Time for a change? - Charity Times

February/March 2018

Leadership:

Governance:

Technology:

Interview:

Trustee board diversity A lack of diversity among trustee boards requires charities to broaden their governance skills base.

PR and reputation

Cyber security focus Cybercrime is on the rise and charities need to be able to keep up with the pace of change.

Matt Lent The Future First CEO on the importance of alumni and how partnerships form part of his future strategy.

Oxfam’s Haiti scandal has put the third sector under increasing scrutiny again and reputations need to be pampered.

Time for a change? Trustee diversification is low among the charity sector. In a crowded pool, changing your approach and refreshing your board’s skillset could be the key to success.

www.charitytimes.com

BreakfasT BrIefIng Managing investment risks in volatile markets

Plus: Sector and investment columns News See page 52 for charity suppliers directory

Editorial

Comment

The few are not the many

Editor Lauren Weymouth [email protected] 020 7562 2411

Contributing Writers Caron Bradshaw, Peter Lewis, Joe Lepper, Gillian McKay, Antonia Swinson, Matthew Ritchie, David Adams, Antony Savvas, Louise Thomson, Mark Jefferies and Graham Harrison

Design & Production Matt Mills [email protected] 020 7562 2406

Commercial Manager Linda Libetta [email protected] 020 7562 2431

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Subscription Rates (6 issues pa) £79pa registered charities £119pa rest of UK, £127pa EU £132pa elsewhere Printed by Buxton Press All rights reserved. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the publishers. ISSN : 1355-4573

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Publishing Director

I

n North Korea, when citizens are convicted for political crimes, they are immediately sent to prison camps, known as Kwanliso, along with their relatives. For citizens who are convicted of more serious political crimes, life imprisonment is enforced and as a result, two generations of their family will spend their entire lives in Kwanliso. The whole system forms the North Korean policy of ‘three generations of punishment’. The policy, which was introduced by state founder Kim II-Sung back in 1948, is shocking. After all, why should innocent people suffer punishment for the mistakes of one person? But although collective punishment like this isn’t present in the Western justice system, the notion of ‘guilty-by-association’ is not too distant from our beloved charity sector. When Kids Company collapsed in 2015, the whole sector felt the brunt of it. Donors started to question charities’ spending on admin, expenses and shoes for clients. And with that, the trust in charities fell dramatically (p.26). Just as the sector was beginning to recover and claw back what was left of its generous reputation, it’s been kicked to the dirt again. As I write this, it’s only been a matter of days since The Times reported allegations of misconduct among Oxfam aid workers in Haiti, yet the aftermath has been unstoppable. Oxfam faces losing European funding, its deputy chief executive has stepped down, a number of celebrities have retracted their monetary support and the Charity Commission has launched an investigation into safeguarding. For Oxfam, things couldn’t get any worse. But the trouble with the charity sector is that the actions of a few really do affect the masses. Hundreds of thousands of pounds has already been shaved off Oxfam’s annual income due to regular donors cancelling their direct debits, and unfortuantely, I doubt it will be the only charity to lose money in light of this exposé. This issue of Charity Times is all about leadership. It’s about building strong, diverse trustee boards; it’s about using your powers to harness a glowing reputation; and about fighting back when things go wrong. More than that, it’s about staying ahead and being prepared. While you may not be able to prepare for or prevent the mistakes of others, you can prepare for yourselves, so that when the next big dog messes up, you don’t all go down with it.

Mark Evans

Lauren Weymouth, Editor

Average net circulation of 8,500 copies for July 15 – June 16


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In this issue

Contents

February/March 2018 06

08

16

News & views Regulars 06 News in brief 10 Appointments Columns 12 Legislation by Caron Bradshaw 13 Fundraising by Peter Lewis 14 Regulation by Gillian McKay 15 Property by Antonia Swinson 48 Charity fund data Charity Services 52 Suppliers Directory 04


Review 8 Mergers Mergers have proved to be a rarity among the third sector, and charities have been warned not to become ‘territorial’ over their cause.

Interview 16 Matt Lent Future First CEO Matt Lent tells David Adams why alumni are so important to the education system, and why partnerships will form a big part of the organisation’s future strategy.

In this issue

Contents

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30

41

Technology

Governance 20 Cover: Time for change? Research has highlighted a lack of diversity across trustee boards. Matt Ritchie looks at how the situation arose, and how to broaden the governance skills base.

30 Ahead of the game The innovation of new mobile apps is integral to technological development. But which charities are ahead of the game? Antony Savvas finds out more. 33 Cyber security focus 34 A hacker’s paradise Cybercrime is on the rise and charities need to be able to keep up with the pace of change.

25 When should charity trustees accept it’s time to move on? Being honest in the self-reflection of performance isn’t always the easiest of tasks, but for trustees, it’s vital to the success of a charity, says Louise Thomson.

36 For charities, cyber is never worth the risk Cyber risk is a major and growing concern for any organisation. For charities, the consequences can be especially devastating.

26 Keeping up appearances Oxfam’s Haiti scandal has put the third sector under increasing scrutiny, requiring charities to spend some time pampering reputations. Joe Lepper explores.

38 Cyber attacks: just how prepared are you? Living in an online world provides great resources for charities, but research shows many charities are already struggling to keep up.

Investment 41 Managing risk in volatile markets A panel of charity decision makers look at how charities can manage investment risks in volatile markets. 46 Charities vs investment risk Charity Times asks the investment industry: how much investment risk charities should really take? 50 ARC investment column www.charitytimes.com

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News

in brief eligible products to the charity of the customer’s choice. tory peer announced as preferred charity commission chair. Baroness Tina Stowell has

donations from the presidents club are a ‘clear cut case of harm’, lawyers say. Law firm

McCarthy Denning said the actions of trustees returning funds should be commended. The comments came after the Financial Times reported allegations of sexual harassment at a fundraising event held by the Presidents Club in London. An undercover reporter from the FT attended the all-male event, held at London’s Dorchester Hotel, where she claimed to have witnessed senior businessmen groping female hostesses. Following the reports, Great Ormond Street Hospital decided to return donations raised by the event, claiming it was “shocked” to hear of the behaviour at the event.

amaZon inVites all uK charities to Join amaZonsmile. Customers

who shop with AmazonSmile can choose a charity to support before they start shopping and that charity will receive donations from Amazon at no additional cost to the customer or the charity. AmazonSmile provides the same services as Amazon, but instead, Amazon will donate 0.5 per cent of the net purchase price of 06


been selected as the preferred candidate to chair the Commission. Stowell was Leader of the House of Lords and the Lord Privy Seal until July 2016. She was made a peer in January 2011 and joined the government in September the same year. As a junior minister, she led the landmark Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act through the House of Lords in 2013 before being promoted to Minister for Communities. She later received awards from the Spectator, Stonewall and PinkNews for her involvement in the Act. charity sector could be ‘significantly oVerpaying’ for inVestment fees, research finds. According to analysis

conducted by SEI, the charity sector could save between £250m and £288m by switching to a different investment management model, as used by other institutional investors. SEI’s review of public data on fees in the charity sector, highlighted the OCIO investment approach, which is commonly employed by global pension schemes and US endowments, saves other institutional investors a considerable amount of money. commission opens applications for automatic disqualification waiVers. The Charity Commission

has opened the waiver application process for people affected by the new trustee automatic disqualification rules. The new rules, which seek to disqualify trustees with a criminal record, come into effect on 1 August 2018. Currently automatic disqualification from trusteeship includes those who are bankrupt,

“The charity sector could save between £250m and £288m by switching to a different investment management model, as used by other institutional investors.”

have been disqualified from being a company director, or who have previously been removed as a trustee. However, the new rules will mean disqualification will also apply to those who are in contempt of court, named under certain anti-terrorism legislation, or are on the sex offenders register. aceVo calls for action oVer lacK of diVersity among charity leaders. There has been

no increase in the number of black and minority ethnic CEOs in the charity sector, with the overall number having fallen since figures reported in 2008. According to ACEVO’s annual Pay and Equalities Survey, diversity among charity CEOs is still rare and has even fallen since ACEVO published its first set of ethnicity data back in 2008, when 4.2 per cent of respondents reported being from a BAME background. In this year’s survey the figure was just 3 per cent. ACEVO said the lack of improvement in racial diversity over the last decade “stands in start contrast” to the improvement of the number of female CEOs who responded to the survey. trustees granted control of muslim aid; interim manager discharged. The Charity

Commission has discharged the interim manager of Muslim Aid, granting the CEO, Jehangir Malik,

News

in brief and the new board of trustees the responsibility for overseeing the charity. Interim manager, Michael King, was appointed to take on the management of Muslim Aid while the regulator opened a statutory inquiry to examine a number of financial irregularities relating to the areas of the charity’s overseas activity. King has now been discharged, leaving the new board of trustees, along with the CEO Jehangir Malik and his senior team to control the charity. charities take to twitter to ‘reclaim social media for good’.

A major social media movement to ‘reclaim social media for good’ went viral in February, with thousands of charities and organisations actively calling for more positivity on social media. Charities and third sector organisations involved in the movement included Comic Relief, NCVO, the Institute of Fundraising and Whizz-Kids. The movement, which has been trending on Twitter, reached a staggering 10 million people within the first five hours on social media alone. sector to discuss role in responding to national disasters. The charity sector has

come together to discuss its role in responding to future domestic disasters such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and other large scale national crises in the UK. A group of 25 large and small charities, umbrella bodies, fundraising platforms and charity regulators all attended a roundtable held by the Charity Commission last week and agreed to the principle of creating a collective framework to coordinate and enable future charity sector responses to national critical incidents. over £250m in bonds raised to support charities. Over a quarter

of a billion pounds has been raised by

not-for-profit Allia to help support charities. The organisation’s work on social finance has resulted in over £250m of bonds being issued to support a range of organisations from housing associations and care providers to community employment ventures and other charities. The finance includes seven retail charity bonds, £70m of investment from Scottish government in Allia bonds and 15 charitable bonds and mini bonds, which have raised over £24m from communities and businesses to generate grants for local charity projects. islamic trust officiallY warned over ‘misconduct and mismanagement’. The Charity

Commission has issued an official warning to the Islamic Trust, after finding “misconduct and mismanagement” in the administration of the charity. The charity watchdog opened an inquiry into the charity in April 2017 after its trustees failed to file its statutory returns for 2016 on time. This was despite having previously been part of the Commission’s class inquiry into double defaulters and providing assurances to the Commission that they would not default again. The inquiry concluded that the trustees did not properly discharge their duties under charity law and in December 2017, the Commission used its regulatory powers to issue the charity with an official warning under section 75A of the Charities Act. Trustees of the charity have now been warned they must take all reasonable steps to ensure that future statutory returns are submitted on time.

