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Fundraising Policy

NCDV Ethical Fundraising Policy

Introduction

1.1 The National Centre for Domestic Violence (NCDV) have a commitment to our stakeholders, clients and the general public that our fundraising, in all of its forms, is transparent, legal and respectful.

1.2 NCDV will be accountable and ensure that our fundraising activity is carried out in line with:

The Code of Fundraising Practice

https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/code

The Institute of Fundraisings (IoF) Treating Donors Fairly https://ciof.org.uk/IoF/media/IOF/Header%20images/Treating-donors-fairly.pdf?ext=.pdf

Rationale for Fundraising

2.1 NCDV aims to maintain a broad base of different sources of funding to assist our mission of:

“Helping people identify the early signs of domestic abuse, make decisions for a better life and help make domestic abuse socially unacceptable.”

Scope of Fundraising

3.1 Charitable funds consist of but are not exclusively limited to:

Corporate sponsorship
Charitable foundation funds
Money raised through fundraising events
Money donated in response to a fundraising appeal
Legacy funds
Public donations via our website

Ethical Responsibility

4.1 NCDV has a responsibility to its donors, stakeholders and clients to consider the ethical issues that may arise in working with or accepting funding from an organisation/individual and the associated risks.

4.2 NCDV actively seeks opportunities to work together with external organisations and individuals to achieve shared objectives. However, it is vital that we maintain our independence and do not allow any external partnership to bring the name of NCDV into disrepute. We therefore accept financial support from, and partnership working with, companies and individuals on the following conditions:

We believe it will result in a benefit to the people who use our service
The Directors are satisfied that no adverse publicity will result from accepting such support
There is no attempt on the part of the company or individual to influence NCDV policy or practice either explicitly or implicitly
That initiatives do not compromise the independent status of NCDV

4.3 NCDV will not accept funding from individuals or organisations directly involved in activities that run contrary to our objectives, vision and aims. It will not accept financial support or partnerships with companies involved with any of the following activities:

Illegal activities
Human rights abuses
Sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, transphobia or discrimination towards any vulnerable, isolated or ethnic group
Unsuitable or inappropriate products or services
Anything that could cause damage to NCDV’s reputation or harm our relationship with our partners
Personal gifts to NCDV staff

Treating Donors Fairly

5.1 NCDV will take all necessary steps to understand if the donor is able to make an informed decision about donating to NCDV and respond appropriately. If a supporter is deemed unable to make an informed decision, then NCDV must not accept the donation. In line with the IoF Treating Donors Fairly guidance, we commit to;

Being respectful: This means being mindful of and sensitive to any particular need that a donor may have. It also means striving to respect the wishes and preferences of the donor.

Being responsive: This means being ready to adapt our approach and be flexible to meet the needs of individuals. It also means being prepared to ask questions or take additional steps when necessary.

Being fair: This means we will not make decisions based solely on a particular characteristic, such as a person’s appearance, the way they talk, any medical condition, or disability. Fairness means responding to people as individuals.

Being accountable: This means we will take responsibility for our actions, ensuring that our work is carried out in line with the Code of Fundraising Practice. We will consider the processes and procedures that are needed, and be prepared to explain our decisions and approach.

Safeguarding funds and donations

6.1 All legal requirements will be applied to our fundraising activities.

6.2 Appropriate financial procedures will be put in place to safeguard, appropriate and report on all funds received.

6.3 NCDV Directors are responsible for fundraising compliance and the control and management of funds, although they may delegate day-to-day responsibility to others.

Product/Service Endorsement

7.1 NCDV does not endorse or approve the products or services of any company. A statement to this effect will be included alongside any branding or promotion associated with products.

7.2 Our GDPR procedures cover our funding partners and donors and we do not share data with them about our staff, beneficiaries or stakeholders. Only authorised NCDV staff have access to data.

Donor recognition

8.1 A donor is entitled to appreciation. Each donation will be acknowledged by NCDV. The names of donors may be published in our newsletter, website and/or social media with permission and agreement from the donor.

