Charities urged to step up security after a record £8.6m lost to fraud

A lot of homeowners only install burglar alarms after they’ve been burgled. Similarly, a lot of charities fail to invest in fraud training and cyber security until they’ve been hacked.

Have you taken steps to protect your charity? If not, can you afford to wait? Not if the latest data by Action Fraud is anything to go by.

According to the UK's National Reporting Centre for Fraud and Cybercrime, during the last financial year, charities in the UK lost a staggering £8.6 million through online crime with 1,059 incidents of fraud reported by charities between April 2020 to March 2021.

This shocking figure (which is likely to be much higher as fraud often goes under-reported), was a result of fraudsters exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fraudsters used a number of scams to defraud charities, such as:

• Scam emails (‘phishing’)

Fraudsters claiming to be from legitimate organisations offer to provide information that could be of assistance to charities, such as a list of ‘at-risk’ elderly people in a local community who may require support from the charity.

The member of staff has to click on a link to get the information, which takes them to a fake website, where they are then asked to make a payment.

Advice: Don’t click on links or attachments in unexpected or suspicious emails. And NEVER respond to unsolicited messages or phone calls that ask for your personal or financial details.

If in doubt, report suspicious messages to the Suspicious Email Reporting Service (SERS): report@phishing.gov.uk

• Procurement fraud

Some scams involve the online sale of personal protective equipment (PPE), such as face masks and gloves.

In some cases, once the payment has been made, no products are delivered or the products do not meet the required standards.

Advice: Carry out due diligence if you’re making a purchase on behalf of your charity from a company or person you do not know.

• Unsolicited offers of goods, services or financial support (advanced fee fraud)

Some fraudsters made unsolicited offers of goods or other financial support in return for an advanced fee from charities.

Advice: Just because someone has your contact details, it doesn’t mean they’re genuine. Don’t be rushed or pressured into making a decision that could harm your charity or your beneficiaries.

Sign up to the ‘Stop Fraud’ pledge

In response to the sharp rise in cybercrime, the charity commission is urging charities to be vigilant and sign up to a new Stop Fraud Pledge, which asks them to commit to taking six practical steps to reduce the chance of falling victim to fraud – namely:

1. Appoint a suitable person to champion counter-fraud work throughout your organisation.

2. Ensure that all trustees are aware of their legal duty to protect the charity’s assets.

3. Consult with staff, volunteers, and trustees to identify the types of fraud that pose a threat and brainstorm ways you can prevent them.

4. Create a written fraud policy and share it with staff, so everyone understands what fraud is and how they can help prevent it.

5. Carry out checks on the organisations with whom you have a financial relationship.

6. Assess how well your fraud controls are working on a regular basis, taking into account new risks.

Word of warning

Helen Stephenson CBE, chief executive of the Charity Commission, said of the pledge: “Charities deliver good to so many people’s lives and help strengthen our society. When the public donates generously to charities it is because they want to make a real and positive difference to a cause they care deeply about, and they want to know their money will reach the front line. Sadly, as these figures show, there remain criminal individuals who would take advantage of organisations that seek to do good and of those that generously donate.

That is why I am calling on all charities to take the risk of fraud seriously by signing up to our new Stop Fraud Pledge and taking six simple steps to protect their charity. Combating fraud gives the public confidence that their money is safe, protects vital funds for charities, and helps maintain trust in the charities we all care so passionately about.”

Don’t be a victim

With a total annual income of over £69 billion, the charity sector is vulnerable to fraud and financial crime. And with more people working from home, the risk to valuable funds and sensitive data is higher than ever.

If your charity has been a victim of fraud or cybercrime, report it to:

1. Action Fraud

2. The Charity Commission

Read the Commission’s guidance for information and advice about how to protect your charity from fraud and cybercrime.

Need an additional fundraiser? Contact us on 0203 750 3111 to get the process started.

The 2022 Charity Governance Awards are open for entries

Have you got an outstanding Board of Trustees? Do you pride yourself on your charity’s high standards of governance? Could you do with an extra £5,000?

Then why not enter the 2022 Charity Governance Awards?

As the name suggests, the awards, which are sponsored and hosted by the Clothworkers’ Company, shine a spotlight on charities that excel at governance and trusteeship.

Open to national and local charities, large and small, you can enter under one of the following four categories:

1. Board Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: The judges are looking for charities that can demonstrate a commitment to inclusivity and diversity within their Boards (in terms of approach, life experience, culture, ethnicity, disability, professional background, age etc.) Need some inspiration? The 2021 winners were TLC (Talk, Listen, Change). Read about their winning strategy here.
   