major charitY bodies launch new propertY surveY. The Ethical

Property Foundation, in partnership with the Charity Commission and the Charity Finance Group, has launched

a new survey for charities and all notfor-profits to have their say on property issues. The aim of the survey is to find out what property means to the voluntary sector, and what property issues are affecting individual organisations. Last year, the 2016 survey results suggested 58 per cent find difficulty in obtaining funding for property costs, while 45 per cent believed property to be the biggest threat to their charity’s sustainability. voluntarY organisations should publish gender paY gap data, saYs ncvo. The National

Council for Voluntary Organisations said the data should be made available, regardless of a charity’s size. It recommended that organisations should consider collating and publishing the data, as a way to reflect on any gender pay differences and to demonstrate a commitment to transparency and accountability. Charities with a small number of employees will have to decide whether publishing their data is meaningful, and strike a delicate balance between being transparent and protecting individuals’ data, the umbrella body said. www.charitytimes.com

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News

Mergers

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he number of new mergers among the charity sector has remained relatively rare, while the mergers that have taken place have not been ‘strategic or timely’, a new report has revealed. The Good Merger Index, the fourth annual review of not-for-profit sector mergers, produced by Eastside Primetimers, revealed 70 mergers involving 142 organisations took place in 2016/17. Among the sector’s 167,000 charities, this represents just 0.09 per cent. Despite common discussion about duplication, 2016/17 also saw a net increase of about 1,700 entities registering with the Charity Commission. Among the mergers that did take place over the year, quality was highlighted as an issue; 44 per cent of the smaller organisations involved in mergers were in deficit in the year before the merger took place. The average operating margin of these charities as a percentage of their turnover was -14 per cent, according to the data, which it claims to show mergers “are still very often sought as a form of ‘rescue’ from a position of financial and strategic weakness”. “On the whole, we are left with an impression of a charity sector not yet able to grasp the nettle and explore the need for greater consolidation, or do so in a timely and strategic manner,” Eastside Primetimers CEO Richard Litchfield said. “This is despite continuing competition for constrained resources, a degree of duplication in services and the duty of charity managers and trustees to consider the best means to meet their charitable objectives in this environment.” However, the report highlighted three ‘hotspots’ of activity among federated charities, supported housing and mental health, which together comprised 36 per cent of the total mergers over the timeframe. 08


Mergers: charities asked to be more collaborative and less ‘territorial’ Mergers have proved To be a rariTy aMong The Third secTor, and chariTies have been warned noT To becoMe ‘TerriTorial’ over Their cause. Written by: lauren weyMouTh

Interviews conducted by Eastside Primetimers with chief executives in this space uncovered how they are responding by partnering for impact in the face of constraints on state funding, welfare reforms, rent caps in the housing sector and regulatory pressures. “There is reason for optimism, both from the valuable lessons delivered by the innovative new partnerships we do see and from developments in the sector like the Governance Code and discussions around a Merger Turnaround Fund” Litchfield said.

The need for more collaboration Following the publication of the data and the announcement of forthcoming mergers, such as that of Bowel Cancer UK and Beating Bowel Cancer, Prince William joined in the call for greater collaboration among charities. Speaking at the Charity Commission’s annual public meeting in January, the Duke of Cambridge told an audience of charity decision makers that the sector needs to work on collaborating better to "embrace change". "I do wonder at times if the compassion which leads people to set up or maintain charities could not be equally well directed at first finding opportunities to work with existing charities," he said. Prince William drew reference to the merger of the bowel cancer charities, claiming both charities are “working together towards similar ends, and which are merging from a position of strength”. “Together I have no doubt they will achieve more to fight bowel cancer than they could have done alone. This leads me to think this approach could go further," he added. "Instead of charities working in separate fields, I wonder if we could do more to find ways to combine forces, working and innovating together.” He added that competition between the funds of an “evergrowing number of charities” and the “confusion it can cause among donors” can lead to the “siloing of expertise and at worst, territorial behaviour”. “I know this message isn’t’ always easy to hear […] but as the challenges of the future continue to bare down on us, I believe this big shift must begin to happen,” he said.

News

Mergers to measure and communicate the financial and social outcomes of vpast mergers, so that others can learn from these. “Mergers are a complex endeavour and needs to be undertaken with care and proper scrutiny. But the risks of not merging at the right time often aren’t appreciated in proportion. Many charity mergers are in reality bail outs and when struggling organisations only explore it as a last resort, this almost inevitably leads to poor mergers, which are associated with failure and a loss " I do wonder of autonomy.” at times if the Litchfield added that capacity and resource are also “The sector must be open to collaborate, compassion which leads a challenge for charities, share expertise and resources, to focus less people to set up or maintain noting how planning and on individual interests and more on the executing a merger can be benefits working together could bring. That charities could not be equally “time-consuming” and can I believe is where the future lies.” well directed at first finding also entail temporary hidden opportunities to work with costs, which stem from The rarity of mergers the disruption. But while it isn’t the first time the charity sector existing charities" has been asked to focus on greater collaboration, Eastside Primetimer’s Litchfield said the report only Solutions confirms mergers remain a very “niche hobby”. “From speaking with many charities, “This is in spite of ongoing challenges to the sector in the funders and other advisors, I think the form of funding constraints and intense competition. But solution is two-pronged. Firstly, the why is this the case and does it really have to be this way?,” sector needs a merger fund that provides he said in a blog for Charity Times. flexible financing and technical support, “One of the major barriers to a merger is simply that it’s in exchange for some of it being repaid not routinely considered by charity boards (“it’s just not when the economic gains from a merger done”, in the words of one chief executive). Chief executives are unlocked. are busy running their organisations on the assumption that “Secondly, and harder to achieve, is their independent charity is best placed to achieve their that there needs to be a cultural shift in mission, instead of pooling efforts and resources,” he said. governance so that charity boards more Litchfield said in good organisations, the boards are likely routinely reflect and ask important to challenge this premise and encourage the executives to questions about their beneficiaries and consider strategic options like mergers. “Sadly though, this is how best they can serve them. rare and in many cases ego and self-preservation can pull “The end here is ‘impact’ rather than organisations even further away from examining how best to merger, although merger is one of a deliver on their mission.” range of tools towards that end. With public confidence in charities sadly now in question, it is imperative that social A need for widespread knowledge sector organisations grasp the nettle and “The comparative rarity of mergers means that it is demonstrate that we have the checks and unknown to many. Knowledge about how to find a partner balance to manage the country’s finite and go about a merger, or what the potential benefits are, charitable resources sensibly. This still isn’t widespread. means partnering for impact when it is “This is why the provision of greater information, tools the right thing to do.” ■ and support would be useful. More research would be helpful www.charitytimes.com

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Charity

Appointments

People on the move... The latest appointments from around the charity sector

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If you have any appointments to announce please contact [email protected]

tracey crouch Tracey Crouch has been appointed as the first minister for loneliness.The aim of the role is to continue the work carried out by MP Jo Cox, who campaigned to combat loneliness before she was killed by a far-right terrorist prior to the EU referendum. Crouch will take on the role on top of her duties as the Minister of Sports and Civil Society.

milly soames Former High Sheriff Milly Soames is the new addition to Action4Youth’s board of trustees. Soames is a patron and trustee of a number of organisations and has recently joined Action4Youth. In her role as High Sheriff, she had an insight into the criminal justice system and wanted to support Action4Youth in its work to give children the chance to fulfil their potential.

cristina andreatta Cristina Andreatta has joined national grant-giving charity Longleigh Foundation as director with strategic responsibility for developing its grantfunding programme and expanding its work across England. She previously worked at the Association of Charitable Foundations, the membership body for UK foundations and grant-giving charities.

mark castle Environmental education charity Field Studies Council (FSC) has appointed Mark Castle OBE to be its next CEO, with Mark taking up the role in February 2018. Castle is currently CEO at Victim Support and was previously CEO at the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC). He had previously held the CEO role at the Association of Police Authorities (APA).

rosie millard BBC Children in Need has appointed Rosie Millard OBE as the charity’s new chair. Millard takes over from Stevie Spring CBE who has chaired the charity for nine years. Her appointment will take effect immediately and will be for an initial three-year term. Millard will continue her duties as a journalist, broadcaster and deputy CEO of the Creative Industries Federation.


Charity

Appointments

anna FoWlie The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations has appointed Anna Fowlie as its new chief executive. Fowlie will join Scotland’s national third sector body in April 2018 from the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC), where she has been chief executive since 2009. During her time in the role, she has led significant organisational change.

Brett terry The NSPCC has appointed former director of people and organisational development from the Alzheimer’s Society as its new director of people. Brett Terry takes the reins from Siobhan Sheridan and joins the NSPCC with nearly 20 years’ experience of the charity sector. He has held a number of senior strategic and operational HR roles.

caPtain Justin osmond National maritime charity, the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners’ Royal Benevolent Society has appointed Captain Justin Osmond RN as its new chief executive. Osmond spent nearly 30 years in the Royal Navy as a fleet air arm engineer, before gaining experience across various senior leadership and management roles.

sarah Greene Ovarian cancer campaigner and TV host Sarah Greene has been named patron of the UK’s leading ovarian cancer charity, Target Ovarian Cancer. Greene, previously host of Blue Peter and Going Live in the 1980s, and more recently a guest host on ITV’s This Morning, has worked with the charity since her mother died from ovarian cancer in 2010.

shaun FitZGerald The Royal Institution of Great Britain (Ri), has appointed Dr Shaun Fitzgerald FREng as its new director. A Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor at the Department of Engineering at Cambridge University, Fitzgerald is also the CEO of Breathing Buildings Ltd, a leading technology company pioneering hybrid ventilation systems.

nick murPhy Smith & Williamson has appointed Nick Murphy as head of charities for its investment management and banking division, working closely with investment managers to increase the charity division. Murphy joined the firm as a partner in the investment management team in 2012 and has built up a client base of charity portfolios, as well as other client types. www.charitytimes.com

