The Charity Pages Issue 10

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Charitable thoughts...

For many people living alone and facing the perils of COVID-19, the thought of making a will has come very much to the fore. The imperative to ensure our wishes are carried out should the worst happen and we succumb to the scourge has been complicated by the need to have a will witnessed by two independent people: how do you get a will witnessed when you are in isolation?

Fortunately, the MoJ has seen the problem and is changing the law to allow wills witnessed digitally to have force of law.

• Back in April the outlook for legacy income for this year was looking bleak, with a projection of a fall of between 8% and 27%. That figure has now been adjusted upwards by Charity Financials to between 4% and 23%. That is good news for the increased number of people looking to make legacy provision in their wills.

• The message that leaving a charitable legacy in our wills is compatible with looking after our loved ones is being ramped up by favourites from the 1970s.

Remembering you’re a Womble may not be uppermost

in the consciousness of most people – even those old enough to remember the original TV series and hit records – but hopefully the inclusion of the burrowdwellers in this year’s Remember A Charity Week appeal will jog a few memories.

• The work of legacy administration is being carried on admirably by the many people dealing with that important task. They are being supported by a number of organisations, including Wilmington Charities, who will be hosting the Legacy Strategy Summit online in November.

• Another online resource for all charities is the second annual digital fundraising conference hosted

by Charity Digital. The organisation is dedicated to improving charities’ digital presence, and their safe use of technology.

• Traditional ‘give us your money’ fundraising still has its place and a past master at that activity is Sir Lenny Henry. The runaway success of Comic Relief, together with his more recent work in improving diversity in the entertainment industry, have led to him being honoured by the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.

In this issue...

CONTENTS 9

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Legacy Summit survives the COVID lockdown – virtually!

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Move to allow video wills during pandemic welcomed by will writers

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TV favourites recruited to make it a Wombling Remember A Charity Week

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Projected fall in legacy income not as bad as feared

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Blended funding sees grants added to loan fund

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Report examines charities’ relationship with its regulator

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Keep a close eye on your data

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Sector leaders call for a more stable funding model

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Digital fundraising fest returns

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Employment guides help clear the path to diversity

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Awards and appointments distinguish online convention

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Funding secured for ‘revitalising’ dormant charity funds

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GETTING FROM THIS

TO THIS

TOOK MORE THAN T.L.C. Friends of the Animals is a practical and caring charity that works to alleviate the suffering of stray and unwanted animals. They specialise in ‘preventative’ work such as spays and neuters.

The charity was founded by Helen Sinclair MBE, who was honoured for services to animal welfare in 2014. She explained: “Neutering is the only humane way to reduce the numbers of unwanted animals and it improves the lives of animals already here. We work hard to ensure the areas we cover are kept stray-free and that in turn has a hugely beneficial effect on the whole community.”

The charity has negotiated much reduced ‘charity’ rates at a total of 38 veterinary practices in various parts of the country. They can also further subsidise those prices, making the cost of previously-unaffordable veterinary treatment attainable for those owners on even the lowest of incomes.

Helen Sinclair continued: “Since the charity’s inception in 1990 we have done well over 40,000 spays or neuters, and are willing to help anyone genuinely struggling to finance the cost of this vitally-important surgery: as long as they can reach one of ‘our’ vets.”

Veterinary treatment is their biggest outgoing and, dependent on funds, they also help with the cost of veterinary treatment for sick, injured and neglected animals – often finding they are an animal’s very last chance of life. They even operate a voluntary driving service that

transports owners and their animals to and from vets.

Said Helen: “Our wonderful drivers give freely of their time; all we ask is for service users to cover the cost of the driver’s mileage.”

They also help the public by loaning out equipment, such as carrying baskets and crates, free of charge. That eliminates the risks of transporting animals in cardboard boxes – which owners do all the time. They also check on owners who are struggling financially and help by donating items such as pet food and bedding.

Helen explained: “We were moved to tears when we discovered one elderly, recentlywidowed man. He had no food in the house and was feeding his much loved dog on the 'Meals on Wheels' intended for him.”

In addition, by utilising a network of capable foster homes, Friends of the Animals are able to provide a pet re-homing service. Foster carers look after mainly dogs and rabbits until a permanent home can be found. They also serve as a lifeline to the elderly and to people in hospital, or in short-term care in homes, as they provide a fostering service for their pets free of charge – usually for up to a month.

Helen concluded: “We truly appreciate that people have many choices of charities to support, but no one appreciates it more, or tries harder than we do to get the very best possible from every penny donated. Thank you for your consideration.”

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Giving sighthounds a second chance [FOREVER HOUNDS TRUST has been rescuing, caring for and

homing greyhounds, lurchers and other sighthounds for 25 years.

These beautiful dogs find themselves in the charity’s care for many reasons, but they have one thing in common – they are in desperate need of help to find them a safe and happy home, having been neglected, abused, or finished their career as a racing greyhound.

Forever Hounds Trust are proud to have homed over 10,000 of these marvellous dogs and they rely entirely on supporters, donations, trusts and, vitally, legacies to cover the substantial costs of every dog’s journey from rescue to loving family pet.

The charity’s Susan Kerry Bedell says: “The demand for us to take in dogs continues to grow. By leaving a gift to Forever Hounds Trust in your Will, you are allowing us to rescue, treat and give more dogs a safe future.

“Legacies provide shelter for dogs in our kennels and foster homes. Legacies provide emergency medical care and preventative treatments. Legacies keep our vans on the road to rescue dogs from desperate situations.”

By remembering Forever Hounds Trust in your will, you are helping give more dogs a second chance at a happy life. q • For more information visit the website at www.foreverhoundstrust.org, telephone 03000 125 125 or email legacy@foreverhoundstrust.org

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Legacy Summit survives the COVID lockdown – virtually!

[DESPITE THE PRIVATIONS of the

COVID-19 pandemic, the Legacy Strategy Summit will take place this year as a digital event – #LSS20. The event will take place on 11 November, providing insights into current trends in legacy giving and opportunities to explore legacy fundraising in the post-COVID era.

The online event has been designed to allow those attending to have access to everything they would expect at a live conference, with real-time presentations and peer interactions, panel discussions and audience polls. They will also benefit from exclusive access to a range of on-demand materials and resources.

Why attend?

According to organisers Wilmington Charities: “Whether you are looking to build, grow or re-invigorate your legacy strategy, #LSS20 will provide you with the latest techniques and tactics to take yours to the next level. We have designed this event so that legacy teams can come together to pick and choose sessions and materials that will suit them – from senior level down to those looking to build a legacy strategy.”

In response to the challenges and opportunities posed by the current environment, this year’s summit format will be: • Interactive ­– this year’s digital platform enables those attending to watch the content from home or office, either as live and interactive sessions or via links to recorded sessions after the live dates.

• Accessible – a shared experience can be created by watching the summit with

several colleagues from across a charity, where they can learn new techniques and be inspired together.

• Packed with extra resources – delegates will benefit from access to a library of useful links and research to further their knowledge of legacy strategy, including prerecorded sessions on specialised areas of legacy fundraising, technical legal issues, data management developments and communication techniques.

The summit has been designed to be relevant to all levels of charity and legacy professionals. There will be sessions for all levels of the team and all sizes of charity: from those new to legacy fundraising, experienced legacy team members looking for inspiration and insight and senior leaders and board members wanting more insight into the income and engagement opportunities that can be created from legacy fundraising.

Wilmington added: “We also hope that our new format will allow some charities from the UK and abroad, who have not been able to participate previously due to distance, to join in and enhance the conversations.”

