising

Current code rules

Being polite and respectful when fundraising

  • 1.1.2 You must be polite to people at all times.
  • 1.2.1 While reasonable persuasion is allowed, you must not fundraise in a way which is an unreasonable intrusion on a person’s privacy, is unreasonably persistent or places undue pressure on a person to donate.
  • 1.2.2 You must not continue to ask a person for support if that person clearly indicates – by word or gesture – that they do not want to continue to speak to you. You must end the conversation in a polite way.
  • 8.4.1 You must not harass any person or ignore a request to leave or not to return.

Indicative change to code rules

Being polite and respectful when fundraising

  • Rule A.A.A: You must behave professionally at all times. This includes not placing undue pressure on a person to donate or ignoring a request to end a conversation.

Section 2: Responsibilities of charitable institutions and those who govern them

Current code rules

Paying fundraisers

  • 2.5.3 You must have effective systems in place for managing performance and recognising the effect the payment method can have on the fundraiser, you, the beneficiaries and the public.
  • 2.5.4 You must not use commission payments unless:
    • you have explored and exhausted all other sources of fundraising investment;
    • you (or senior executives, if you have delegated power to them) approve any payments; and
    • there are measures in place to make sure excessive payments are not allowed.
  • 2.5.5 You must monitor commission payments to make sure that they continue to strike a balance between reducing risk and encouraging fundraisers effectively.

Indicative change to code rules

Paying fundraisers

  • Rule A.A.A: You must have effective systems in place for monitoring fundraisers’ performance and managing pay.
  • Rule A.A.B: You must not use commission payments unless you have exhausted all other sources of fundraising investment. You must keep a record of the basis of your decision to use commissions.

Section 3: Processing personal data (information)

Current code rules

Consent

  • 3.5.4 If you have a person’s consent to send them direct marketing communications, you:
    • must offer them an easy way to withdraw their consent (such as an ‘unsubscribe’ button in any communications you send);
    • must, as often as your organisation reasonably decides, remind the person of their contact preferences and offer them an easy way to change these if they want to (such as an ‘update your communication preferences’ button); and
    • must update the person’s record as necessary to reflect changes to their consent or contact preferences.
  • 3.5.5 You must make sure that all consent statements (wording to gain consent for marketing purposes) displayed in your fundraising materials are at least the same font size as:
    • any text which asks for personal data; or
    • any text which states the donation amount;
    • whichever is bigger.
  • 3.5.6 If there is no text asking for personal details or stating the donation amount, your consent statements must be in a font size of at least 10.

Indicative change to code rules

Consent

  • Rule A.A.A: If you have a person’s consent to send them direct marketing communications, you must offer them an easy way to change their contact preferences or to withdraw their consent. 
  • Rule A.A.B: All consent statements displayed in your fundraising materials must be clearly identifiable and as prominent as any text asking for personal data or stating the donation amount.

It is a legal requirement to update the person’s record as necessary to reflect changes to their consent or contact preferences, as per GDPR regulations. 

For more information about consent, see the ICO’s guidance on obtaining, recording and managing consent.

Section 4: Processing donations

Current code rules

Cash collections

  • 4.1.1. You must not leave unsecured cash unattended.
  • 4.1.2. You must count cash in a secure place.
  • 4.1.3. You must make sure that all cash you have collected is counted and recorded by two unrelated people, wherever possible.
  • 4.1.4. You must make sure that cash donations are placed in a sealed container or collecting box. If you are collecting in Scotland or Northern Ireland, or in a licensing authority which follows the model regulations in England and Wales for street collections, you must do this.
  • 4.1.5. You must make sure the promoter of the collection (for example, a charity’s fundraising manager) and one other responsible person or an official of a bank are present when you examine and open collecting boxes for licensed collections in a public place. If the licensing authority is following the model regulations in England and Wales for street collections, you must do this.
  • 4.1.6. For collections on private land, if it is not practical for you to open and count collecting boxes, you must have effective procedures and instructions for the person who owns or manages the site to count, record and bank or deliver the money in the boxes.
  • 4.1.7. If you do not bank cash immediately, you must put it in a safe or other secure place.
  • 4.1.8. You must bank cash as soon as possible. To help with this, you must have a procedure for banking donations, including who does it and when.
  • 4.1.9. You must check that the cash you have banked matches your income summaries, as soon as possible. If possible, someone who is not involved in counting or cashing up the money must do this.
  • 4.1.10. You must send the charitable institution (or institutions) the full amount taken from all collecting boxes without taking any expenses or fees, unless these have been agreed beforehand.
  • 4.1.11. If you are a professional fundraiser or commercial participator, you (and people fundraising for you) must not take any money from cash you (or they) receive.
  • 4.1.12. You must meet any extra rules local authorities set about making deductions from collections.

Further standards for cash collections in Scotland

  • 4.1.13. In Scotland, for collections licensed by the local council which will be carried out using a collecting box, you must only accept donations by allowing the donor to put them in the collecting box. Or, if the collection can be carried out by sealed envelopes, the collector must only accept donations in sealed envelopes using the numbered envelopes you have issued to them. As a result, it is not usually possible to give receipts for donations.
  • 4.1.14. If you receive cash in collection envelopes or collecting boxes as part of a public charitable collection, you must count and bank it in line with the Public Charitable Collections (Scotland) Regulations 1984, as amended.

Indicative change to code

Cash collections

  • Rule A.A.A: You must have a procedure for promptly counting, recording, and banking donations, which outlines who does it and when and how this will be monitored.
    You must make sure that: 
    • unsecured cash is not left unattended;
    • cash is kept in a safe or other secure place until it is banked;
    • cash is counted and recorded in a secure place by two unrelated people, where possible; and
    • cash you have banked matches your income summaries (where possible, this will be checked by someone who was not involved in counting or cashing up the money).

Professional fundraisers and commercial participators (and people fundraising for them) are legally prohibited from taking any money from cash they receive.

Collecting Boxes

  • Rule A.A.B: You must send the charitable institution(s) the full amount taken from all collecting boxes without taking any expenses or fees, unless pre-agreed.
  • Rule A.A.C: You must make sure that all collecting boxes are labelled, numbered and sealed.

In Scotland or Northern Ireland, or in a licensing authority which follows the model regulations in England and Wales, it is a legal requirement for all collecting boxes to be labelled, numbered and sealed.

In licensing authorities which follow the model regulations in England and Wales, the promoter of the collection and one other responsible person or an official of a bank is required to be present when you examine and open collecting boxes for licensed collections in a public place.

In Scotland, for collections licensed by the local council which will be carried out using collecting boxes or sealed envelopes, you are required to accept, cash and bank donations in line with the Public Charitable Collections (Scotland) Regulations 1984.