Often the unsung heroes of the charity sector, fundraising agencies, suppliers and other third parties have helped to transform fundraising, increase the reach and effectiveness of our work, and inspired millions of people to donate.
For many charities, they simply wouldn’t be able to meet the needs of beneficiaries without the capacity, expertise, insight, and innovation that partners can bring.
But, as has been evident through some high profile instances highlighted from undercover reporting, complaints, and adjudications over the last year, working with an external agency is not risk free. Although, as with anything in life, achieving the end objective can never be completely free of risk – the only way to have risk free fundraising would be to never do any.
What we need is a sensible and realistic approach to partnering with agencies built on trust, openness, shared values, and clear objectives. Individual organisations, and the sector as a whole, have had their fingers burnt from some partnerships that went wrong or simply where charities did not know enough about how their partners operate. That needs to change, and we’re seeing lots of charities taking positive and proactive steps to review their relationships with agencies, improve their monitoring and review systems, check processes, and up their game in compliance.
The responsibility for charities to get this right is now even greater as the government has recognised how important this is for the charity sector and have stepped in with new legislation, that will require charities to report on how they fundraise and any agreements they have with third parties.
The need to formalise the structure around fundraising agreements, review existing arrangements, and plan effectively for the future provides all with an opportunity to make sure that we learn the lessons of the recent past and put in place the foundations for longstanding successful partnerships for the future.
Which some will say is easier than it sounds – it might be fine to talk about in concept, but how do you do that in practice? What are the key considerations to think through, the due diligence process, the detail of agreeing a contract?
To help charities and agencies think through all the aspects of a partnership we’ve published a practical guide to creating successful partnerships. Going through the full cycle of the relationship it goes through the questions charities should be asking themselves, signposting to regulatory requirements, and aims to establish the terms on which partnerships with agencies can be built to deliver excellent fundraising programmes for the long term.
Content on this page is paid for and provided by the Institute of Fundraising
