The Fundraising Regulator has published its investigations into two charities, the LGB Alliance and International Liberty Association.
LGB Alliance has apologised after it breached the regulator's code of practice when it misleadingly claimed to be the only registered charity set up to protect and promote the rights and interests of people with lesbian, gay and bisexual orientation.
Meanwhile, the International Liberty Association asked permission to return donations it received after the regulator found it mishandled a complaint received from a family member of the donor, who has dementia.
LGB Alliance agrees to clarify its position
LGB Alliance initially rejected the complaint on the basis that it was inaccurate and suggested the person who made the complaint was ignorant of how it differed from other charities.
“The charity also said that the complainant had not understood that LGB Alliance was set up because no other charity was supporting same sex attracted people,” the report adds.
It continues: “The complainant was unhappy with the charity’s response and said that there are many other charities that provide a range of services and support to thousands of lesbian, gay and bisexual people.”
LGB Alliance has now acknowledged its tweet could have been clearer and will provide more clarity in the future.
The regulator found that the tweet posted by the charity breached the code because it was misleading, and the charity “was unable to provide evidence to prove its claim”.
It also found the charity breached the code with regards to its complaints handling, because its initial response failed to properly engage with the issues raised.
“The charity has accepted our findings and recommendations. The charity has also offered to provide an apology to the complainant,” states the Fundraising Regulator.
The LGB Alliance did not respond to a request for comment from Civil Society News.
International Liberty Association
The regulator also received a complaint regarding the International Liberty Association, in which a complainant contacted the regulator on behalf of their parent, who has dementia. The complainant was concerned that their parent had been targeted by the charity for donations.
The investigation reads: “Based on the information provided by both the complainant and the charity we did not find that the charity missed any key indicators of vulnerability and on this basis did not breach the code.”
It also did not find that the charity’s volunteers acted in a way that was either unreasonably persistent or placed undue pressure on the complainant’s parent to donate.
The charity therefore did not breach the code in respect of these concerns.
Nonetheless, it found that the charity had breached the section of the code that relates to complaint handling.
“We acknowledge that at the time the complainant raised their concerns with the charity they did not provide it with evidence of their parent’s diagnosis. Yet, by mentioning the possibility of legal action if the complainant continued to challenge the charity’s decision not to refund the donations, it was not acting in a fair and proportionate manner,” it reads.
After receiving medical evidence that the complainant’s parent had been diagnosed with dementia, the charity approached the Charity Commission for England and Wales to ask permission to return the donations in question.
The charity did not respond to a request for comment from Civil Society News.
Related Articles
