The Institute of Fundraising has said that over 90 per cent of its members have “overwhelmingly endorsed” a new public fundraising accreditation programme, after a consultation on the subject closed last week.
The IoF launched its consultation on the issue of a fundraising accreditation programme for public fundraising in December 2016. It said that 92 per cent of member respondents indicated their support for such a programme being introduced.
According to the Institute, the programme would cover both staff at fundraising agencies, as well as in-house teams at charities.
According to a statement from the membership body, the programme will be designed “to provide IoF members with greater levels of information and transparency about those with whom they work. Its aim is to demonstrate the high standards found in public fundraising, but also help drive up the consistency of professional standards across the charity sector”.
The programme will “be asking applicants to demonstrate a high degree of understanding when it comes to the laws and regulations that apply to public fundraising, and be able to evidence this with strong policies and robust training programmes”.
While practical details of the programme are vague at this stage, the IoF said that “compliance managers” will “regularly observe accredited member’s training programmes to ensure that standards are being consistently met”.
A spokeswoman from the IoF the organisation expected the programme to launch "in the next financial year".
She said that as part of the programme, "members will initially complete a self-assessment form which will provide the Institute with evidence of their understanding of relevant laws, codes and rules". She then said IoF compliance staff "will then attend observation sessions" to monitor "the quality and depth of their training programmes".
She said the process would take "approximately three months from application to accreditation" and will be delivered at "no additional cost to members".
Peter Hills-Jones, director of compliance at the IoF, said: “Ultimately what we’re focused on is ensuring members understand the rules and are training their fundraisers well. If members are doing that consistently, then their staff can have the confidence to be both compliant and great fundraisers at the same time. This programme is about how the IoF can use compliance to support members and give even greater reassurance to the public that real action is being taken.”
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