The 2020 summit will look at legacy giving from four perspectives, allowing delegates

to shape their conference experience to their own interests and requirements. These areas will be: • Building a legacy strategy – for charities just starting to plan their legacy fundraising • Growing a legacy strategy – for charities with established legacy campaigns looking to move to the next level • Global legacy fundraising – showcasing best practice examples and international inspiration for developing and strengthening legacy campaigns • Legacy fundraising post-COVID – demonstrating how fundraising techniques, technology and teams have changed since lockdown and how charity legacy giving teams are recovering from the crisis.

In early August the organisers released the listing of the headline speakers.

The impressive line up includes legacy professionals from major charities Cancer Research UK, Samaritans, Alzheimer’s Research UK and Marie Curie and smaller charities based round local hospices, as well as Mark Pincher from Smee and Ford and specialist consultant Richard Radcliffe. q • To register for #LSS20 visit the website at legacystrategysummit.com

Help for those with failing sight

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FAILING EYESIGHT is nothing short of a personal catastrophe.

Do you have a family member, friend or neighbour who is gradually losing their sight?

Reading, recognising friends and living skills are all affected as your sight is going – and it’s much harder if you live alone.

The National Federation of the Blind of the UK (NFBUK) keeps its members in touch with general information, help and updates on what’s going on.

The charity produces bi-monthly news magazines and circulars in audio, braille or electronically, which members can read independently. It also encourages blind and partially sighted people to play a fuller part in society. q • For further information contact NFBUK on 01924 291313, email admin@nfbuk.org or visit www.nfbuk.org.

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Sending out an SOS for the owls [

ESTABLISHED IN 2001, the Suffolk Owl Sanctuary – known, appropriately, as S.O.S. – operates a comprehensive facility for the rescue, care and rehabilitation of owls across East Anglia.

It also promotes the need for the conservation of endangered owl species throughout the UK and beyond with its Saving Britain's Owls initiative.

The S.O.S. owl and raptor hospital at Stonham Aspal is unique in the region. It is specially equipped for the care and treatment of the many injured wild owls and other birds of prey that are brought there every year. The reasons for their being there include road traffic accidents, mishap, starvation, trauma, disease, poisoning and sometimes even shooting or trapping.

Many of the birds can be given a recuperative, short-term pick-me-up before being re-released into the wild. Those that are more seriously injured but stand a chance of recovery are given medical aid and/or surgery, as determined by their vet. The birds are then allowed space and time to fully recuperate in one of the secluded recovery aviaries, before being carefully returned to the wild.

S.O.S. also operates a wild owl nest box scheme, in conjunction with volunteers from the Thornham Owl Project. That includes building and locating long-lasting, environmentally-friendly nest boxes in appropriate locations, to replace the gradual erosion of natural nesting sites. It also involves the careful monitoring of nesting activity within the scheme, for the annual reporting of raptor population information to regulatory authorities.

S.O.S. is funded purely by donation, and like many small charities faces an on-going, uphill struggle as they strive to survive. q

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Move to allow video wills during pandemic welcomed by will writers [THE ANNOUNCEMENT

by the Ministry of Justice that video-witnessed wills are to be made legal during the coronavirus pandemic have been broadly welcomed by the will-writing profession.

The announcement, made on 25 July and backdated to 31 January, will remain in place as long as necessary, the MoJ said.

Currently, the law states that a will must be made ‘in the presence of’ at least two witnesses. However, while isolating or shielding, some people have understandably turned to video link software as a solution – for example via platforms such as Zoom or FaceTime.

Ministers have acted to reassure the public that wills witnessed in such a way will be deemed legal, as long as the quality of the sound and video is sufficient to see and hear what is happening at the time.

The changes will be made via new legislation in September, which amends the law to include video-witnessing. Crucially, the move maintains the vital safeguard of requiring two witnesses – protecting people against undue influence and fraud.

Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor, Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP, said: “We are pleased that more people are taking the incredibly important step to plan for the future by making a will. We know that the pandemic has made this process more difficult, which is why we are changing the law to ensure that wills witnessed via video technology are legally recognised.

“Our measures will give peace of mind to many that their last wishes can still be recorded during this challenging time, while continuing to protect the elderly and vulnerable.”

The backdating of the measure to 31 January 2020 reflects the date of the first confirmed coronavirus case in the UK. It means any will witnessed by video technology from that date onwards will be legally accepted. The change will remain in place until 31 January 2022, or as long as deemed necessary, after which wills must return to being made with witnesses who are physically present.

Among the organisations to welcome the move was the Law Society of England and Wales. Its president Simon Davis said:

“The government’s decision to allow wills to be witnessed remotely for the next two years will help alleviate the difficulties that some members of the public have encountered when making wills during the pandemic. The Law Society is glad to see that guidance has been issued to minimise fraud and abuse. We look forward to working with government to ensure the reform is robust and successful.”

Legacy umbrella organisation Remember A Charity also welcomed the announcement.

It described it as potentially a ‘major step forward’ for legacy giving.

Its director Rob Cope commented: “Modernisation of UK will-making is long overdue, and although the changes announced today are temporary measures, this could be a major step forward for legacy giving, making it easier for people to set out their final wishes.

“Ultimately, the more people that write a will, the greater the potential for including a charitable donation. Even a small increase in the proportion of people leaving a gift in their will could generate millions for good causes each year.

“But, as is so often the case, the devil is in the detail. The will-making environment needs to have rigour, with sufficient safeguards in place to protect the public, particularly those who may be vulnerable. Video is a great option when witnesses can’t be physically present, but it does need to be treated cautiously, with care and consideration. And the role of legal and financial advisers will be critical in helping the public finalise their wishes legally, minimising the likelihood of dispute.”

Since the pandemic took hold in the UK in mid March, demand for will-writing and charitable bequests has risen considerably, with Remember A Charity receiving twice as much traffic to the ‘Making a Will’ section of its website.

Rob Cope added: “The pandemic has helped people see the importance of getting their affairs in order and encouraged us all to reflect on those things we truly care about. This includes the charities that so many of us rely upon and the causes we are passionate about in our lifetimes.” q

Caring for chelonia [THE BRITISH CHELONIA GROUP publishes six newsletters

a year containing details of meetings, short articles, news items and veterinary notes. Their journal Testudo is published annually and contains original articles and reviews on all aspects of turtles, terrapins and tortoises – their biology, conservation, welfare, veterinary care and husbandry. The group also organises symposia.

As well as the yearly appeals in aid of specific international causes in chelonia research and survival, the BCG assists other worthy causes in support of its aims with grants. They invite grant applications from organisations and individuals engaged on the work of chelonia conservation – such as zoos, universities, zoologists and students in this country and overseas. q

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Heartbeat horses on the move

[IN 2019, following the retirement of managing trustee Colin

Cooper, some of the Heartbeat horses moved to a new home at Sink Farm in Woodbridge, Suffolk.

Colin was very pleased to announce that the charity’s headquarters had moved to Hollesley where the current horses will live and be cared for alongside the wonderful Suffolk Punch horses.

Sink Farm is the colony stud for the Suffolk Punch Trust charity, who continue their important and essential work in preserving this unique breed. q • For more information on either charity please contact Tracey Pettitt, stud manager or David Clarke, finance director, on 01394 775495.

Heartbeat Homes for Horses, Sink Farm, St David’s Lane, Hollesley, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3JR

Charity carries on the work of its founder [

FOR OVER 30 YEARS the famous animal hospital known as Tiggywinkles has been working to rescue, treat and rehabilitate sick, injured and orphaned British wildlife. Over that time they have proved beyond doubt that most wild animal and bird casualties can be saved and returned to the wild.