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CFG

Column Finance it’s time for a revolution

I Caron Bradshaw is Chief exeCutive offiCer of the Charity finanCe Group

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recently had the pleasure of listening to Naziar Hashemi of Crowe Clark Whitehill and my own Andrew O’Brien deliver a round-up of legislative, regulatory and practical changes in 2017 for Charity Finance Group members. It struck me that so much of the content covered areas that others might stake claim to; GDPR, digital, governance, Brexit – topics that may not be seen as the territory of finance professionals, but topics on which Charity Finance Group is active. The reality for today’s finance professional is that everything now has a financial angle. Take GDPR, for example. It isn’t a topic simply for the fundraisers amongst you. There are a number of different elements that affect everybody. There’s the practical risk management questions relating to data security, processing and control of data to consider; do you need to invest in new systems and staff resources? There is also the knock-on impact to the cash flow and scenario planning/budgeting that might come from narrowing your fundraising activities and management of present and future donors. Then there are also the reputational risks if you get it wrong with all the potential negative impacts on your funder relationships and brand. There are questions as to the adequacy of your training budgets and there are considerations regarding whether, and if so to what extent, GDPR effects your reserves calculations. So it’s not just questions for fundraisers, after all. Similarly, when we talk about digital and technology, we are often not thinking in terms of the finance professional. But we should be. I recently attended an event hosted by Eduserv on digital leadership. It was clear throughout the contributions that the challenge is less about the technical demands and more about the leadership skills of the people we employ. IT and digital are both increasingly under the management of charities’ finance professionals. Whilst the driver for putting it there may have


been the technological appreciation and the shared reputation for introversion in both the IT and finance professions, it’s actually a very good place for it to be. Finance has gone through a transformation over the last 30 years. No longer is the dominant narrative about compliance; we have seen a shift towards talking about business partnering, leadership and impact. Technology needs a similar kind of revolution. We need to be thinking about investment, not to just maintain compliance and minimise risk, but rather to rise to the demands of future beneficiaries, staff, donors and volunteers. Rather than seeking to reduce what we spend on these core costs, we should be thinking longer term about where it is smart to invest. Whatever the topic, there is always a consideration that is financial or which draws on the skills of our finance professionals. It may have been the case that anything with a compliance or regulatory angle was given to the finance person because that dry and terribly important stuff ought to reside with the dry and terribly important finance person. Now, I think we are increasingly seeing that the inclusion of the finance professional isn’t because of such clichés, but because nearly every single change a charity faces will have an impact on their risk profile, the business model and the sustainability. By including the finance person in consideration of wide-ranging changes charities can raise their financial confidence, build resilience and their ability to dynamically adapt to a changing world and continue to demand the trust of all the sector’s stakeholders. CFG is committed to supporting finance and other leaders to get to grips with all relevant topics - not just pure accounting. Next time you are grappling with a strategic challenge, make sure your finance leader’s perspective is included in the mix – it might not just save you from a crisis, it could help you spot an opportunity too. ■

IoF

Column Fundraising we all have a role in supportinG small Charities to do more

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ur sector is brilliantly varied. We work in every area and region of the UK, helping people, supporting communities, and through our collective passion and commitment, we improve lives and make the world a better place. From the smallest, local volunteer-led organisation, through to the large international charity, every organisation has a role to play. And while the larger charities account for the majority of the money raised, our sector has always been predominantly made up of smaller charities. Over the last six months or so, we at the IoF have been focusing our attention on how we can get more support to help smaller charities become more financially resilient. The problem is well documented through every piece of research and insight – smaller charities will continue to see an increase in demand for their services, they don’t have the resource to match the need, and are saying that they need support to develop the skills and capacity to be able to raise the income that will see them survive and grow. The figures are stark; in 2015 it was estimated that by the end of next year there will be a shortfall of £4.6 billion of annual income for the charity sector. The scale of the task can feel daunting. These are big numbers and we mustn’t forget that behind every stat is a service that someone needs. That’s why ensuring every charity has the right skills to fundraise effectively is so important. Fundraising works – every £1 invested on generating voluntary income returns over £4 on average – it’s sustainable, and it’s empowering. Ensuring small charities have the skills and confidence to fundraise can only be done in collaboration, with funders, infrastructure bodies, membership bodies, local, regional and national governments working together – listening to and engaging with small charities to hear their needs and priorities and collectively identifying solutions. So I was really pleased that the IoF was able to co-host with

Department for Culture, Media, and Sport, a summit on fundraising support for smaller charities. It was a fascinating day of debate, ideas, and sharing thoughts amongst small charities, different levels of government and support organisations on issues that are all focused on helping smaller charities do more. This wasn’t about getting a wish list together to hand over to government and say: ‘Now fund this.’ We know that money is tight, and that resource is scare for direct intervention. And while I do still think that there is a role for government support specifically to small charities, the role that government has to be much broader than writing cheques. The convening power to bring the sector and other partners together, encourage cross-departmental support, as well as provide a framework for local government are all vitally important. It’s also a critical time for engagement, with the Office for Civil Society embarking on a new civil society strategy, now is the right time to be talking about solutions and looking forward. But it is also about what we as support organisations do; and how trusts and foundations support smaller charities. I’d prefer a longer-term, more strategic approach from governments and other funders, delivered in a way that works for small charities, tailored to their needsMore unrestricted core funding will always be good. But some myths should also be busted. Is full cost recovery our own worst enemy? What business would settle for just recovering its costs? Like them, charities should be able to budget, and apply for funding, to deliver themselves a surplus that they can invest in future growth – through fundraising or other development activities. Did we solve all the issues at the recent summit? No, we started to scratch the surface. But we’re committed to continuing the debate and taking it forward to turn intentions into actions, and great ideas into tangible support. I’m sure there are more views and suggestions out there too, so if you have ideas then get in touch – I’d love to hear them. ■

peter lewis is Chief exeCutive of the institute of fundraisinG


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ICAEW

Column Regulation the presidents CluB Connundrum

L Gillian mCKay is the head of Charities and voluntary seCtor at the iCaew

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ast month witnessed the outrage that was sparked over the sexual harassment of the hostesses at the Presidents Club annual dinner after party. Following the event, some charities chose to return the donations they received from the event, arguing that this protects the recipient charity from potential reputational damage that accepting such a donation could bring. The current #MeToo climate has heightened press interest in sleaze, and what better for the press than a story of rich, City sleaze? It’s not surprising that many trustees wanted to put as much distance between themselves and the whole affair as quickly as possible. However, I hope the gesture has not resulted in the trustees who kept the donations being perceived as somewhat morally lesser. After all, the ability to return the donation would depend on the charity’s financial stability and so it is likely that trustees from larger charities may find this an easier gesture than those from smaller ones. A problem with gestures based on morals is the moveable feast of moral judgement. The behaviour of the attendees at the after party makes a great story. It’s the kind of stuff that brings the press and public together in general condemnation. But the problem is that people indulge in all sorts of behaviours that different people would find offensive. That is the problem with the moral compass; it swings in different directions depending on whose hand it is in. The decision to return the donations was based on an assessment of the donors’ morals, not on the benefit of the funds to the beneficiaries. Of course, there is the reputational damage risk but this has to be weighed up against the fact the trustees have exercised their moral judgement in a way that reduced the funds available to the charity. This is similar to the issue of ethical investment. The returns on ethical investment funds may be lower than “non-ethical”


portfolios, but the perceived advantage of them being the return did not derive from companies whose activities the trustees consider unethical. But is the role of the trustee to be arbitrator on the morality of companies, or is it to protect the assets of the charity and maximise the benefit to the beneficiaries? If we decide to make moral judgements on donors, then where does this end? Are charities now obliged to also turn down future fundraising proceeds and donations from those that attended the after party? Does this extend to company donations from events in which they were part of the fundraising team? Do we now rule out donations from people with a criminal record for specific crimes? The gesture may also have had an impact on public perception of charities. We are still putting out the flames of resentment that aggressive charity fundraising practices created. The returned donations were of the size that local fun-runners, cake-bakers and sponsored swimmers could only dream of. I’m not sure how the gesture will be seen in the eyes of the many who give up their spare time to undergo physical challenges, experience some deprivation or sell off their own goods to fundraise for charities. Indeed, recent research undertaken by NCVO has shown that two thirds of the public believe charities should keep the money. The other big problem with moral judgement is we tend to be much wiser after the event has taken place. It abhors, but does not surprise me, that such occurances took place at a late night, male-only, boozy City event. What also abhors me is that no woman, no matter how high up in City life she might have been, would ever have been invited and the outdated sexism of that alone was not called into question. We gave the event our tacit acceptance of that fact, so is it really so surprising, that in a room where women are clearly considered outsiders, the evening had such a sleazy but predictable ending? ■

EPF

Column Property what is your property reality?

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n terms of leadership, this is the most important survey you will complete all year. The Charity Property Matters Survey 2018 has just been launched by the Ethical Property Foundation in an exciting collaboration with the Charity Commission and Charity Finance Group. I see it unashamedly as an act of leadership by the sector for the sector. Run bi-annually, it is the only property survey of voluntary organisations that is completely independent of the property industry. This therefore gives every voluntary organisation that rents or owns a property, the opportunity to establish just how important the role of property is to them This is our fourth survey with the Charity Commission - the first ran in 2012 - and over the years, the results have revealed clear trends against a backdrop of soaring rents and funding cuts. In 2016, our last survey showed that of 425 respondents across England & Wales: • • • • • • •

45% believed their property is the biggest threat to their organisation unchanged since 2014. 58% found difficulty in obtaining funding for property costs, up from 41% 2014 52% did not have a property strategy 43% suffered unforeseen property costs. 45.3% avoided seeking professional advice due to costs in the last 3 years. Close to one third (32%) worried about their lack of security of tenure. Over half (52%) were considering sharing space with other charities.

There are big messages to funders – who need to connect the project funding they give with the working conditions of the staff and volunteers delivering the project. There is also a message to local authorities about the understanding or lack of it, of voluntary sector property issues. For the private sector, there appears to be opportunities with so many charities seeking shared space, and there is sector wide, a small but definite increase to

private sector landlords. Working with the Commission gives us the sector reach across England & Wales, while our colleagues at CFG have all the policy and market research and analysis we cannot supply. The questionnaire itself has been streamlined and will take you just 10 minutes to complete. Each response will be another piece in the mosaic picture of our sector’s property experience. But I hear you say, why should I bother, I hate surveys! Who does not? And yet this is more than a survey, it is about making a statement and feeding into a bigger picture to help your fellow charity professionals. And this is important because property is real front-line stuff, where markets and capital meet civil society. Property is not normally considered from the voluntary sector’s viewpoint, nor incorporates the full scale and range of size and case. Yet as we know from the excellent 2017 Civil Society Almanac published by NCVO, our sector employs 853,000 people and owns assets totalling £112bn. We contribute £12.2bn to the UK economy and earn £45bn a year of which we spend £43.3bn - the 2nd biggest budget item being rent and property costs. Every voluntary organisation has a property story and we need to learn from each other. So please spend a few minutes recording, anonymously, your property reality - the challenges and the successes. The results will be published later in 2018 and sent to policy makers, property industry leaders and the third sector decision-makers to help them understand the importance of property to our precious civil society. Last word to the Charity Commission’s new CEO Helen Stephenson: “Property continues to be a crucial asset for many charities, and is often integral to the services they provide. We would encourage all charity staff and trustees to take part in the Charity Property Survey 2018 and have their say on the property-related matters affecting them.” #epf4charities ■

antonia swinson is Chief exeCutive of the ethiCal property foundation.


