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The voice of Scotland’s vibrant voluntary sector

Published by Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations

TFN is published by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, Mansfield Traquair Centre, 15 Mansfield Place, Edinburgh, EH3 6BB. The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation. Registration number SC003558.

Scandals could cost charities billions

This news post is over 8 years old
 

​Charities must work to repair public confidence or lose out financially

The UK charity sector could lose out on billions of pounds if it does not repair public confidence in the wake of a summer of scandals.

A data intelligence group has estimated that a drop in donations caused by bad publicity could cost the sector more than £6.57 billion.

The group, called GBG, made the claim after it was revealed that a data breach had seen a pensioner’s details repeatedly sold, meaning he was bombarded with requests for cash.

More seriously, the family of 82-year-old Samuel Rae, who suffers from dementia, claim his details fell into the clutches of fraudsters, who conned the former army colonel of £35,000.

GBG’s chief executive Richard Law said charities must prove themselves beyond reproach when it comes to handling people’s data.

Why are charities destroying their core business by becoming list brokers or data merchants?

He said: "The charity sector has scored a real own goal here. Its customers are among the potentially most loyal and most engaged of any sector so why on earth are they risking destroying their core business by becoming list brokers or data merchants?

“The data that donors have shared over the years is their most valuable asset but it was shared on a fundamental basis of brand trust.

“Our research into what makes people trust organisations with their data shows that 62% of people will not provide personal information if they don’t know how it’s to be used. In the charities sector, we calculate this could equate to a loss of more than £6.57bn.

“If donors stop trusting the sector because they don't know how their data is going to be used in future, we all suffer: the charities and their beneficiaries but also the wider business world which now relies so heavily on the availability of good-quality data.

“What's called for here is a back to basics approach – get the data right, keep it safe and be absolutely transparent with how you use it. No excuse for anything less.”

The sector has been rocked by a series of fundraising scandals over the summer, including the furore over the death of poppy seller Olive Cooke, who died after being bombarded by charity requests.

A review was launched of fundraising practices following her death – even though her family absolved charities of any blame.

 

Comments

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John Brady
over 8 years ago
Please can we stop repeating that Olive Cook "died after being bombardedby charity requests" The family went on record saying that her deat had nothing to do with charities. Her death undoubtedly triggered an exploration of some fundraising practice and was a catalyst to exploring self regulation and best practice. But TFN should not keep repeating the line about her death when SCVO themselves accept and acknowledge the true picture.
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