Although they specialise in hedgehogs – indeed, they derive their name from St Tiggywinkles, the name of their specialist hedgehog ward, inspired by the animal character created by Beatrix Potter – their wealth of expertise in the care of a wide range of species can now be passed on to others.

In addition, their commitment to practical education plays a vital part in the conservation of wildlife. As an accredited centre, opportunities are available for students aged 16 and over to gain a City and Guildsapproved qualification via their Apprenticeship in Animal Care scheme.

Tiggywinkles was founded by Les Stocker, who sadly passed away in July 2016. In a tribute, Les was described as ‘…a steadfast ambassador, achieving his goal to turn wildlife rehabilitation into a profession’. In another he was referred to as the ‘the spiritual heart of Britain’. He was awarded an MBE by The Queen and given the title Laureate in the 1990 International Rolex Awards for Enterprise, for his work in wildlife conservation and establishing Europe’s first wildlife teaching hospital. More recently, he gained the prestigious Honorary Associateship of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

The charity is happy to commemorate all who generously remember the Wildlife Hospital Trust in their will by inscribing their name on a plaque in its Remembrance Garden. Gifts are also welcome in the form of a donation or by becoming a Friend of Tiggywinkles. q

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TV favourites recruited to make it a Wombling Remember A Charity Week [

WIMBLEDON’S FAMOUS burrow dwellers, The Wombles, are to be brought back to the nation’s screens for this year’s Remember A Charity Week, running from 7-13 September.

They will feature in a new short animated film that will shine a light on legacy giving. Every charity participating in this year’s campaign will also receive their own branded Wombles film to help communicate the importance of legacies for their cause.

The film and campaign imagery will tackle the most prevalent legacy-giving myth and barrier: the belief that people can’t leave a gift to charity in their will if they wish to support their family and friends.

In reality, the UK’s will-writing environment gives the public the flexibility to donate any sum – large or small – to a range of causes, while ensuring their loved ones are taken care of.

The campaign will help charities and legal professionals to celebrate and inspire legacy giving, using online and social media

channels, legacy-focused national newspaper supplements and printed materials.

Rob Cope, director of Remember A Charity, said: “While the nation battles COVID-19, charities have understandably held off from a great deal of legacy promotion activity. And yet legacy giving is likely to be one of the most critical channels for the sector’s recovery, with gifts in wills needed more than ever. That’s why we’re making sure this year’s Remember A Charity Week campaign not only reaches and engages more of the giving public, but that we create resources to help charities deliver their own unique legacy message, too.

“The Wombles are warmly remembered for the way they supported each other and the wider community, and for their unfailing commitment to look after the world we live in. In such challenging times, who better to encourage the public to consider leaving a gift in their will?”

The Wombles’ Great Uncle Bulgaria added: “The Wombles are delighted to be supporting Remember a Charity Week. Now, more than ever, we need to help each other and the hundreds of charities that do such wonderful work in our communities and burrows. If you can ‘remember you’re a Womble’, we hope you can remember a charity in 2020.”

Charities across the UK are being invited to join the consortium and take part in this year’s Remember A Charity Week. Campaign materials will be available for use during the week and beyond. q

Re-homing is their mission [

THE MISSION of Three Counties Dog Rescue is to accept, care for and find homes for unwanted, lost and stray dogs and cats and to ensure their wellbeing afterwards. The charity was founded in 1972 and since then they have improved the lives of over 7,000 dogs and cats.

Before rehoming, all animals are vet checked, neutered, vaccinated, microchipped and kept in suitable conditions. Rehabilitation costs are a major part of the charity’s annual expenditure of over £200,000.

Healthy animals are never put down. As part of that non-destruction policy, several elderly dogs are kept in long term foster care. However, this means that the charity can incur large veterinary costs to maintain a dog’s health while they await a new permanent home.

Every penny raised goes to improving the lives of dogs and cats.

Three Counties Dog Rescue is run entirely by voluntary and unpaid helpers, who also meet their own expenses. q

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The Knowledge that touches the lives of thousands of animals

[THE SPECIAL BOND between a pet and its owner is the source of

love, companionship and memories to last a lifetime. So when pets fall sick, owners put their trust in vets and vet nurses to give their loved ones the best possible care. Thousands of those vets and vet nurses put their trust in RCVS Knowledge to help them save the lives of countless dogs, cats and other beloved family friends, and nurse them back to health.

At RCVS Knowledge, they provide veterinary professionals with support and skills that help them give the highest quality of care possible to a wide range of animals, from pet newborn rabbits to the youngest lambs on the farm.

RCVS Knowledge find the answers to urgent clinical questions from veterinary surgeons, and share these for free with veterinary professionals in 150 countries, to help improve the lives of animals around the world.

They provide vets and vet nurses with free checklists, guidelines, articles, podcasts and many more resources that can make the difference between losing and saving a pet. Their team of experts provide veterinary professionals with friendly support every step of the way in finding and using techniques that are proven to give the animals in their care the best chance of a full and lasting recovery.

RCVS Knowledge deliver a wide variety of free training and resources online and around the country, so that busy veterinary professionals can gain the knowledge and confidence they need at a place and time that suits them, whether they are working alone in a rural location or providing out-of-hours emergency treatment.

“We are committed to ensuring as many vets and vet nurses as possible have the best available information to hand when they are making critical decisions about the treatment animals receive,” said Chris Gush, executive director of RCVS Knowledge.

“To do this, we offer a set of services for free, services that are highly regarded and heavily used,” he continued. “Vets and vet nurses tell us time and again how valuable and impressive they find our range of support, which is always delivered in a timely and approachable manner.

Many veterinary professionals who draw on our support spread the word to their colleagues and contacts, helping us help even more pets. Our services can help vets to save time, resources and, ultimately, the lives of thousands of animals.

“As a small charity with a big responsibility, we rely on donations to help us carry out our mission to improve the quality of care animals receive,” said Chris. “We need the support of others who share this passion to expand the tools and training we provide, and make sure that as many pets as possible can benefit from our work, which can truly be life-saving.”

If you are an animal owner or veterinary professional, the work RCVS Knowledge does matters to you. They would be grateful if you would consider supporting them, and help them make an impact on millions of animals’ lives long into the future. q • To find out more and how to support RCVS Knowledge visit rcvsknowledge.org/support-us/

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Making surgery their legacy [

CHOOSING TO leave the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS) a legacy in your will can have a direct impact on the future of surgery and on the patients it saves. Past legacies have enabled the charity to purchase essential equipment and support a range of projects in surgical education and research.

One of those legacies has allowed the funding of multiple one-year research fellowships, all costing in the region of £65,000. The most recent fellowship awarded with this generous bequest was to a urology surgeon whose project is looking at determining the genetic drivers of bladder cancer. ladder cancer affects approximately 10,000 people each year in the UK. It is more common in older adults and men with one of the most common symptoms being blood in the urine. This research aims to help sufferers of bladder cancer by looking into the genes, which play an important role in driving the cancers and their responses to treatments.

In the short term, the project hopes to discover new ways to diagnose bladder cancer and predict patients’ responses to treatments and in the longer term, will aim to identify treatments that are more effective.

The number of excellent fellowship applications received has doubled since the scheme was introduced in 1993 and the RCS are unable to support 80% of applicants. They are always in need of more funding to enable projects that address the health challenges of modern society, supporting the development of pioneering ideas across the NHS. With each small success the RCS takes another step towards the next big breakthrough. q

Kidney Kids Scotland turns 20 in 2020

Legacies mean so much to our Kidney Kids

[

KIDNEY KIDS SCOTLAND, a very small charity with a huge heart, has for the last 20 years supported Scottish children with renal and urology conditions. The main aim of the charity has always been to enable these children to receive treatment as close to home as possible and minimise disruption to the family unit.