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Profile

Interview Profile: Matt Lent

The importance of staying in touch Future First CeO Matt Lent is new intO pOst, but aLready has sOMe big pLans FOr the Charity. he teLLs david adaMs why aLuMni are sO iMpOrtant tO the eduCatiOn systeM, and why partnerships wiLL FOrM a big part OF the OrganisatiOn’s Future strategy. enormously valuable source of support and inspiration for current students. Arguably the most important way alumni networks support current students is by providing relatable role models and signposting routes into possible careers, thereby helping to improve social mobility.

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att Lent doesn’t remember school particularly fondly. He grew up in north London during the 1980s, but is reluctant to reveal which secondary school he attended, in part because he believes it is now a very different establishment. While he was a pupil, he recalls, the school was “pretty authoritarian and very academically focused – and I guess that approach didn’t work for me”. Instead of dedicating himself to homework, he found another outlet, attending, then volunteering for, local youth groups. This became the first step in a varied and impressive career. Today he is the newly installed (in January 2018) chief executive of Future First, a charity that helps state schools and colleges create alumni networks. Independent schools have benefitted from the support of their alumni for many years, but most state schools barely use what can be an

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engaging with young people If there has been a common theme in Lent’s career, it has been an attempt to help schools and other organisations engage with young people more effectively. After working for various youth organisations in the UK and then in New Zealand, he returned to the education system himself in the early 90s to study for a Diploma of Higher Education and then a degree in Youth and Community Studies at the University of Derby. Following graduation he worked for a number of different organisations, gradually building up frontline, administrative and strategic experience. In 2004 he was appointed director of operations at School Councils UK, which worked across the whole education sector to promote school councils as a means of improving equality and inclusion. He is proud of the fact that by the time he left in 2008 the concept was in use in some form within the vast majority of schools in the UK. Subsequent roles have included working for the consultancy Crelos to help underachieving gifted students from deprived backgrounds; developing conflict resolution and leadership courses for the youth charity Leap; and launching a social enterprise, Treetop Training

Profile

Interview

and Education, delivering personal and professional training, consultancy and project management to not-for-profit organisations. During the first half of the current decade he worked for London Youth, while also leading the delivery of the ThinkForward programme in north and east London, supporting teenagers at high risk of becoming NEETs (not in education, employment or training).

a new strategy Lent says his brief at Future First includes developing a new strategy for increasing the reach of the organisation. Its primary role is to spread the message about the value of alumni networks. “About a quarter of schools engage with ex-students in some way,” he says. “How do we drive that up? Independent schools do this very well, state schools don’t, or don’t do anything like as much of it as they could. It seems so obvious, but it can be difficult.” Future First helps schools and colleges build their alumni network by providing a secure online platform they can use to collect the contact details of students when they leave, to keep that data up to date and to build up contact with many more people who attended the establishment in the past. The service offered is tailored to suit each establishment, but it always includes the support of an alumni officer to help contact past students, to plan initial activities and start to embed the programme and network in the life of the school or college. It can then be used to run events and workshops that bring alumni and current students together. They may take part in events related to specific parts of the curriculum, such as the STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects; or they may participate in career fair-type events. There have been numerous examples of alumni helping current students to access some fantastic work experience opportunities, at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London, for example. Students can also be mentored by alumni who have been through the process of applying for top universities, or for medical school. At the heart of all of these networks’ activities

is the idea that pupils meet someone who was once being educated at their school or college and has gone on to establish themselves in a successful career. “Suddenly you see students’ eyes open,” says Lent. “They think: ‘if they can do it, I can do it’. That’s the key message.” Future First claims that 100 per cent of school staff who have used the service to bring alumni back to speak to current students report an uplift in students’ motivation in their studies. More than nine out of ten say these activities help improve students’ confidence and their knowledge of educational and career pathways. “There’s immediate benefits created by the service: building resource, engaging with the community and creating a legacy for young people; and there are long-term opportunities around how schools work with local communities to have positive role models and mentors; and to build social capital,” says Lent. The network also benefits from partnerships Future First has formed with a wide range of organisations, including SSAT, The Careers and Enterprise Company, the Commercial Education Trust, Teach First, KPMG, UBS, the Institute of Grocery Distribution and the Esmee Fairburn Foundation. www.charitytimes.com

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a “healthy place” The Future First network is now nine years old and includes over 400 schools in England and Wales. The small team Lent leads in London is complemented by individuals based in Manchester and in south-west England; and by a board of trustees chaired by former Ofsted chief inspector (and former headteacher) Christine Gilbert. “The organisation is in a really healthy place,” says Lent. “The systems and processes here are amazing, the staff team are incredibly talented and committed and there’s a clear vision on the board. I’m privileged to be taking on the leadership of this organisation at this time.” Just a few weeks into the role, he admits he doesn’t yet have a very clear idea of exactly what the future strategy will look like, but it will involve more partnerships with other external funders; and perhaps some diversification in partnership with other youth service providers. Lent is very much aware of the financial pressures affecting schools and colleges, but argues that this makes the services and additional support that third sector organisations can offer these organisations and their students even more important. Asked which of the many other organisations working in this part of the sector he admires, 18


besides those for which he has already worked, he picks out The Brilliant Club and the Access Project, both of which seek to increase the number of children from under-represented backgrounds who win places at the most selective universities. He is also a fan of Teens and Toddlers, which gives teenagers the responsibility to act as role models for young children. But ultimately, says Lent, the task of helping the next generation to achieve their full potential is not just a job for parents, teachers and policymakers – it should be a goal for the whole of society. “It’s about helping young people to understand the relevance of education,” he says. “How do we support them so that they can see what might be possible?” Lent urges readers to go to the Future First website and register as someone willing to go back to their old school, adding that one should never assume students won’t be interested in your achievements. “You don’t need to have become a CEO for your experience to be of value,” he says. “What schools want is for someone to say ‘I may not be an astronaut or an MP, but I’m well-established on a career path’,” he says. “It doesn’t really have to be glamorous to be inspiring.” ■

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Leadership

Diversity DIVERSITY

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he current thinking about diversity within groups of decision makers is so fully formed it could no longer be referred to as a debate. Having a wider range of perspectives is good. Groupthink is bad, and studies suggest it was one of the key failings that paved the way for the global financial crisis. But the charity sector has nothing to boast about when it comes to diversity of people and thought at governance level. Diversity is, perhaps unsurprisingly, not straightforward. It comprises many factors and it would be a mistake to think one can gauge the diversity of a group of people by simply casting one’s eye over them. Once the problem is defined, what are the possible solutions? With the size of the prize that higher quality governance and decision making offers, the question is certainly worth asking. “Perhaps there is a perception of what a trustee looks like, but there’s no model trustee,” says John Williams, vice chair of the Association of Chairs. “They can come from anywhere and everywhere, and all will have something to bring to the table.”

Current climate Research commissioned by the Charity Commission and Office for Civil Society, and delivered by a consortium led by Cass Business School and the Cranfield Trust, threw the issue of trustee diversity into sharp relief. For a sector that so often leads the conversation on championing inclusion and equality, the level of homogeneity of trustee boards was a surprise to many. While it 20 www.charitytimes.com

time for a change? recent research has put the spotlight on a lack of diversity across charity trustee boards. matt ritchie looks at how the situation arose, and the steps that might be taken to broaden the governance skills base. WRIT TEN BY MAT T R I TCH I E

may have been unsurprising that boards were “not reflective of the communities they serve”, as the commission’s statement announcing the report said, the scale of the issue added momentum to an already vigorous discussion. Researchers surveyed a sample of more than 19,000 trustees, with around 3,500 responding to the survey. Taken on trust, the awareness and effectiveness of charity trustees in England and Wales found that around two thirds of charity trustees are male, with an average age of 55-64 years old. Just over half were retired, 75 per cent had household incomes above the median, and 60 per cent had a professional qualification with 30 per cent qualified at a post-graduate level. Some 92 per cent of trustees were white, the research found, and in-line with the 2011 census’s age-weighted results for ethnicity. The research also suggested a shortage of particular skills and expertise on charity boards. Respondents reported lacking relevant legal, digital, fundraising, marketing and campaigning skills at board level. While there was broad awareness of fraud and cyber risk, there was concern around the ability of boards to deal with these threats. Charity Commission head of guidance and policy Jane Hobson

Leadership

Diversity

the CharItY seCtor has nothIng to boast about When It Comes to dIVersItY of people and thought. says the research highlighted a need to encourage charities to review their board composition, dynamics, and culture. “We are certainly not saying it is bad that such a high proportion of charity boards are made up of qualified and experienced people who can give time to the role,” Hobson says. “But homogeneity creates risks in terms of not having a range of different opinions and perspectives contributing to decision making.” The issue is, of course, not limited to the charity sector. Tackling a lack of diversity on corporate boards has been a long-running project for companies and successive governments. Lord Davies of Abersoch’s 2015 report, Improving the gender balance on British boards, found that there had been significant improvement in female representation on corporate boards. Women made up more than 26 per cent of FTSE 100 boards and almost 20 per cent of FTSE 250 boards when the study was released. Furthermore, the number of all male boards in the FTSE 100 dropped from 152 in 2011 to zero in 2015, and just 15 in the FTSE 250. The study revealed an improvement, certainly, but also that the boards were not representative. Sir John Parker last October published the results of his review into the ethnic diversity of UK boards, which found UK citizens of colour represent just

2 per cent of directors in FTSE boardrooms.

defining diversity “We use the term ‘diversity’ quite cautiously, because it means both socio-demographic diversity and also diversity of skills, experience, perspective, and backgrounds,” Williams says. Louise Thomson, head of policy (not for profit) at ICSA agrees that the definition of diversity as it applies to charity boards goes far beyond the most commonly cited factors around gender and ethnicity. Thomson says these headline-grabbing issues are a good start, but they are only part of the mix. “It’s about bringing together different ways of thinking, different ways of approaching challenges, and creativity and innovation,” she explains. This point gets to the heart of why diversity is considered to be a priority at all. The arguments in favour of greater diversity across governance and executive teams are manifold, but most essentially boil down to one of two key factors: equality or effectiveness. The Charity governance code, updated last year, includes diversity as one of its seven key principles. Diversity, the code states, is “essential for boards to stay informed and responsive and to navigate the fastpaced and complex changes facing the voluntary sector”. “Boards whose trustees have different backgrounds and experience are more likely to encourage debate and to make better decisions,” the code states. Thomson explains how having a greater range of perspectives on a board of trustees will mean issues get examined in greater detail and tested from more angles, providing


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Leadership

Diversity

It Is also not as sImple as CompletIng a box-tICkIng exerCIse, to ensure there Is representatIon of a mIx of baCkgrounds for better decisions to be made. “It’s generally accepted that if you have a wider perspective that you bring to the boardroom then you’re going to make better decisions,” she says. “Whereas if you have a group of people with the same experiences, the same background, the same values, then how much of a discussion are you going to have, that really looks at the alternative issues? You might not always make the best decisions, but you should generally have a better quality of discussion and therefore decision making.” It is also not as simple as completing a box-ticking exercise, to ensure there is representation of a mix of backgrounds on the board. Ensuring the mixture of trustees is conducive to good decision-making is crucial. An example of this is ensuring there is sufficient representation on the board to ensure that trustees from different backgrounds do not feel in the minority, and are thus more likely to stand by their decisions and opinions in robust discussion with the whole trustee body.