2. Transforming with Digital: Thanks to the pandemic, over the past year and a half, charities have been forced to move operations online. The judges want to hear from Boards that have championed technology to create long-term change for their organisations. Maybe your Board supported the executive team in creating an innovative app that’s transformed your fundraising. The Muslim Women’s Network won the award last year. Find out how and why here.
   

3. COVID-19: Embracing Opportunity and Harnessing Risk for Long-term Change: This award will go to a Board that has leveraged the charity’s response to COVID-19 to deliver long-term benefits and change. This could mean working in new ways and markets, raising funds in an untraditional way, or adopting a new financial model. To cut the mustard, your charity needs to have demonstrated considered risk-taking that has enabled the charity to meet the needs of more beneficiaries, raise the organisation’s profile or grow its income. The Green’s Windmill Trust excelled by supplying five times the amount of flour it normally produces during the first lockdown. Read about it here.
   

4. Improving Impact in Small Charities: There are two awards under this category: One for charities with 0-3 paid staff and the other for charities with 4-30 paid staff. If you fit the criteria and can demonstrate how your Board has increased your charity’s impact in relation to its cause, mission, and values, why not apply? Bear in mind, they’re looking for examples of boards that have increased social impact, not income. EdUKaid was last year’s worthy winner. See why here.

What’s the prize?

There’s £35,000 up for grabs. The winner of each category will win £5,000, runners-up will receive £1,000, and all the shortlisted charities will get a year’s paid membership to the Association of Chairs for their board members, plus one complimentary place on the Cause4 Trustee Leadership Programme.

The T’s & C’s

Entry is free. The only caveats are, your charity must have been established before 31 December 2018, and registered in the UK.

Shortlisted charities will be notified in April, and invited to a glitzy awards ceremony in May 2022, at the Clothworker’s Hall, London.

If you want to apply, you’d better get a wriggle on, as the deadline for entries is 12pm on 26 January 2022.

Need help recruiting a top fundraiser to help you with your award entry? Give us a call on 0203 750 3111 

How to choose a fundraising platform

You may or may not be aware that Virgin Money’s fundraising website, Virgin Money Giving, is closing permanently on 30th November 2021.

The decision was made following a strategic review of the platform ahead of Virgin Money’s final sponsorship of the London Marathon in October 2021. The company stated: “Given the significant investment required in the service for it to remain competitive, and without the brand exposure provided by the London Marathon, Virgin Money has decided to wind down the platform after the 2021 London Marathon in October”.

Virgin Money Giving is a popular fundraising platform. As a result of it closing, charities are having to find new online fundraising partners to work with.

But with so many to choose from, how do you find the right one for your cause?

If you’ve used Virgin Money Giving and are in the market for a new fundraising platform, here are five things to consider:

• Does the platform charge a fee?

High fees can make or break your fundraising efforts, so you’ll want to look at the different platforms and payment processing fees when choosing a platform.

Some fundraising websites charge a subscription in addition to the platform and/or payment processing fees. Though the fees might be higher, they offer additional features to make the cost worth it. Other sites offer lower platform fees to offset the upfront cost.

This handy article by Charity Digital will give you the lowdown on the fees of some of the most popular platforms.

• Do humans manage customer service?

In an ideal world, the site will run flawlessly and you won’t need to contact customer support at all. But if you run into a technical problem that needs fixing fast, there’s nothing worse than a bot, or automated response informing you that you’ll get a response ‘in 3-5 working days.’

The best fundraising platforms will have humans on hand to deal with customer service issues when they arise. Check before signing on the dotted line.

• Is the platform user-friendly?

The last thing you want is for donors to decide against donating as they have to jump through hoops to make a donation.

Go through the process yourself. Is the platform easy and quick to use? If not, stay well clear.

• Does the platform have a mobile app?

Over a quarter (28%) of UK consumers would rather make a charitable donation via their mobile phone than via traditional methods, so make sure your chosen platform has a good mobile app. This also makes it easy for people to donate on the go.

• Can you create team fundraising projects?

Sharing fundraising responsibilities with a group of friends and family can ease stress and make the experience more collaborative, but not all fundraising platforms offer a team feature. It’s a good idea to check before committing.
If you’re in the market for a fundraiser, we can help. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111.

Five great reasons to join the Kickstart scheme

Could you do with some help around the office?

Would you be open to the idea of taking on an enthusiastic 16–24-year-old and showing them the ropes of a career in fundraising?

And would you like their wages to be paid by the government?

If the answer to these questions is yes, the Kickstart scheme might be for you.

The Kickstart scheme was introduced by the Chancellor in 2020, as part of his ‘Plan for Jobs’ programme. It was designed to help 16–24-year-olds on Universal Credit secure good jobs.