In addition the charity helps hospitals all over Scotland, supplying them with much needed equipment and funding posts recognised as being essential. Chronic Kidney disease is a condition that has no cure and that children and their families must learn to live with.

IMAGINE your child only being able to drink 400mls in one day. That’s less than two cartons of juice – a can of juice is 500mls.

IMAGINE being a parent where you must be home before 8pm every single night to ensure your child gets their daily home dialysis.

IMAGINE not being able to take your family abroad or too far away from the hospital because your child cannot go without their dialysis. This HAS to happen in hospital 3 or 4 times EVERY week.

IMAGINE your child missing out on school education, social activities, family members’ birthday celebrations, a sibling’s sports day or a family wedding because you need to make sure they receive their life saving dialysis treatment.

IMAGINE your child spending their birthday and/or Christmas Day in hospital and not being able to see their friends from week to week. q IMAGINE LIVING WITH KIDNEY DISEASE For more information about Kidney Kids Scotland please visit our website at www.kidneykids.org.uk, call 01324 555843 or email office@kidneykids.org.uk Kidney Kids Scotland can help in many ways

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Projected fall in legacy income not as bad as feared

[LEGACY FORESIGHT has updated its UK market forecast

for legacy income to take account of newly-available economic, demographic and administrative information.

Overall, the latest forecasts for 2020, published in June, are slightly more optimistic than those produced in April, with cash legacy income expected to shrink by between 4% and 23% in 2020.

The average value of residual bequests is likely to drop by between 3% and 7% this year due to the impact of the pandemic on house and share prices.

In April Legacy Foresight forecast a more dramatic decline of 8% to 27% in legacy income over the coming year.

Importantly, over the five-year forecast period total legacy incomes are expected to grow, reaching £3.6bn to £3.8bn by 2024.

Jon Franklin, economist at Legacy Foresight, commented: “Our scenarios now suggest that legacy cash income could fall by between 4% and 23% in 2020, reflecting the economic environment as well as the delays in the sale of property assets from estates caused by a slow-moving housing market. However, as administrative delays unwind and income starts to flow from the anticipated increase in bequests, it’s likely that income could rise quite rapidly during 2021 and 2022.”

That expectation of income growth over the five-year period was also present in April.

Rob Cope of Remember A Charity said in an interview with Third Sector: “This year, we’ve seen some hefty losses in stocks, shares and property prices, which will almost certainly affect the value of residual legacies, particularly from high-net-worth individuals. After all, we know from The Sunday Times Rich List that COVID-19 cost the UK’s wealthiest people around £54bn in a matter of weeks and it will take some time before the market recovers.

“Although this year’s economic turbulence is more dramatic than most, we need to recognise that estate values will always rise and fall, often due to factors that are far beyond the sector’s control. That’s why it’s so important that we focus on increasing the prevalence of legacy giving, inspiring the giving public and securing income streams that will see charities through the years and decades that follow.”

However, writing in Charity Financials Top 100 Fundraisers Spotlight, Cathy Pharoah of the Centre for Giving and Philanthropy at Cass Business School posted a note of caution.

“Legacies are principally the expression of past goodwill and wealth. Relying on legacies may not be a sustainable strategy in a period of faltering global growth, with the effects of the COVID-19 crisis difficult to predict.” q

Rescue centre offers a lifeline to injured wildlife

[

HESSILHEAD WILDLIFE RESCUE TRUST is situated near Beith, in North Ayrshire. It was set up as a charity in 1986, although its founders Andy and Gay had been caring for injured and orphaned wildlife since 1970, when they rescued a fox cub from a gamekeeper and his dogs. As the number of casualties increased year on year, Andy and Gay needed financial and practical help.

Once the trust was set up, new aviaries and enclosures were built. A membership scheme proved popular and many volunteers were recruited. The centre now occupies a 20-acre site, including woodland, marsh and open water. That gives a variety of release sites for its patients.

Approximately 3,500 wildlife casualties are now treated each year, with the aim of returning them to the wild. Among the many hedgehogs, foxes and familiar garden birds there are deer, otters, badgers and seals. All have been rescued and are rehabilitated. In addition, swans are treated regularly, along with buzzards, peregrines, herons and sea birds.

The centre operates a 24-hour rescue service and there are more than 60 enclosures and aviaries, a hedgehog hospital, a seal/swan unit and intensive care facility. It also offers training courses on the handling, care and treatment of wildlife casualties.

Spring and summer are especially busy, with hundreds of nestling birds being hand reared. Care is taken to rear all youngsters with minimum human contact. That prevents wild birds and mammals becoming too used to people, so giving them a good chance of survival in the wild.

Hessilhead is primarily a voluntary organisation. Its volunteers help in many ways: fundraising, building and maintenance, driving patients to the centre and daily cleaning and feeding. q

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Blended funding sees grants added to loan fund [ GRANT FUNDING of £4m has been announced by Social

Investment Business (SIB) and Access – The Foundation for Social Investment – to be used alongside SIB’s Resilience and Recovery Loan Fund (RRLF), to support charities and social enterprises based in and delivering most of their impact in England.

The £4m is a part of £30m Access has received from dormant bank accounts to create new blended finance solutions for charities and social enterprises in England impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. The new blended grant funding will be delivered

by SIB, with money from Access, working with its experienced partners on delivery: Big Issue Invest, CAF Venturesome, Charity Bank, Resonance, and Social and Sustainable Capital.

The Resilience and Recovery Loan Fund continues to be a loan programme and applicants must apply for a loan. They may be approved for a loan without any grant award alongside it. Grants will only be awarded alongside a loan if it is clear that the COVID-19 interruption to an organisation’s business model means that they would struggle to meet the viability threshold for a loan without the grant. In that sense, the grant enables use of the loan fund and it is hoped that this will widen the reach and accessibility of the fund.

Assessed on a case-by-case basis alongside the loan, the

grants awarded will range in size from £40k to £300k and can be 20%-40% of the loan amount.

Nick Temple, chief executive of SIB, said: ​“We are delighted to receive this £4m from Access, which will enable the Resilience and Recovery Loan Fund to help more organisations in need in England.

Since launching RRLF, we have been transparent that loan finance will not suit all charities and social enterprises, but that we hoped it would for some. Introducing this blended finance solution to RRLF widens the accessibility of the fund to organisations who would otherwise struggle to meet the viability threshold for a loan. If we are truly to Build Back Better, patience and flexibility are absolutely key for a fairer funding structure in the recovery.”

His counterpart at Access, Seb Elsworth, added: “Blended finance can help more charities and social enterprises to benefit from social investment, and that applies to emergency lending, too. We are pleased to be working with SIB and partners in the Resilience and Recovery Loan Fund, using grant funding in smart ways to expand the reach of the fund and help more organisations to survive and thrive beyond the pandemic.” q • To find out more about RRLF, how to apply and the eligibility criteria for the grants blend, visit the RRLF website at www.sibgroup.org.uk/resilience-and-recovery-loan-fund.

Helping the forgotten people of Zimbabwe [

ZANE: ZIMBABWE A NATIONAL EMERGENCY is a UK registered charity working to help the most destitute, vulnerable and impoverished people in Zimbabwe. It is the largest supplier of financial aid to elderly people in Zimbabwe who lost their life savings and pensions in the economic collapse and subsequent hyper-inflation.

This includes over 600 frail veterans and their widows who fought for the Crown. ZANE assists with rent, medical bills and food – and, crucially, also provides comfort, advice and support.