Causes The UK charity sector boasts organisations catering for a staggering panoply of areas of need. So it may seem counter-intuitive that the pool of people entrusted with guiding these endeavours looks, on the face of it at least, so similar. Hobson at the regulator highlights charities’ predominant method of finding trustees as one potential 22 www.charitytimes.com

reason for the homogeneous nature of trustee boards. “A contributing factor may be that 71 per cent of trustees are recruited through an informal process which can lead to trustees appointing other board members with similar backgrounds and perspectives to themselves. Boards need to look for ways to recruit outside their ‘circle of friends’, to bring in skills, perspectives, life experience and insights that they lack.” Williams also cites informal recruitment processes as a potential cause for a lack of diversity in charity governance, alongside the demands of trusteeship naturally appealing to people with the time and means to volunteer their services. “There are perfectly practical reasons for why trustees end up being an average age of about 62, even if in principle that’s not great diversity,” he says. “People in later life often start to think about giving something back, they want things to do in retirement. And – although this will change – quite a lot of people are still retiring on final salary pensions. As a result of that they

have the time and the opportunity to be available to volunteer, and are keen to do so.” There is a wealth of anecdotal evidence of a lack of supply of trustees, which can lead to a charity struggling to fill positions on its board with anyone, let alone people with the specific skills and experience that might fill a gap in the trustee body. “When I came into the sector as an employee 20 years ago, we had an issue where it wasn’t necessarily the quality we got on the board; it was the quantity,” Thomson says. “Maybe we’ve not come as far as we should have in those 20 years to looking at quality in the boardroom.” Then there is filling the particular skill gaps that exist on boards, such as those highlighted by Taken on trust. Williams says that, traditionally, charities have tended to target or reach people with particular skills such as finance or an understanding of social care. “But there’s certainly a pressing need for more digital skills and more marketing skills. Fewer people from a fundraising background are recruited to boards

Leadership

Diversity

and as we’ve seen with the recent fundraising scandals, it’s a proven missed opportunity for governance.” Addressing this issue is next to impossible, short of relying on good luck, if boards don’t know the problem exists in the first place. Thomson notes how helping boards to understand the gaps that they have, and the opportunities they could grasp by bringing together a

range of broader range of skills and experience, is key. “You need to educate them before they can start to understand the kind of people that they need to get on. Then the issue of getting digital natives on the board is the same or similar to what you have with BAME and gender – getting the message to them in the language that is appropriate and resonates with them, via a medium that is pertinent to them.”

solutions There is no silver bullet to the issue of board diversity. As set out above, the reasons for the current state of trustee participation vary. A range of measures is required. However, recruitment processes are a key component for increasing diversity. Indeed, Taken on trust’s first recommendation involves addressing the prevailing approaches: “We recommend that more work be done to encourage trustee boards to actively embrace the introduction of different people, new ideas, skills and experience to trustee boards, and to target the recruitment of trustees from more diverse sections of

society,” the report says. Williams adds that boards should look harder at the skill mix they have, for example through formal skills audits, and “for that to be a background to their board recruitment”. Additionally, Thomson suggests charities with the resources to form nominations committees would be well-advised to put them in place, as a more formal and organised approach to ensuring the right mix of skills can pay dividends. There is also a range of channels boards can use to search for new trustees, he says, such as the services offered by Trustees Unlimited and Reach Volunteering. Furthermore, initiatives such as the trustee recruitment pathways programme offered by trustee recruitment charity Getting on Board, can shape as a valuable resource to charities seeking to broaden the pool of potential trustees they reach. Williams encourages trustees to seek out and take advantage of such programmes. The medium charities use to find potential trustees is also an important part of ensuring the right people are reached. This is particularly true for the digital natives that can offer the technological experience and expertise so valuable to the modern trustee board. But recruitment is just one piece of the puzzle. Chairs should look closely at how they run their governance function and ask whether the current arrangements may serve to exclude the sorts of trustees they need to broaden the skillset of their boards. “Think about supporting people as much as possible to get to meetings,” Thomson says. “If you want to get quality people there then help them, because they’re going to help you in the long run.” ■ www.charitytimes.com

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Leadership

Trusteeship opinion

When should trustees accept it’s time to move on?

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hen developing the Charity Governance Code (2017), the steering group discussed the importance of trustees reflecting on their performance. Principle 5: board effectiveness, states as part of its recommended practice: “The board has, and regularly considers, the mix of skills, knowledge and experience it needs to govern, lead and deliver the charity’s purposes effectively. It reflects this mix in its trustee appointments, balancing the need for continuity with the need to refresh the board.” If you recognise any of the following, perhaps it’s time to change your approach or do the noble thing and move on? • The too risky trustee: Doesn’t give sufficient time to read and consider the board papers, skims proposals presented to the board and supports them without undertaking their own research. • The risk adverse trustee: Over-cautious and incapable of taking an educated guess to invest in a proposal that could harvest real impact for beneficiaries. • The truculent trustee: Speaks louder and longer than other trustees, believes their opinions and experiences trump that of fellow trustees, is resistant to change and innovation, unless it was their idea. • The detached trustee: The trustee no longer spends time, if they ever did, with the charity’s

Being honest in the self-reflection of performance isn’t always the easiest of tasks, but for trustees, it’s vital to the success of a charity.

WRIT TEN BY LO UI S E T H O M S O N, H EA D O F NOT

FOR P R OFI T P O L I C Y, I CS A: T H E G O V ER NA NCE I NS T I T UT E

beneficiaries, volunteers or staff and as such has no real grasp of what is going on and the challenges facing the charity. Can support decisions that are no longer relevant to the charity and its strategic aims. • The single-issue trustee: Only speaks at board meetings on a particular issue, usually a matter that was decided many meetings ago, but like a dog with a bone, they just can’t let go. • The permanent fixture trustee: No-one can remember when they were appointed to the board, but they turn up and hark back to times when ‘we tried that before, and it didn’t work’. Past experience can be useful, but nostalgia shouldn’t overrule creativity. • The hands-on trustee: Believes that only they can implement the decisions made by the board and deliver the impact desired by all stakeholders. Doesn’t trust the staff to deliver and as such interferes with the day-to-day operations of the organisation, much to the chagrin of staff and volunteers. • The non-existent trustee: On paper this trustee is the complete package – has the skills, knowledge, and personality to

make a real difference to the board. However, when they do turn up physically (rare), say little or add nothing valuable to the discussion. • The bauble: They look lovely and can attract attention, but they demand lots of attention from the charity’s staff; you’re not sure who gets the most benefit from the relationship. Of course, these are crass generalisations of the worst types of trustee behaviour. However, it is likely that you will recognise at least one or two of the behaviours in your boardroom, probably even in yourself. Every trustee joins a board with the intention of playing a positive role in helping the charity achieve its aims. But sometimes life gets in the way and we no longer strive for continuous improvement - in ourselves or our boards. In which case, we owe it to ourselves, and more importantly to the charity’s beneficiaries, to be honest and ask if someone else would do a better job. If the answer is ‘yes’, then you know what you must do. Ultimately, you’ll get more respect for stepping aside than for outstaying your welcome. ■ www.charitytimes.com

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Public relations

Reputation r e p u tat i o n

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he reputation of the charity sector has taken a battering in recent years due to a raft of negative media coverage of fundraising malpractice, financial problems, data protection concerns and most recently the conduct of aid workers. Among the most high profile examples was the revelation in February that Oxfam staff used prostitutes while working in earthquake-hit Haiti seven years ago. Another scandal to affect the sector was a 2015 Daily Mail investigation into allegations third party fundraising firms were exploiting vulnerable donors. In the same year, financial issues came under scrutiny with the collapse of Kids Company, which had received around £46 million in government funding, despite civil servants raising concerns about its management. In addition, last year 11 charities, including the NSPCC and Oxfam, were fined a total of £138,000 by the Information Commissioner’s Office over data protection breaches.

Eroded trust Such negative publicity has significantly eroded trust in charities, according to the Charity Commission’s annual survey of the

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public’s views of the voluntary sector. While in 2014 the overall trust and confidence level in charities was 67 per cent, by 2016 it had plummeted to 57 per cent. Some charities have started to fight back, to make sure improvements in areas such as data protection, fundraising and safeguarding are widely promoted. Already by 2017 the Charity Commission’s survey had seen an improvement, with confidence levels rising to 6.3 out of 10, although still down on 2014’s figure. Cancer Research UK is among

those to take action, by promoting efforts to give supporters more of a say in how they are contacted. YouGov’s 2017 Charity Brand Index, which measures whether people have heard anything good or bad about the charity, suggests this has been a success as Cancer Research UK saw the biggest boost in reputation among the top 10 charities in its list. Frances Hawley, chair of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) not-for-profit group, urges more charities to follow Cancer Research UK’s lead.

Keeping up appearances Oxfam’s Haiti scandal has put the third sector under increasing scrutiny again, requiring charities to spend some time pampering their reputations. But it isn’t always as easy as it sounds. WRIT TEN BY J o e L ep p er

Public relations

Reputation

Greater transparency A good opportunity to do this takes place in May this year when the General Data Protection Rules (GDPR) come into force. This European Union regulation aims to give the public greater control over how charities and other organisations collect and use their data. “This as an opportunity. The PR advantage is to go out and say ‘we are proactively looking at this because we think it is a priority’,” says Hawley. This strategy, of offering reassurance to supporters and funders, has also been adopted swiftly by Oxfam. Just days after the aid workers scandal broke, the charity released a statement outlining how it plans to improve safeguarding and the way it handles sexual abuse cases. In addition, Oxfam’s deputy chief executive Penny Lawrence resigned and issued a statement to the media saying that she was “ashamed” and took full responsibility. Celebrating achievements Simon Francis, chair of the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) charity and not-for-profit group, urges charities

to also celebrate the achievements of their fundraisers, as a way of enhancing the reputation of the sector. “As a sector we need to be better at celebrating the role of fundraisers, who are too often a group that is hidden away that people don’t want to talk about it,” he says. Francis recommends charities look for strong personal stories among their donors and supporters and encourage them to share on social media how the money they have raised is making a difference. “On sites like Just Giving there is lots of information about how you give money but very little in terms of celebrating success,” Francis says. Being able to identify and promote strong personal stories within an organisation is an area where small, local charities can have an edge over larger charities due to their founders’ personal links to its cause, says Mandy Johnson, chief executive of the Small Charities Coalition. “One of the nice things about small charities is that their founders are often still involved and have got into the charity sector because they have a strong personal connection to the cause they are starting up,” she says.