The scheme, which is open to employers of all sizes, provides young people with crucial work experience at no risk to the employer. It’s a win-win.

If you’re still unsure, here are five great reasons to become a Kickstart employer.

1. We need more fundraisers 

Fundraisers are in short supply. Join the scheme and you could ignite someone’s passion by introducing them to a career path they might not have considered or have the opportunity to try otherwise.

That’s got to give you a warm fuzzy feeling.

2. It’ll cost you nothing 

The government covers the costs, from the young person’s wages (national minimum wage for up to 25 hours a week, over a six-month period), to Pension and National Insurance contributions.

They’ll even give you £1,500 to train your young employee.

If your apprentice turns out to be a natural, you can keep them on and renegotiate the terms.

3. You get extra support with your projects 

There are never enough hours in the day, right?

Your apprentice can lighten the load by tackling that mountain of tasks you never seem to get around to.

4. You’re offering someone a great opportunity 

It’s not looking great employment-wise for young people unless they want to work in hospitality or retail.

Giving someone a chance to try something new could change their life.

5. There’s no minimum number of placements 

You don’t need to be a big organisation to join the scheme. The ‘minimum of 30 places’ rule was scrapped in 2021. So even if your organisation is small, you can still reap the rewards of the scheme.

What now?

If you think the Kickstart scheme might work for your charity, get in quick, as it’s due to end in December 2021.

There’s a chance it might be extended for another six months, but, despite the likes of the CBI putting pressure on the government, it’s not a done deal.

You can find out more about the scheme and apply here.

3 inspirational fundraising campaigns to get your creative juices flowing

Every fundraiser wants to make a difference. But changing the world is no mean feat when there are so many charities trying to get their voices heard.

How can you make your voice stand out and raise the funds you need? With a killer fundraising campaign.

Here are three inspirational campaigns to kick off your brainstorming session.

Cancer Research UK: #nomakeup selfie

In 2014, women from around the globe reached for their makeup wipes and bared all in the name of cancer, by uploading ‘no make-up selfies’ to social media and asking others to do the same.

The trend was not instigated by cancer charities, but by social media users who were inspired by the bravery of cancer sufferers and wanted to show their support. However, Cancer Research UK spotted the #NoMakeUpSelfie hashtag and reacted quickly.

They tweeted a picture of their science information officer holding a sign saying, ‘We love your #NoMakeUpSelfie’ and included a text code for donations.

Within 24 hours, Cancer Research UK had received £1m in donations. Within 6 days, the campaign had gone viral and raised a phenomenal £8m.

Why did it work?

Cancer Research UK was able to piggyback on the trend because they monitor social channels for opportunities to raise funds.

They responded quickly and appropriately, reacting to the trend as it evolved. And they reaped the rewards as a result.

Cancer Research UK

Save our Children: If London Were Syria

In 2014, a harrowing, 90-second film started doing the rounds on the internet.‘The Most Shocking Second a Day’ depicts a young British girl experiencing the effects of civil war on the streets of London. It starts with a shot of her celebrating her birthday with family and friends and ends with her staring blankly at a candle on a birthday cake from a hospital bed (by the end she is homeless and fatherless).

The closing caption reads, "just because it isn't happening here, doesn't mean it isn't happening."Within a week of launching, the video had gone viral, and Save the Children had seen a 25% surge in donations.

Why did it work?

People shared the video as it packed a strong emotional punch. Research by Dr Karen Nelson-Field found that ‘On average, videos that elicit high-arousal emotions gain twice as much sharing as those that elicit low-arousal emotion.’

In other words, our brains are wired to react to strong emotions. The shock factor made this Save the Children’s most successful fundraising campaign to date.

NHS Charities Together: Captain Sir Tom Moore

No fundraising campaign round-up would be complete without mentioning the late Captain Sir Tom Moore.

In April 2020, the then 99-year-old accepted a challenge set by his family: to walk 100 lengths of his garden and raise £1,000 for NHS Charities Together, before his 100th birthday at the end of that month.

With the help of a Zimmer frame, the World War II veteran inspired the world by walking 10 laps of his 25ft garden each day, completing lap 100 on 16 April 2020.

By the time his fundraising page closed, Captain Sir Tom had raised over £32m.In addition to raising millions of pounds for health service workers, Sir Captain Tom lifted the nation's spirits and inspired millions to support the NHS, during the COVID crisis.

We can help you achieve the same success

The success of these three campaigns was down to the hard work of their fundraisers. If you’re in the market for top fundraising talent, give us a call on 0203 750 3111 to get the process started.