The Safer Giving Campaign

There are over 186,000 charities in England and Wales doing an excellent job and meeting real needs. Charity fraud is rare, but sadly there are cheats who prey on the generosity of people, and use this as an opportunity to line their own pockets. As the charity watchdog we aim to give the public confidence in the integrity of charity and protect the reputation of genuine charities.

The Charity Commission has joined forces with various organisations across the country including local authorities, major supermarkets, shopping centres, Citizens Advice Bureaux and the Advertising Standards Authority to promote its Safer Giving campaign. The main aim of the campaign is to raise public awareness about safe ways to donate to charity and to stamp out fraudulent collections which have nothing to do with genuine good causes.

So if you are approached by somebody collecting for charity, and you’re not sure whether they are genuine or not, our Safer Giving code provides some tips that may help you feel more comfortable about giving. Remember – even if you don’t feel sure about the collector you can make a donation direct to the charity of your choice instead. The details of all registered charities can be found on our Register of Charities or via our helpline on 0845 300 0218.

The Commission strongly recommends that all collectors should:

• be able to produce a valid local authority or police licence (Note: In some parts of London, the police also issue collection licenses. A small minority of charities currently have a Home Office (HO) exemption order which permits them to carry out street collections without a licence. For further details on HO exemptions please call the HO public inquiry desk on 020 7273 4599.)

• wear an ID badge (donors should look out for any ID that looks altered, photocopied or home-made)

• have a sealed collection container with the charity’s registration number and name on it - does it match the details on their ID badge? Collectors should also be able to tell you how to contact the charity direct

• be able to prove that they have the charity’s permission to collect. Collectors from professional fundraising companies must, by law, declare how much of the donation they will be paid, and they should be able to produce a copy of a written agreement with the charity. Thank-you letters and receipts from charities don’t count as permission to collect!

If you are still doubtful about the collector:

• contact us to check the charity registration number or discuss any concerns - either via our helpline on 0845 300 0218 or by searching our online charity register

• contact your local authority or police to check whether the collector has been granted a licence or needs one to collect

• above all, don’t feel pressurised - send your donation to the charity direct. This may mean going to a little more trouble, but at least you can be sure that your donation will get to where it’s intended

Genuine fundraisers will be happy to answer questions and won't mind you checking them out. We want to make sure that donations go to legitimate charities and not fraudsters.

Follow the safer giving code and stamp out fraudulent collectors.

We have produced an awareness poster for the campaign to help get the Safer Giving message across to as many people as possible. If you are able to display a copy, please feel free to download it from the link below. The poster is in PDF format. For information on downloading Acrobat Reader, please click on the icon below.

The Safer Giving Campaign Poster