Fundraising by staff

9.1 Participation in fundraising activities by NCDV staff and volunteers is voluntary and should not be imposed on individuals. Approval must be sought from the Directors prior to the commencement of any staff fundraising activity and insurances checked to ensure cover.

Complaints

NCDV will respond to complaints from donors in a timely and respectful way in line with our complaint procedure available on our website.

By Fiona Bawden, Times Online (8th May 2007)

“Steve Connor, a student at City Law School, is a man on a mission. Six years ago he was a fairly directionless 27-year-old. Today, as well as taking the Bar Vocational Course, he is chairman of the National Centre for Domestic Violence, a ground-breaking organisation that he dragged into existence after a friend could not get legal help to protect her from an abusive partner.

Connor’s route to the Bar has been circuitous. In 2001 he returned from a year in Australia (he says that he would not dignify describing it as a gap year), and took a job as a process server in South London. The job (“I just saw it advertised in the paper”) was not quite as dull as it sounds. On one occasion he was threatened with a machete, on another, he was nearly stabbed by a man he had arranged to meet on Clapham Common to serve with a non-molestation order: “He’d seemed really friendly on the phone…”

The turning point in his life came when a friend, who was being abused by her partner, turned to him for support. Connor went with her to the police. She did not want to press criminal charges so the police suggested that she visit a solicitor to take out a civil injunction. “We must have seen 12 solicitors in a morning. We just went from one to the next to the next to the next. Everyone was very eager to help until we sat down to fill in the forms for the legal aid means test,” he says. The woman, who had a small child, did not qualify for public funding. But, Connor says, her financial situation as it appeared on paper did not bear any relation to her financial situation in reality. “She had a part-time job and she and her partner owned their home. Yet she didn’t have any money. Her boyfriend was very controlling and controlled all the money; he kept the chequebooks and didn’t let her have access to the bank account.”

The injustice of the situation got under Connor’s skin. “I just couldn’t believe that there was no help available to people who did not qualify for public funds but could not afford to pay.

I just kept feeling that this must be able to be sorted if only someone would address it.”That “someone” turned out to be him.

In 2002, thanks entirely to Connor’s doggedness, the London Centre for Domestic Violence was formed. It started out with him and a friend, but is now a national organisation, covering 27 counties, and has helped approximately 10,000 victims last year to take out injunctions against their partners.

NCDV now has nine full-time staff, 12 permanent volunteers and has trained over 5000 law and other students as McKenzie Friends to accompany unrepresented victims into court. We have also trained over 8000 police officers in civil remedies available regarding domestic violence. The National Centre for Domestic Violence (NCDV) has branches in London, Guildford and Manchester and is on track to have branches in 16 areas within the next two years.

NCDV specialises exclusively in domestic violence work and could be characterised as a cross between McDonald’s and Claims Direct. The high degree of specialisation means that its processes are streamlined: clients can be seen quickly and the work is done speedily and cheaply. “Sometimes, we will have one of our trained McKenzie Friends at a court doing 10 applications in one day,” Connor says.

Clients are not charged for the service. NCDV staff take an initial statement: clients who qualify for legal aid are referred to a local firm; those that don’t get free help from the centre itself. It runs on a shoestring, heavily reliant on volunteers and capping staff salaries at £18,000 a year.

Steve expects to qualify as a barrister this summer and hopes that having a formal legal qualification will give the centre added clout. “We are already acknowledged as experts and consulted at a high level, so I thought it would be helpful if I could back that up by being able to say I’m a barrister,” he says. He is just about to complete a one-year full-time BVC course at the City Law School (formerly the Inns of Court Law School) and, all being well, should be called to the Bar in July. Although Connor sees his long-term future as a barrister, he says that he has no immediate plans to practise. “I want to get NCDV running on a fully national level. Then I may take a step back and have a career at the Bar.”

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By Fiona Bawden, Times Online (8th May 2007)