In addition, ZANE funds a clubfoot correction programme, successfully treating over 3,800 children to date. It funds the provision of prosthetic limbs for victims of landmine explosions and assists people with hearing loss. ZANE also funds education programmes including the provision of pop-up classrooms in highdensity townships for children who would otherwise not receive an education. It runs creative therapy workshops for women living in extreme poverty who are victims of political violence and trauma.

Zimbabwe remains in a state of crisis. The economy teeters on the brink of collapse. Fuel shortages are commonplace and with food prices escalating, ZANE’s aid is needed more than ever by the most destitute people in Zimbabwe. q • To find out more about the work of ZANE visit www.zane.uk.com

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Trust works to save iconic working horses [

THE SUFFOLK PUNCH TRUST is a registered charity, whose aim is to ensure the survival of the famous horse breed. It was founded in 2002 to save the historic Hollesley Bay Colony Stud.

That stud brought a rich legacy of equine and agricultural history which deserves to be saved for future generations to enjoy. The trust aims to achieve that through a successful breeding programme, supported by funding, education and the outreach facility of its visitor centre.

The Suffolk Punch is the oldest English breed of working horse, dating from the 16th century. Every Suffolk horse can be traced back to a stallion, known as Crisp’s Horse of Ufford, foaled in 1768. The Suffolk horse was developed for farm work and gained popularity during the early 20th century. As agriculture became mechanised, however, the numbers fell and the breed almost disappeared completely.

The aim of the trust is to help save the iconic breed from extinction through its established breeding programme. It is working towards increasing the numbers of horses through normal breeding processes and an artificial insemination programme.

It also works to raise public awareness and is training a new generation of professionals to work with and understand the needs of the breed. The Suffolk Punch is incredibly versatile and is now often employed in forestry and ridden work.

The Suffolk Punch Trust can only continue its work with the help of donations and legacies. As David Clarke, one of the trust’s directors, explained: “Your legacy, large or small, will make a huge difference to the work we carry out, enabling us to care for our horses and continue the breeding programme to secure this wonderful breed.” q

Legacies – the gift of life [

ANIMAL CHARITY Wild Futures rescues and offers sanctuary to monkeys who have suffered abuse and neglect. They are dedicated to protecting primates and their habitats worldwide – primates are endangered due to climate change, habitat destruction and the bush-meat and pet trades.

For some species, it is too late. The future of all that remains lies in our hands, so leaving a legacy to Wild Futures is the gift of life and a future for primates and our wonderful planet.

Wild Futures’ holistic approach makes them unique – providing sanctuary to rescued

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monkeys, supporting projects overseas, campaigning for primate welfare, educating to protect primates worldwide and promoting a sustainability and ethical ethos.

They receive no government funding, so the generosity of those that remember Wild Futures is essential to enable them to continue their work. A legacy can be the gift of a life worth living and a wild and safe future for all. q • For more information call 01503 262532, email giving@wildfutures.org or visit the webiste at www.wildfutures.org.

Report examines charities’ relationship with its regulator [

IN THESE challenging times, the power of charities to harness generosity and bring together communities has been brought into relief.

Coincidentally, this June has seen the publication of a report on the relationship between charities and the public they serve with the Charity Commission, the body tasked with overseeing charities’ governance and behaviour.

The document, Regulating in the public interest, brings together the result of research carried out over the past two years among the public and charity trustees, involving many thousands of people drawn from all parts of the population and the charitable sector.

The report draws together the main findings of that research to offer a better understanding of: • The public in whose interest the Charity • Commission regulates • The views of trustees • The contemporary world in which everyone • must operate In its introduction, the report states: “As the regulator of the charitable sector, part of the Charity Commission’s job is to help make charity more resilient; to ensure that it can thrive and inspire trust in tough times as well as good, and to do so in a world where the demands for greater scrutiny and accountability sit side-by-side with calls for charities to do more and be more.”

The report explores the relationship between the public’s view of charity and charities and the role of regulation, together with trustees’ views of public expectations and of the commission. It has been published ‘in the belief that a better understanding of the

public will lead to a more informed discussion about how best to regulate in their interest in future’. q • The report is available to download from www.gov.uk.

Keep a close eye on your data [

THE SWITCH FROM home working to a blend of home and office work has posed a set of new cyber security challenges for charity staff. Those challenges will become increasingly significant over the coming weeks, according to cybersecurity expert Paul Rubens.

Writing in Charity Digital, he says: “As this blended work pattern becomes more prevalent, charity staff need to adapt the cyber security measures they use while working from home to take into account this new way of working.

“The obvious question to ask is this: why does blended working require different cyber security measures to home working? The answer stems from the fact that, unlike home workers, staff doing blended working work in two different places and therefore face more cyber threats.”

The most common vulnerabilities are laptops, external drives, USB devices and smartphones.

They can be lost or stolen in transit, while bringing hardware into the office from home may introduce malware into office systems – and most people have a lower level of cyber protection at home than organisations.

The potential results for charities can be catastrophic. Apart from the financial loss and administrative turmoil that is common to all organisations, charities face particular consequences.

Perhaps most serious is the loss of reputation that can occur when sensitive data is compromised.

In the case of many charities that data relates to vulnerable people.

The toll is further exacerbated by the strictures and regulations that surround charities.

Cybercrime is one of the particular issues that require a charity to report a serious incident. q

Research is key to a better life after brain injury

[

THE MISSION of Brain Research UK is to fund essential research to discover the causes, develop new treatments and improve the lives of those affected by neurological conditions.

The charity’s current research focus is on areas where there is a realistic chance of making a difference to neurological patients within the short to medium term. This is where the need for charitable funding is most urgent.

As a result they have three current research priorities – brain tumours, brain and spinal cord injury, and headache and facial pain.

Brain Research UK receives no government funding and so relies exclusively on voluntary donations. For further information please visit www.brainresearchuk.org.uk. q

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21 years rescuing animals at Willows! [

WILLOWS ANIMAL SANCTUARY is the largest ethically managed, equine, farm and domestic animal sanctuary in Scotland and will try to help any animal in distress.

The charity operates a strict no kill policy and will only euthanise an animal on veterinary advice. They look after over 500 animals – including over 100 horses, ponies and donkeys, approximately 65 cats and dogs and many reptiles – as well as over 200 farm animals and birds.

Willows are very dependent on donations, legacies and grants from benevolent organisations to keep the sanctuary running. Unlike larger charities they have no reserves of money and are always desperately short of funds.

They specialise in helping elderly or more vulnerable animals that have already been refused help by well-known large national charities, but can only continue to help these needy animals with your support, especially in these COVID-19 affected times, which have meant the sanctuary has currently been unable to reopen to the public. q

Spirit’s story

SPIRIT CAME TO Willows in the summer of 2018. He was very dehydrated, emaciated and only weighed 1.9kg (above). He was suffering badly from a nasty upper respiratory infection known as feline calicivirus and was very close to death.

Kate Robinson of Willows takes up the story: “As soon as he arrived we rushed him straight to our vets and he was placed on a drip. His owners were traced and they hadn’t seen Spirit for over three years as he had disappeared and the charity they homed him from refused to take him back. Even in his poor state, Spirit was showing great

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determination and made it very clear he wished to live.

“There was no way we could turn our backs on him so we took him into the sanctuary. It wasn’t easy, but Spirit slowly gained weight and now weighs a super 4.5kg! He has had antiviral treatment to combat the calicivirus and is very content with his life at Willows. He is very frail, but leads a good quality of life and he gets lots of fuss from all the staff and volunteers.”

The staff at Willows still keep a very careful watch over Spirit and he sees their vet on a weekly basis to make sure all is well. q

Ginger’s story

What will happen to me?