A small charity that has impressed Morgan recently for its ability to attract positive publicity about its work, despite having no paid staff, is Stay Brave UK, which was founded by sexual abuse survivor Alex Morgan to improve access to help for all victims, regardless of gender or sexuality. The Daily Mail, The Independent, Huffington Post and ITV News were among the media outlets to cover over the last year how the charity is helping to make a difference to people’s lives. “Stay Brave was founded on personal stories,” Morgan points out. “Supporters want to see their contributions in action. It’s no use talking about how great the organisation is, how interesting your team is or how swanky your branding is if the supporter can’t see the impact of their contributions. “By sharing a personal story you can show the impact they’re going to make and people can relate more than just viewing a statistic.”

Showing personality Learning from successful PR campaigns from other sectors is another effective tactic charities www.charitytimes.com

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Reputation

should adopt, advises Tom Watson, business and communications lead for the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA). One recent campaign he believes charities can learn from is Doncaster Council’s public consultation late last year to name their road gritters, which were eventually called David Plowie and Gritsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Anti-Slip Machinery. “They used comedy and personality to engage with people. Having personality and humour really cuts through,” says Watson. An example of a similar approach is the Dog’s Trust. For its Christmas 2016 PR campaign it temporarily rebranded as the ‘Socks Trust’ to encourage people to give socks at Christmas rather than dogs, after receiving 3,400 calls from new owners wanting to give up their dogs after the previous festive period.

Measuring success But proving the value of PR to senior management and trustees can be a challenge as too often this is being measured wrongly in terms of quantity not quality of


media coverage, according to the CIPR and PRCA. They are particularly concerned that metrics such as ‘advertising value equivalent (AVE)’, which looks at the number of newspaper column inches a campaign generates, is still being used. “It is an arbitrary metric,” Hawley explains. “It is not assessing impact, but volume. It is no good saying to a chief executive, ‘look we have got 100,000 views on this tweet’ without saying what difference it has made.” Instead the PRCA and CIPR are urging more charities to have a clearly defined set of impacts from the start of any PR activity, so that they can gather evidence based around it. This could be a survey on whether the campaign changed the public’s atttitude, or whether donations have increased as a result of it. “Every charity, no matter its resource, can find ways to measure. The charities that are doing a professional job at measuring impact are those who are measuring opinion before, during and after a campaign, such as through online surveys,” Hawley says.

Lobbying Act Another challenge for those involved in charity PR is the 2014 Lobbying Act, which regulates the way the sector campaigns around elections.Through the Act, those spending more than £20,000 in England or £10,000 or more in other parts of the UK on campaigning have to register with the Electoral Commission as non-party campaigners and supply details of campaign spending. Failure to comply could result in legal action and in April last year Greenpeace was fined £30,000 for failing to register, while Friends of the Earth was fined £1,000 for late registering. A continuing concern is that the Act is creating a “chilling effect” on PR activity, according to Francis. A survey of 151 charity campaigners, published by training and support organisation the Sheila McKechnie Foundation this January, backs this up. This found that 13 per cent are campaigning less over the last three years due to pressures such as the Lobbying Act. A third (33 per cent) said such pressures had made senior management more cautious about campaigning. The Campaign Collective, a social enterprise set up to support charity campaigning has published a Freedom to Campaign guide this year to help the sector better understand the Act and encourage ensure them to continue to campaign effectively. Francis, who is a founder member of the Campaign Collective, hopes this guide helps give charities greater confidence to carry out campaigns. Given the hammering charities have had from the media in recent years, such confidence is vital if charities are to continue repairing the sector’s damaged reputation. ■

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Technology

Mobile apps MOBILE APPS

Ahead of the game

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harities are under increasing pressure to keep ahead of technology and utilise it for campaigning and to achieve better fundraising results. As well as charities promoting their cause to supporters through mobile apps, charities are also using them to boost their HR systems and provide better communications across their organisation. Shelter is a charity very focussed on leveraging the latest developments in technology to ensure it operates at optimal efficiency and can focus on and deliver the very best to the

In an increasingly digital world, the innovation of new mobile apps is integral to technological development. But which charities are ahead of the game and how do smaller charities keep up? WRIT TEN BY A NTO NY S AV VA S communities it serves. Stuart McSkimming, head of technology and data at Shelter, says: “With an increasingly mobile workforce, we welcome the developments being made when it comes to delivering key business systems and processes via mobile devices. “We are working towards having

75 per cent of our staff using laptops by 2019 as lower prices for laptops mean we can benefit from the improved operational efficiency they offer, by following a one-device-peruser policy.” Combined with widespread use of smartphones and tablets, he says, this mobility enables Shelter to make informed decisions quickly, and enable staff to work in the locations where they can be most effective. “We are already making good progress,” McSkimming says. “Most of our core internal applications are available on mobile – from Office 365 (including email, document storage, Skype and office applications), expenses running on Business World On! from Unit4 to MS Dynamics for customer relationship management (CRM), and we are planning further upgrades this year, including face-toface fundraising.” He says Shelter is very much aware of security concerns and ensuring that business and finance data is not stored on unmanaged and unprotected devices, so the charity uses a mobile device management (MDM) system and multi-factor authentication for applications that may hold personal data.

Mobile app fundraising But it isn’t all rosy at other charities. 30 www.charitytimes.com

Technology

Mobile apps

Episerver helps charities unifiy digital content, e-commerce and marketing into a single platform, including omnichannel solutions for intelligent personalisation and campaigns. Episerver conducted research among 20 major charities and 1,200 consumers and found many organisations were missing opportunities to raise funds via mobile apps. Episerver says: “There is a growing demand from consumers for a ‘mobile first’ approach to making donations and engaging with their favourite charity. To meet this demand, today’s non-profits don’t need to hire external web agencies and in-house experts to manage their mobile content. With the right tool-set, they can simply do it themselves.” But its research found that while three out of five of the UK’s top charities offer an iPhone app, the majority of these apps are promotional rather than used as a way to accept payments. Only 25 per cent are capable of managing donations, it found. And virtually none of the charities benchmarked provided Android apps, despite Android controlling over 80 per cent of the global smartphone market. At Marie Curie, it was found that the organisation was falling behind in its digital strategy. It was time to rebuild the website and create a competitive and appealing digital presence. Working with Episerver, Marie Curie has created a mobile-first site, with a wealth of new content, personalisation features and re-engineered donation processes. The result? A 27 per cent increase in online donations.

Cut landfill Reason Digital, a social enterprise “developing technology for good”, has also helped a number of charities to improve their mobile fundraising. Matt Haworth, founder and director at Reason Digital, says: “Two thirds of visitors to charity websites are using a mobile device, so it’s vital that charities are optimising their mobile sites to reflect this. But some websites can’t be viewed properly or simply don’t work at all on smaller screens, whilst others make it difficult or impossible to make a donation on a mobile phone.” The UK dumps 1.37 million tonnes of appliances and 1.5 billion tonnes of textiles every year. While donating small items to charity, such as clothes or accessories, isn’t usually a problem, when it comes to larger items, such as a sofa or a fridge, they become trickier to transport. Each year over 800,000 used sofas in the UK are sent to landfill or are recycled. The physical challenge of transporting large items to charity shops is not the only issue. Finding charity shops can be difficult in some areas and knowing when they’re open – 88 per cent of donors say limited opening hours make it harder to donate, according to Reason Digital research. Potential givers also need to know whether there’s car parking and whether what they’re taking will be accepted. To help address the problems, Reason Digital developed the Gone for Good app for iOS and Android devices, which allows people to easily donate their goods to charity. Gone for Good has so far been used by ten charity partners and over £1 www.charitytimes.com

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Technology

Mobile apps

million has been raised through the app in the first 12 months. The process is easy: a user downloads the app, takes a photo of the item(s) they’d like to donate, and then chooses a charity. If the chosen charity accepts the donation a van will be sent to collect it. If they decline, the user is given the opportunity to choose another charity or have their item picked up and recycled. Photographing and registering a donated item also helps to reduce theft and wasted, unsuitable donations. Gone for Good has been embraced by Age UK, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Debra, Mind, Oxfam and The Salvation Army and others.

Social media Another way of raising funds is through social media. Lightful provides a social campaign management platform, designed exclusively for charities and social enterprises. The app allows charities to organise all their social media output in a single place. 32 www.charitytimes.com

Lightful is working with smaller charities like Woman’s Trust and Stay Up Late, which want to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to technology, but can’t necessarily afford to invest a lot in social media. Lightful has both a free and premium version of the app, allowing charities of all sizes to benefit from the app’s ability to save time, money and resources. Lightful’s CEO Vinay Nair says: “They say there’s an app for everything and the charity sector is not immune to this. We went through a stage a couple of years ago where lots of charities thought the answer to engaging with their audience was to build their own app. “Having an app can play an important role, particularly in service delivery, but is not always a solution. If you are considering developing an app, have you consulted with your users? Is it something they actually need and would use?” Nair says a “great app” developed by a charity is the BECCA one from Breast Cancer Care. They conducted research and then consulted with

both healthcare professionals and women living with breast cancer to ensure the app provided the type of content needed. More importantly, it was tested before launch by more than 1,100 women. BECCA provides bite-sized information, support and inspiration that women with breast cancer can access any time they like. Nair says: “If developing your own app is not the solution for you, or perhaps you’re a small charity with limited budget, there are other apps out there that can still help you reach more people, raise awareness of your charity and even help you raise funds.” Another mobile app worth a mention is the WorkMobile solution developed for Oxfam. WorkMobile is used by Oxfam at music festivals across the UK to eliminate the need for paper-based forms, replacing them with an electronic alternative. The benefits mean that Oxfam volunteers can capture donator information accurately, securely and in real-time on a mobile device, helping to rid the errors that happen with paper-based forms, as well as lost and damaged ones. WorkMobile allows Oxfam volunteers to simplify the way they collect data at large scale events, which can then be shared with new and existing supporters through social media channels. Not only has this helped to speed up the process and allowed the charity to reach more people, volunteers can now collect more information like time, location, digital signatures, photographs and sound-bites, making the first point of contact with donors a memorable one. When it comes to mobile app opportunities in the third sector there are plenty of alternatives to choose from and plenty of extra cash to be generated as a result. ■

cyber security focus

A hacker’s paradise

for charities, cyber is never worth the risk

cyber attacks: just how prepared are you?

Cybercrime is on the rise and charities need to be able to keep up with the pace of change.

Cyber risk is a major and growing concern for any organisation. For charities, the consequences can be especially devastating.

