Fundraising reporting rules: updated guidance to improve charity compliance

In January, the Fundraising Regulator published new research and updated guidance to assist charities which comply with the fundraising reporting requirements set out in the Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016 (the 'Act'). 

Under the Act, charities in England and Wales with an income of over £1 million are required to provide information on specific areas of their fundraising work in their annual Trustees' report, including making statements about the approach the charity has taken on fundraising, the application of relevant regulation, the numbers of complaints received, and how the charity is manging fundraising whilst protecting vulnerable people.

The new research published by the Fundraising Regulator – an analysis of compliance with fundraising reporting under the Act to July 2022 – is the fourth such piece of research undertaken by the Regulator to track compliance. Overall, this year there are indications that compliance overall is improving, with 88% of levy-paying charities reporting on fundraising approaches. However, one area that still needs improvement is charities providing information about how they protect and monitor vulnerable people as part of their fundraising work, with only 40% of levy-paying organisations providing information about how fundraising activities carried out by third parties "on behalf" the charity is monitored, and less than half (48%) including a statement about what they do to protect vulnerable people and other members of the public while fundraising.

As a result, the Regulator has updated its guidance for charities on compliance with the Act in order to support charities to correctly report on their fundraising activities.