EX RACE HORSE Ginger had fallen into the wrong hands and was in an appalling state when he arrived at Willows.

Emaciated, covered in lice and with very long feet, it took a lot of work and effort to get this boy back into good shape again.

He is now recovered and living very happily with all his friends at Willows. q

DO YOU EVER wonder what happens to the cats that no one wants? Too many cats are left homeless, without food, proper shelter and love. This is what often happens to cats that have failed basic house training and then their owners just can’t cope with them anymore. The larger charities often don’t accept cats like these and without a loving home, there is very little hope for them.

The founders of Willows identified this issue long ago and went on to set up the Cat Hotel – a special home where cats are free to roam the sanctuary’s 54 acres and where there’s always beds and food available.

Willows specialises in helping cats that other charities turn down because of their lack of house training, health issues or age. It is one of the few places in the UK that offers a safe haven to these unhomeable cats. Every cat is neutered, vaccinated and wormed regularly and has constant access to food, medical care and a safe warm bed.

Willows urgently need support so they can keep helping cats like these. q

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The dream continues to offer sanctuary to abandoned animals [

THE YEAR IS 1983 and it is the coldest winter for 20 years. Many stories about horses and ponies being abandoned by their owners on Rainham Marshes in Essex were hitting the headlines.

Paula Clark, who was involved in raising money for a number of sanctuaries, was sitting at home in tears after reading the story of those poor horses. When her husband Ernie returned home from work, Paula showed him what was happening and they vowed to take action and help the animals that needed them.

Some of the horses were already dead and others were starving when the couple got to the marshes. They weren’t having their basic needs met; they had no water or food. Paula and Ernie took tanks of water to them and bales of hay and feed. They even got a vet to examine some of them. No-one was looking after the horses’ basic needs – let alone enriching their lives.

Paula and Ernie embarked on fulfilling their dream and the story of Hopefield Animal Sanctuary began. They began taking horses with the intention of fostering. They would bring them back to health and then find them nice homes.

The first horse they fostered out was Pye. Soon after they heard that the fosterers were trying to sell him, so Ernie took them to court at a cost of £4,000. Ernie finally got Pye back in a terrible state, so both Paula and Ernie promised they would never rehome again – the animals had a home for life.

As Paula and Ernie found fostering animals didn’t work out they decided to provide homes for life to their animals. One beneficiary is Juliette, a thoroughbred horse who arrived in a terrible condition.

Because of her home for life at Hopefield, and the daily care and attention she receives, she is now physically transformed.

Paula and Ernie have both now sadly passed away. Since their passing the work has been taken over by new trustees and a dedicated team of staff and volunteers look after the resident animals, old and new. Many animals arrive in a terrible condition and are completely transformed by living at the sanctuary.

The sanctuary has now been running for 35 years – it has over 50 regular volunteers, a huge amount of local and loyal support and over 20,000 followers on Facebook.

CEO Dave Schlaich explained: “We have continued to rescue horses and farm animals, but have found that over the years the type of animals we are having to help has greatly changed, with people getting more and more into exotic species through the pet trade.”

The sanctuary is now open the public from Friday to Monday each week. It has become a visitor attraction with a small tea room. All activities generate funds that go directly to the animals, making the future more secure.

Said David: “You can support us by becoming a regular donor, visit us, sponsor an animal or leave us a legacy in your will, knowing that your donation goes towards providing a home for life for one of our animals.” q

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Sector leaders call for a more stable funding model [

A BRIEFING PAPER by the Institute for Voluntary Action Research has revealed a desire among leaders in the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector to move away from emergency funding towards a more conventional funding model.

The paper, Between a rock and a hard place, shares the experiences of 36 leaders participating in online peer support sessions between 14-31 July.

In its summary, the document states: “The idea of linear progression in funding from emergency to recovery and then to renewal is becoming unhelpful as restrictions are tightened in virus hot spots – a difficult winter is predicted, and medical solutions to COVID-19 have not yet been found.”

It reports on the desperate need among both funders and the sector to move away from the demands of the system of shortterm, six-monthly grants.

“The challenge now is to move back to more conventional cycles of one, three and even five-year funding, without losing the urgency and lightness of touch that has characterised the immediate response by so many. For the foreseeable future, all funders are emergency funders.”

The paper identifies three things that are at the forefront of VCSE leaders’ minds: • Staff and personal welfare. It quotes one participant as saying: “Our clients are really suffering at the moment, which means staff are hearing difficult stories, and clients are becoming harder to help – they are starting to take their frustrations out on our staff more, which is very hard.”

• Navigating the easing of lockdown. One participant said: “Like many others, we’ve come out of the crisis phase and we’ve survived it. But planning for increasing capacity with physical distancing, infection prevention and having control measures in place is going to make our services very, very limited.”

• Long-term strategy. “The support that clients will need in six months will not be what they normally need,” said one leader.

“We are having to rethink our strategy for the long term.”

The report’s authors say that VCSE leaders need access to peer support, supportive funding structures and collaboration and cross-sector engagement. They call on funders to develop and prioritise: • Trust – select organisations whose values and ambitions align with their own and then back their knowledge, experience and skills.

• Flexible funding – trust is best expressed through genuinely unrestricted funding, which grantees can use as they see fit in response to changing circumstances.

• Support – respect organisations’ own analysis of their needs and circumstances

and fund them to create the capacity to engage with and use support; and give them the freedom to decline it if the timing or focus isn’t right for them.

The briefing paper – authored by Ben Cairns, Emily Dyson, Liz Firth and Rebecca Moran – is the ninth in a series on the challenges faced by VCSE leaders during the COVID-19 crisis. q

Digital fundraising fest returns [

IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING that COVID-19 has changed the way charities fundraise.

With charities adapting to new working cultures, online community fundraising is becoming the lifeblood of many organisations, and engaged audiences are working harder than ever for their chosen charities.

Around 70% of charities reported a positive response to digital fundraising in lockdown, and while that is a huge positive for the sector, what comes next? And, how can the 30% of charities who have not been so fortunate be supported?

Charity Digital is an online resource set up to help charities take advantage of the digital environment. Its first foray into the virtual event space was its Digital Fundraising Day last November.

Now, with the significant change in the donation and fundraising landscape, it’s being brought back on 15 October as #BeMoreDigital Fundraising Day – an extension of last year’s event.

The free virtual event will consist of 10 sessions across two streams and will allow charities to hear how other organisations are adapting to the new fundraising environment – with specific information on the tools and tricks they’re using and the hardships that they’re facing along the way.

Sessions will be covering a range of topics, including adapting to change, community fundraising, social media and digital exclusion.

To sign up, visit charitydigital.org.uk. q

Supporting the maritime community [

SEAFARERS UK is a charity that has been providing vital support to the men and women who work at sea and are in need, and to those in maritime education or training, for over 100 years.

The charity does this by giving grants to organisations and projects that make a real difference to people’s lives. Seafarers UK receives no government funding and is heavily dependent on public donations and legacies. Last year Seafarers UK was able to give £2.2m in funding to over 50 maritime welfare and youth charities. q • To support Seafarers UK or to find out more about their work, visit the website at www.seafarers.uk or email seafarers@seafarers.uk

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Do the wise thing – help protect owls [THE OWLS TRUST is a small charity doing a big job – and an

important one. At its headquarters, Bodafon Farm Park in Llandudno, it has one of the best collections of owls on display to the public in the UK, and it is entirely free to visit every day of the year.

The trust became a registered charity in 2001, recognising that there was an urgent need for an organisation to rescue owls and birds of prey in North Wales. Its mission statement is “Saving the world, one owl at a time”.