Living in an online world provides great resources for charities, but research shows many charities are already struggling to keep up.

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Focus

Cyber security focus

A hacker’s paradise Cybercrime is on the rise and charities need to be able to keep up with the pace of change. WRIT TEN BY l aur en w e ym o ut h

I

n July last year, Manchester-based charity, Bury Hospice, claimed cyber criminals had stolen £235,000 from its bank account through what the charity described as “sophisticated cyber fraud”. At the time, the charity said it had reported the incident to both the Charity Commission and the police, and it was keen to warn other charities not to fall victim. But other charities have fallen victim. Bury Hospice is by no means the first or last charity to suffer the consequences of a vulnerable sector existing in a digital world. During Fraud Awareness Week in October 2017, Andy Fyfe, detective chief inspector of the City of London Police said charities are losing hundreds of thousands of pounds a month to fraud. Fyfe explained that fraud was a largely under-reported crime last year and the cost to the sector was believed to be about £2 billion a year. Worryingly, cybercrimes now account for 50 per cent of all crimes in the UK. He said even the figures the police held were much lower than the actual prevalence of fraud within the sector, thus the data didn’t fully represent the extraordinary scale of the problem across the country. One of the most common types of cyber fraud was highlighted as computer software service fraud, where fake technicians pretend to be from IT firms so they can access computers and personal data. This type of fraud affects a wealth

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of organisations, but especially charities. According to Fyfe, this type of crime had occurred almost 12,000 times during the latter half of last year. And it doesn’t stop there. A number of fake websites were set up in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire, with over 60 different names associated with the fire, set up to encourage people to make donations. Furthermore, ransomware attacks were extremely common among charities last year. The crime involves hackers encrypting files in order to get a ransom paid to decrypt information. This accounted for some 50 per cent of all reports of cyber fraud.

Lack of digital strategy But, what is perhaps more worrying about the rise of cyber fraud is not the eventuality of the attacks themselves, but the lack of preparation among charities. The third sector is responsible for funding the country’s most vulnerable people and causes, yet charities are still showing very little signs of pro-activity in keeping hackers at bay. According to a survey released by Tech Trust, over half of charities do not have a defined digital strategy, or consider digital to be embedded in their charity’s overall strategy. The survey, which was conducted for the report No charity left behind: the need for a digital the third sector, was carried out over a period of 30 days in September-October 2017, with 1,261 different organisations taking part. A staggering 58 per cent of charities said they didn’t have a set digital strategy in place. “[A digital strategy] doesn’t mean introducing technology for technology’s sake, but instead enabling an organisation to do more, more quickly by identifying opportunities to apply digital solutions to key business challenges,” Tech Trust explained. Among those with no digital strategy, only 27 per cent of charities said they are positive that they will increase their measurable impact in 2018. However, 92 per cent of those with a digital strategy in place said they expect that to increase.

Focus

Cyber security

Digital engagement Matthew Moorut, head of digital and marketing at tech Trust says the release of the publication on digital adoption amongst UK charities comes at a time when digital tech is causing society to “change more than ever, placing more weight on social organisations to cover the inevitable cracks”. “Ultimately, the evolution of digital tech and the companies driving it brings both great opportunities and serious threats, as can be clearly seen looking back at 2017. “2017 was another year for serious data breaches and costly cyberattacks, which crippled charities and companies alike […]. Still, while there are critical questions to be

“This will ensure they are fit for the future, ready for real and present challenges around GDPR and better prepared to address threats such as cyber security,” he adds. Whatever the size of your charity, there has never been a more important time to further your charity’s digital strategy and reduce the risks of cyber attacks. Whilst your job is to find new ways to keep your charity safe, a fraudster’s job is to find intelligent ways to steal from the most vulnerable. In a digital world that is modernising by the second, failure to show signs of preparation and risk-management sadly turns the charity sector into a palatial abode for unwanted guests.

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We

with charities – and our profits too.

“

“

considered on the impact of artificial intelligence, algorithms and robotics on jobs and beyond, so far, the results in these areas have been positive,” Moorut explains. So, despite cyber-attacks placing a clear threat on the charity sector, there are still very few signs that charities are able to keep up with the pace of change and adopt the appropriate technological advances needed to fight off cybercrime. Mark Dewell, managing director at Advanced, notes how charities are inevitably under “immense pressure” in a digital era, but, he explains: “The reality is that charities need to have the confidence to embrace cloud technology fully, to ensure they can transform into digital-first organisations.

At Ansvar, we’re totally committed when it comes to charity insurance. It’s not just a matter of providing free risk management advice to all the charities we insure. Every year we also donate 25% of our group profits to good causes. We understand the sector, because we’re part of it. Talk to your broker to see how we could help you too.

For more information about Ansvar, talk to your broker or visit our website:

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Ansvar Insurance is a business division of Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc (EIO) Registered Number 24869. EIO is registered in England at Beaufort House, Brunswick Road, Gloucester GL1 1JZ. EIO is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. All content © Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc 2018.

Focus


For charities, cyber is never worth the risk I

n 2012, a hacker breached the British Pregnancy Advisory Service’s (BPAS) website and threatened to publish the name, address, date of birth and telephone number of 10,000 people who had contacted the charity about pregnancy issues, including abortion. In its defence, the charity said it didn’t realise its website was storing this information and that it wasn’t secure. The result: a £200,000 fine and a severe blow to the charity’s reputation, not to mention the potential distress to its users, had their details been published. BPAS is not alone. In 2016, both the RSPCA and the British Heart Foundation found to their cost that misusing donor data – whether knowingly or not – can be expensive and damaging to their reputation.

More technology means more risk for non-profits As charities increasingly rely on technology and social media to interact with service users, donors, suppliers and the public, they are exposed to greater risks. These can take many forms, from damaged technology and interruption of their important work, to crime, lost income and third party claims. A recent government report on cyber security noted that some charities had “incurred sizeable 36


Cyber risk is a major and growing concern for any organisation. For charities, the consequences can be especially devastating. WRIT TEN BY R i ch a R d L a ne, man ag in g d i Rec to R at a nS Va R

financial costs from a cyber security breach”, while the ICO reports that data breach incidents for charities increased by two thirds between 2015 and 2017. It’s small wonder that, in our recent survey, 68 per cent of charities said cybercrime was “an emerging risk causing them concern”.

What can be done to help charities when things go wrong? Given the current cyber climate, it makes sense for charitable organisations to have insurance in place that specifically covers cyber related risks. Data is a big issue for charities and with the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulations in May 2018, there will be much stricter rules about managing and securing personal data. It will be more important than ever for charities to ensure they are on top of their data and the responsibilities that come with it.

If a data breach happens, specific cyber insurance can help take care of expenses such as investigation, legal fees, notifying affected parties and getting IT systems up and running again. It can also help with the public relations cost of managing media fall-out. Cybercrime is another area of concern for charities, which may need cover for anything from an employee fraudulently syphoning funds into their personal account, to a cyber-attack that shuts down their organisation’s computer systems. Or they may find themselves liable for costs if their organisation transmits a virus or infringes intellectual property rights. Conventional insurance policies may not cover events like these. As specialists in the third sector, Ansvar has developed Charity Protect Plus: a comprehensive, online product offering cyber protection and covering the key cyber risks many not-for-profits face. Realistically, cyber risk is here to stay. While we can do little to change that, brokers and insurers can help charities be prepared and have the cover they need to bounce back when things in their cyber world go wrong. ■

Leading in difficult times Leadership: Governance and reputational risks are major concerns to UK charities, but what defines good governance and what are the skills required for a strong leader? Politics: Dr Julie Maxton, Executive Director of the Royal Society joins us to discuss the dominating subject that is Brexit, but also the more subtle shifts in contracting offer another set of challenges. Will the administration of the future protect or revolutionise the sector? Funding: After a year filled with funding and legislative change, securing funding also remains an ongoing concern for many charities. But with fraud and cyber risks at an all-time high, GDPR imminent and governance firmly under the spotlight, how can charities gain control over the threats and continue to meet their promises? Investment: markets have been swaying through the volatility and charities have been under pressure to seek new and fruitful sustainable opportunities. Is there light between the cracks? Technology: Learn how to use social media as a better fundraising platform from Matthew Hodson, Social Media CEO of the Year. Meanwhile, Brian Shorten, Chairman of the Charities Security Forum warns of the risks cyber security can bring and how charities can stay prepared.

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Cyber attacks: just how prepared are you? Living in an online world provides great resources for charities, but research shows many charities are already struggling to keep up. WRIT TEN BY DAVID B R I T TO N, CH A R I T Y DI RE C TOR AT E CCLE S IAS TIC AL IN SU R A NCE

T

he increasing use of digital opens up a world of opportunity for charities, but it also exposes them to new risks, particularly with cyber-attacks increasing in both frequency and ingenuity. Ecclesiastical’s recent research with charities has shown that 17 per cent have already experienced a cyber-attack and that the larger their turnover, the more likely they are to have experienced an attack. In 2017, the world saw a significant increase in ransomware

Figure A

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attacks, and the ‘WannaCry’ pandemic infected hundreds of thousands of computers in just one day. It’s no surprise to see this trend reflected in the charity space with ransomware top of the list of cyber threats organisations have faced. There’s no doubt that not-forprofit organisations are embracing technology and social media to interact with beneficiaries, customers, suppliers, donors and the general public. Options to donate online can be easier and quicker;

generating more income than traditional methods. Stepping up digital activity can also enable organisations to make gains operationally, decrease costs, aid collaboration, increase awareness and engage with wider audiences in new ways. However, this can also bring new threats in an ever-evolving landscape. And, after several years of high-profile attacks on larger corporations and businesses, there is now a growing trend of cyberattackers turning their attention towards organisations that may have a lower level of cyber security, including charities. A lack of confidence in online security and a lack of employees with experience using digital methods can create barriers for charities trying to tap into their digital potential. The recent Charity Commission report, Taken on Trust: awareness and effectiveness of charity trustees in England and Wales, highlighted the need to raise awareness among trustees about the importance of protecting their charity against cyber-attacks and what the potential fall-out could be. With the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) coming into force in May 2018, it’s no surprise that the charities we surveyed think the loss of data and the

Focus

Cyber security

Figure B 77% 76% 80% 69% 65% 52% 81% 61%

44% 62% 63% 44% 54% 61% 40% 77% 45% 40% 42% 49% 32% 42% 35% 36% 0% 6% 8%

Figure C

financial cost of putting things right would be the biggest impacts of an attack (Figure B). However, the reputational damage to the charity and the individuals can be just as serious in the longer term – a fact recognised by larger charities (77% said damage to individual reputations would be the biggest impact). And it’s clear from our research that even the threat of an attack is acting as a barrier to some charities innovating. Our research showed, for example, that the threat of a cyber-attack is putting some charities off using e-mail or social media to engage with both service users (19%) and donors (15%). There are ways to mitigate cyber risk, primarily through practical steps such as virus protection and good data management. However, it’s also worth backing up your cyber security and business continuity plan with cyber insurance cover. This can help by providing access to cyber experts and other professionals to help deal with the financial and reputational fall-out of an attack, including notifying the people affected by a data breach, which can involve significant resource. It can also support with the financial impact, such as lost income and any third party legal claims. ■ www.charitytimes.com

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Breakfast briefing

Managing risk

BREAKFAST BRIEFING

Sponsored by:

MANAGING RISKS IN A VOLATILE MARKE T www.charitytimes.com

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Breakfast briefing

Managing risk

Panel: arun shetty Portfolio director at asset management group GAM Investments.