There are three main strands to the Owls Trust’s work.

Trustee Pam Broughton explained: “Firstly, we provide rescue and rehabilitation for injured birds of prey. We nurse the wild birds back to health, and when they are ready we release them back into a suitable habitat.”

They are often asked to step in to rescue ‘pet’ owls. Those birds are frequently distressed and in poor condition.

Said Pam: “When we can, we give them a permanent home with us, where they can regain a good quality of life in more spacious and appropriate surroundings suitable to their species.”

The trust’s second activity is to educate young people and older groups about our birds of prey, their place in the environment and

how their habitats can be maintained to protect the bio-diversity of our countryside. Each year the trust’s staff visit over 170 schools and institutions with their owls.

Finally, they work with international partners to create and maintain breeding stocks of the world’s rarest owls.

Pam declared: “When imperilled habitats can be restored and protected, we will then be able to enhance threatened populations or even reintroduce new groups.”

The Owls Trust relies on public generosity and support to continue its work in the care and rehabilitation of owls: it receives no public funding.

“So if you love owls as we do,” said Pam Broughton, “please consider remembering The Owls Trust in your will.” q

If you Will, we will [LEGACIES MEAN SO much to the team at Last Chance

Animal Rescue. These wonderful gifts have helped them to rescue, rehabilitate and re-home so many abandoned, abused and unwanted dogs, puppies, cats, kittens, rabbits and guinea pigs who otherwise would have had no future.

The charity understand the wishes of its kind benefactors who have considered them in their Wills. A spokesperson said: “We know they want their generous gift to us to be used directly to save lives, provide the very best of care and to find loving homes.

“Legacies really do provide the gift of life and Last Chance Animal Rescue can now, after much planning and prudent use of funds, offer our life saving services to so many more needy pets. We are delighted to announce we now have a second rescue and re-homing centre in Kent, giving hope and a true A new friend for Alan last chance to so many.

“Sadly we cannot thank those who have enabled this wonderful achievement but are extremely grateful to all those who are currently considering helping us now and in the future to continue our work.” q

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Employment guides help clear the path to diversity [THE Chartered Institute of Fundraising has published a series

of recruitment guides to help the fundraising profession to become a more equal, diverse and inclusive profession. The Change Collective guides have been produced to help the sector consider the actions and decisions they can take to achieve a more diverse fundraising workforce. The guides include an additional element to reflect on recruiting during the coronavirus crisis.

Each guide has been developed with expert advice from recruitment agencies and equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) consultants, and draws on the lived experience of fundraisers.

Reflecting on her own experience, Martha Awojobi, director of JMB Consulting, said: “I have always loved being a fundraiser; we inspire people to invest in social change and be part of a collective solution to some of the most complex social issues of our time. We shouldn’t be afraid to speak about our past failures when it comes to equality, diversity and inclusion. In fact, we should be the ones showing other sectors what inclusivity truly looks like. All it takes is honesty, humility and hope.”

The four guides are: • Hiring Managers: A guide on where to start on an EDI policy, creating an attractive company culture, recruiting, and progression for your staff members.

• Small Charities: For organisations who are recruiting their first fundraiser as they make the investment pay off to keep running their services.

• Job Seekers: For those interested in a job in fundraising, working for a charity with a cause they are passionate about, who have taken a break and are looking to return to work, or are changing career.

• Recruitment Agencies: To support recruitment agencies as they get their client organisations to consider EDI in their recruitment.

Peter Lewis, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, said: “The well-established lack of diversity in our profession, with too few BAME and disabled fundraisers, is a systemic weakness which the profession needs to address.

“We need leadership from trustees, chief executives, directors of fundraising and human resource professionals who not only embrace the importance of EDI for themselves and for their fundraising teams, but accept that it is critical to delivering their organisational objectives.”

In a blog published alongside the guides, Elizabeth Balgobin, interim head of EDI at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, said: “It’s a formidable suite of resources – those blogs and resources released during lockdown are good and useful, but the guides give you all that and more.

“I strongly encourage you to share the guides with your colleagues, share with those outside of fundraising, share with people looking for work or a change of career. Together we can make fundraising a more diverse and inclusive profession – we owe it to our causes.” q

This sanctuary helps donkeys from Britain, Europe and beyond [ESTABLISHED IN 1990, NEDDI offers care and safety to donkeys –

and to a lesser degree, ponies – in Britain and Europe who have suffered neglect, cruelty or maltreatment or who are at risk of such treatment.

In addition to rescuing such animals from undesirable situations, within the financial and practical constraints prevailing at the time, they work to try to change attitudes and to educate donkey owners into better practices. For example, since 2016 they have been assisting associates in Kenya to achieve those aims for the working animals there.

Since its establishment in Cornwall, NEDDI has operated a sanctuary specifically for distressed donkeys. In 2001 the sanctuary moved to just the other side of the channel, where the resident donkeys enjoy more space and pasture than would otherwise have been possible.

Its policy is to try to offer actual, hands-on help to the animals in need, and to restore them to the maximum possible degree of fitness.

Once brought back to full health, new homes are sometimes sought for the fit animals.

Where full health cannot be achieved a safe home is offered to the donkey for the duration of its life.

NEDDI is a comparatively small organisation with limited resources, and relies heavily on support from animal-lovers. A bequest will enable more donkeys to be freed from pain and misery. q

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Aiming to bridge the gap for those with clefts [CLEFT is a charity focused on providing permanent, sustainable

ways to improve cleft care both in the UK and overseas. Its tagline ‘Bridging the Gap’ illustrates the three aims of physical joining, improving information and linking care across countries.

A cleft is a congenital birth defect which happens in the womb when the component parts of the upper lip and the palate fail to join properly.

There may be a cleft just of the lip, just of the palate, or both. They can be one-sided (unilateral) or double-sided (bilateral).

It is known that one in 700 babies in the UK are born with a cleft. The figure is higher in Asia – particularly so in people from the Far East. It is estimated that 250,000 babies throughout the world are born each year with a cleft.

A core principle of CLEFT is to invest in research projects that study the cause and treatment of clefts. When it comes to clefts, there is still so much that is unknown.

The progression of knowledge and understanding of clefts is therefore a key component in improving the methods used by surgeons, speech therapists and other medical professionals, to treat and provide quality, long-term care for all those born with clefts, both in the UK and overseas.

All donations and gifts in wills help to further that research. q

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Awards and appointments distinguish online convention [

THE Chartered Institute of Fundraising has awarded Sir Lenny Henry the Special Recognition in Fundraising Award, for his contribution to fundraising with Comic Relief and in recognition of his continued role in championing diversity and inclusion across the creative arts.

The award was made during Fundraising Convention Online, which took place between 6-8 July and was opened by Sir Lenny (pictured). It recognises and thanks him for his incredible fundraising over the decades. He was the co-founder of Comic Relief in response to the famine in Ethiopia in 1985, and most recently fronted the Big Night In – the television fundraiser during the Photo by Johan Persson coronavirus crisis. Lenny is also an energetic campaigner for the greater representation of black and minority ethnic people in the entertainment industry.

Speaking virtually to an audience at the convention, he thanked the organisers for the award, saying: “For me, at Comic Relief the best moment was knowing the public was engaged. When we went over £3.5bn for the first time, our jaws just dropped. It showed how much hard work everyone had put in and we had done all of this together.”

Asked if he would do anything differently if he was setting up Comic Relief today, he said: “Now, of course, you would make it more diverse immediately. That has happened over time. People are more educated and woke. You would start with the same energy. I would just make it more inclusive. It’s going to happen more and more, local people telling their own stories.”

He saluted the younger generation for their generosity: “Young people especially are so engaged with giving. They’re going ‘I can do this. I can lend my voice to this’. We’ve seen that with Black Lives Matter and climate change. Even though they literally think I’m Idris Elba’s granddad, it’s their time.”

He ended by thanking fundraisers for all they do to make the world a better place. “Thank you to all fundraisers – you all rock!”

The institute’s Outstanding Contribution Award was given to Richard Taylor for his incredible service to the fundraising community.

Richard’s fundraising career began at Cancer Research UK, where he grew fundraising exponentially – eventually making it the first charity to exceed £500m in one year from voluntary income. He championed investment in fundraising, marketing and brand throughout his career and his work has provided great case studies for many charities to develop their own strategies and growth.

After nearly two decades at Cancer Research UK he moved to Macmillan Cancer Support, and continued his success, growing income in a much more challenging environment. He now works as a coach providing support to leaders across the sector.

While delivering the award during a live virtual plenary at Fundraising Convention Online, Claire Rowney, chair of the institute, shared why Richard was a worthy winner.

“I am honoured and delighted that Richard Taylor has received the award,” she said.

“He has made a contribution to fundraising personally and professionally that spans many years and has touched literally thousands of fundraisers’ lives and millions of charity beneficiaries’ lives.”

Richard was nominated by peers from across the fundraising community.

Fundraising Convention Online also saw the Annual General Meeting of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, at which a number of new appointments were confirmed.

Claire Rowney, executive director of fundraising, marketing and communications at Macmillan Cancer Support, was installed as the new chair. She took over from Amanda Bringans, director of fundraising at the British Heart Foundation, whose three-year term came to an end this year.

Carol Akiwumi was appointed vice chair of the institute.

Isobel Michael – former secretary of the Institute of Fundraising South West Regional Group and now co-ordinator of Bath Fundraisers’ Group – was re-elected to serve a second three-year term as a trustee, while Nadine Campbell, chair of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising Northern Ireland Group, was elected to her first term as a trustee. q

Saving lives one sniff at a time [

HYPO HOUNDS provide a viable health care alternative for children and their families by using their family pet – training their best friend to detect the subtle changes in the child’s blood sugar levels.

The dogs are trained to alert sleeping parents when the child’s sugar levels drop dangerously low or rise too high. This not only impacts on the child but also on the family’s ability to function as a unit, with the registered carer becoming the dog.

Hypo Hounds work is becoming nationally recognised and is literally saving the lives of children – one sniff at a time. q

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Daring rescue mission saves dozens of animals

[

AT THE BEGINNING of 2019 the oldest zoo in Gaza – Rafah Zoo – attracted worldwide attention. It emerged that over 40 animals were suffering in terrible conditions, prompting over 150,000 people to demand immediate action. Fortunately, international animal charity FOUR PAWS were able to respond to that call.

A 14-month-old lioness had been permanently mutilated. The lioness (above left) had endured excruciating pain as her claws were removed with garden shears, leaving her mutilated forever. To make matters worse, four newly-born lion cubs had frozen to death. There was no proper

nutrition, medical care or shelter, leaving the animals severely neglected.

The zoo, in the Gaza Strip, had suffered frequent damage from bombings and other military action during the on-going conflict there. Some animals had even been killed by rocket fire, and many others had died from malnutrition and disease. The team at FOUR PAWS knew they had to act.

In its largest ever rescue, and after several months of careful preparation and negotiations, the FOUR PAWS team entered Gaza. A total of 47 animals – including five lions, monkeys, wolves and foxes – were brought to safety.

The declawed lioness and many other animals were brought to the Al Ma’wa Sanctuary for Nature and Wildlife in Jordan – a partnership between the Princess Alia Foundation and FOUR PAWS. Two lions made the long journey to the five-acre FOUR PAWS LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa (below): years of pain and neglect finally behind them.

Gifts in wills can enable FOUR PAWS to continue their groundbreaking rescue missions and help animals worldwide. q • To receive your legacy information booklet please call Joanne Royston on 020 7922 7954 or email joanne.royston@four-paws.org.uk

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Funding secured for ‘revitalising’ dormant charity funds [ A PROGRAMME THAT takes funds lying dormant in the

accounts of inactive or ineffective charities and puts them to good use has secured funding from DCMS until next March.

The programme is managed by the Charity Commission and the charity UK Community Foundations.

Since its launch in 2018 the programme has ‘revitalised’ £32m to help good causes – including charities that are responding to the coronavirus and supporting their communities.

The new funding will allow the programme to reach out to around 500 more inactive trusts, to help communities in need.

Funds are released from charities that are either inactive – meaning they have had no income or expenditure over the past five years – or ineffective, having spent less than 30% of total income over the past five years.

Once identified as dormant, the Charity Commission gives the trustees the option to act – with support to help them get the charity back up and running if needed. Otherwise the funds are redeployed to causes in line with the aims of the dormant charity or the trust is transferred to a local community foundation to be managed for the long-term benefit of local communities.

The money is granted to charities in need, and can be used to create a regular income stream that will sustain their work to help communities for years.

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The programme has so far seen over 1,800 charities contacted. In many cases the programme has helped them get back on track, but when trustees have failed to respond the commission has intervened to wind up the charity and remove it from the register of charities.

The commission has so far removed 179 charities from the register – 67 since lockdown – and revitalised 26 charities.

Baroness Stowell, chair of the Charity Commission, commented: “There is nothing worse than money donated for a good cause not being put to good use. So I am delighted that we have helped to release £32m of dormant charitable funds. The charities which for some time were inactive or ineffective that have come forward willingly to assist with this important programme have done a great public service and we are hugely grateful to them.

“But this shared effort to revitalise charitable funds and deliver the donors’ intended benefit to society has the potential to go even further – and it’s needed now more than ever.”

The Charity Commission is calling on trustees of charities that have funds and are inactive or unable to make the difference they once did or had hoped to achieve, to come forward now so that the charity money they hold doesn’t sit idle, but can be put to good use by other charities with similar causes supporting people and communities at this time of heightened need. q

The range of charities which depend on legacies to carry out their valuable work is a broad one. Those that are represented in this publication are listed below, grouped according to the area of activity in which they operate.

ANIMAL WELFARE

INDEX

MEDICAL RESEARCH

Friends of the Animals 4/5

Prostate Cancer Research Centre 1

Forever Hounds Trust 6

Pain Relief Foundation 2

Pet Rescue Welfare Association 6

Royal College of Surgeons 14

The Suffolk Owl Sanctuary 8

World Cancer Research Fund 17

British Chelonia Group 9

Brain Research UK 19

Heartbeat Home for Horses 10

CLEFT 26

Tiggywinkles 10 Three Counties Dog Rescue 11 RCVS Knowledge 12/13 Hessilhead Wildlife Rescue 15

SUPPORT & ADVICE

The Suffolk Punch Trust 18

Nerve Tumours UK 2

Wild Futures 18

Seafarers UK 23

Willows Animal Sanctuary 20/21 Hopefield Animal Sanctuary 22 The Owls Trust 24

OVERSEAS AID

Last Chance Animal Rescue 24 The New European Distressed Donkey Initiative Ltd 25

ZANE: Zimbabwe A National Emergency 16

Animals in Distress Field of Dreams 26 FOUR PAWS 28/29

HEALTH & DISABILITY CHILDREN & YOUNG PEOPLE Kidney Kids Scotland 14

National Federation of the Blind of the United Kingdom 7 Seeing Dogs 8 Rethink Mental Illness 32

Hypo Hounds 27

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