Kate andrews

Andrews is the chief financial officer at the Bible Society. norman cumming Cumming is chair of the investment committee at UnLtd.

Vicky Rooke Rooke is a senior analyst

at consultancy firm Asset Risk Consultants (ARC).

Katherine taylor

Taylor is the chief executive at women’s charity, Ovarian Cancer Action. Jeremy moodey

Moodey is the chief executive at Sons & Friends of the Clergy.

M

anaging investments isn’t an easy task. Everincreasing political uncertainty and market volatility, coupled with the need for income provide a large and difficult task for those responsible for a charity’s assets. But there’s a large industry out there, capable and willing to help charities cope with the unnerving pressures managing investment risks of an unpredictable climate. Together with GAM, Charity Times gathered an expert panel of trustees, chief executives and

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financial officers from charities across the UK to discuss the issues leading the investment risks agenda. Markets have changed drastically over the years and volatility has dropped, but some issues still very much remain.

Market performance Kicking off the discussion, Larry Hatheway, chief economist and head of investment solutions at GAM provides a background on market performance in 2017, noting that despite the aforementioned political uncertainty (Brexit, Trump and the other usual suspects), 2017 was particularly positive for investments, due in part to monetary policy predictability, as well as a healthy world economy. And the good news doesn’t stop there. According to Hatheway, 2018 offers reasons for optimism. “We call 2018 ‘2017-light’,” he says. “By which I mean markets are more fully valued, but strong earnings, synchronised global growth and low inflation remain supportive. Returns are likely to be positive, but also more subdued.” There has been the additional benefit of a “historically unusual low period of volatility” for some time now, Hatheway adds. “We’ve seen things that the market hasn’t normally paid attention to causing a

bit of volatility, such as Trump or the back and forth around Brexit, but volatility isn’t just a function of politics: other things matter,” he tells the panel. While markets may not be overly chaotic over the coming year, the ability to manage a portfolio the way charities have been accustomed to is still beginning to change. “The way it’s always been done will pose certain challenges for all of us as investment managers. We must be wary of extrapolating the period of low volatility forward,” Hatheway explains, hence the vital need for charities to adopt a healthy attitude towards risk. Assessing risks and targets Keir Boley, portfolio manager at GAM, argues that the biggest challenge for charities is not just be aware of risk, but to begin questioning a portfolio that has been performing successfully for years. “Charities should be looking at whether parts of their investment portfolio that appear diversified are actually being driven by the same factor risk,” Boley says. “If that’s the case, they should be looking at starting to rotate or change the mix of some of the asset allocation, away from some of the things that have seemingly performed well above their longterm performance,” he adds.

Breakfast briefing

Managing risk “As [Hatheway] has already discussed, markets have been doing really well recently, and so it’s been a very strong year for the classic 60/40 portfolio. But it’s really important to look at whether there are parts of that portfolio that just aren’t as independent as people first thought.” David Renton, director of finance and investment at Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Charity echoes this idea, noting how charities are very much “in the risk game” and organisations should approach risk by remaining patient. “As an industry, we’ve had a good run and markets are up, but you can’t avoid the fact that if the markets are down, we are going to be a bit down too. That’s what taking risks means,” he explains. “We know that we can’t predict the future. We know we need a well-diversified portfolio. But once we’ve got that, we’ve also got to be prepared to hold. It’s good to rehearse what might happen and invest time into that, but we also just need to hold.”

Valuation risk Among the many risks that are difficult for charities to prepare for is the risk that assets may be undervalued at a time when the charity may be forced to sell this asset. But Arun Shetty, portfolio director at GAM, reiterates Renton’s point about the need for patience, explaining that this risk can be easily mitigated if you “just hold on”. “It really does depend on your time horizon and the geographical area you’re invested in,” he says. “There will be times when some assets are going to be performing less well and if you can hold on, this will only be a notional fall in value, but if you have to sell then you crystallise that loss. So it really does depend on your time horizon.”

Flexibility is also key to ensuring assets aren’t under-sold, argues the panel. Norman Cumming, chair of the investment committee at UnLtd, the Foundation for Social Enterprises, explains how the more flexible trustees can be with their spending, the less the charity will be exposed to this risk. “The more flexible you are in your spending patterns, the less you will be forced to sell assets at the wrong time,” he says. GAM’s Shetty questions whether the responsibility should really be placed on the trustees, or whether it should actually be pushed onto the asset manager; however Cumming argues that it ultimately lies in the hands of the trustees to decide on the charity’s expenditure pattern. “You could push it onto the asset manager, but they really don’t have the responsibility,” he says. “Trustees take great interest in expenditure and risk”.

The active/passive debate Active vs passive is an ongoing debate, and one that has been tossed around the investment management industry for years, but choosing the wrong time to invest actively/ passively, or the wrong manager to work with could indeed leave charities in a vulnerable position. The group weighs up the pros and cons of each, but struggles to identify a winner. Jeremy Moodey, chief executive at Sons & Friends of the Clergy, argues that the benefits of active and passive can only really be identified during downturns. “One of the issues to consider in the defence of active management is that assets may have underperformed relative to fees, but they’re also better hopefully positioned than indexes come the downturns. So you will only really ever know if active managers can justify their fees during downturns,” he says.

Julia smithies Trustee for woodland conservation charity the Woodland Trust.

David Renton Director of finance and investment at Guy’s and St.Thomas’ Charity.

Kier Boley Portfolio manager at asset management group GAM Investments.

michael Joseph Director of finance and operations at youth charity CityYear UK.

larry hatheway Chief economist and head of investment solutions at GAM Investments.

However, Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Charity’s Renton disagrees, arguing: “It really depends what you look at. You can only really take a view if you look at whether the investments are performing better than the market over five to 10 years. But you can’t always expect them to outperform.” Naturally, the panel notes, one of the main benefits of active management is that when investments are performing badly, somebody else can make decisions on a charity’s behalf. Vicky Rooke, senior analyst at Asset Risk Consultants (ARC), highlights how this also means somebody else is able to cope with the pressures investing brings. “With a fully passive approach, you really need to be prepared to make the www.charitytimes.com

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Breakfast briefing

Managing risk

investment decisions yourself and for the committee to be able to have that responsibility.” Although relatively agnostic, the panel agrees that there is no issue in principal with a truly active manager. However, one concern is unanimous: fees. “One of the issues is that the fee climate is in the process of change for actives post-MiFID II,” Sons & Friends of the Clergy’s Moodey says. “We need to see where fees end up, because only then can we see if they are justifiable.”

Ethical dilemmas If investment fees weren’t enough of a concern for trustees, ensuring a charity’s values are represented in the management of its assets further complicates matters, all the more if trustees wish to ensure the way their assets are run actually advances their mission. But charities are increasingly taking this approach, and the best asset managers are expert at helping them do it. Julia Smithies, a trustee at the Woodland Trust, explains how ensuring assets are invested ethically is especially essential for charities with an ethical objective at their core. “At the Woodland Trust, we have taken this very seriously,” she says. “But with every organisation, deciding what is ethical might be different.” 44


For example, Renton, from Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Charity, explains how as a health charity, the board of trustees decided very early on not to invest in tobacco. However, “that does come at a cost”, he explains, “because tobacco has been the best performing for years”. “We looked at the cost of excluding [tobacco] and decided it was the right thing to do. But it was the only one we decided to avoid. You could argue whether sugar and alcohol are really ‘bad for you’ as such, but tobacco is definitely just bad for you. But you do have to have that debate on the board to decide.” The panel agrees that the issues around keeping investments in-line with the charity’s overall objectives aren’t just money-related. There are reputational risks involved, too. “We should remember to zoom out and think about why we choose particular investments and it’s all because of reputation. There’s been such a focus on charities that making a sensible judgement about ethical investments is crucial,” Katherine Taylor, chief executive at Ovarian Cancer Action says.

Mitigating risks With all of these risks in mind, the panel agrees that the key to mitigating them is a combination of planning, good governance, and

strong relationships between trustees and their advisors. But it’s also important to keep an eye on market movements and keep the trustee board contemporary, Moodey says. “Given that we’re coming up to a 10-year bull run and many charities have a maximum nine-year trustee length, there’s a whole generation of trustees who aren’t actually prepared for a market downturn.” Diversifying income streams is also paramount to the mitigation of risks and potential charity failures, Cumming explains. “Different sources make each individual one less important. It means you can also be slightly more adventurous and you’re not subject to the one stakeholder risk.” Going forward, Kate Andrews, chief financial officer at the Bible Society, says it’s imperative there is better reporting and transparency around charities’ investments. “I’ve only just come into the sector, so I’m learning as I go, but I’ve noticed little conversation around investments – there’s just not much reporting around it,” she says. “There’s this complacency that it’s just income that turns up. But the challenge will be what happens when that changes and it’s not the case. Those conversations need to happen now. That really is a challenge going forward.” ■

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Risk investment

Charities vs investment risk Charity Times asks the investment industry: how much investment risk should charities really take?

“T

he question of how much investment risk is appropriate for a charity to take is better considered as a series of questions rooted in the individual charity’s circumstances. A long-term endowment, with no fundraising activity and flexible spending plans, faces different investment risks from a spending charity, with limited reserves, and relatively fixed spending commitments in the short term, and dependent on fund raising and voluntary donations. For the long term endowment, the main risk it faces is the corrosive effect of inflation over time, so its investment strategy may need to be focused on real assets that will grow the capital and income of the charity over the longer term, with minimum volatility. A diversified portfolio of equities and property could make up the majority of the assets. For the spending charity, the main risk is a shortfall in fundraising or donations leaving spending commitments uncovered, so the investment strategy may need to be ultra-conservative and focused on safe, cashlike investments. Assessing appropriate investment risk starts with individual charity circumstances.” Jeremy Wells, senior client director of charities and specialist institutions, Newton Investment Management

“A

s Benjamin Graham perceptively pointed out: “Successful investing is about managing risk, not avoiding it”. However, not enough trustees are regularly reviewing the amount of risk they are taking with their charity portfolios, especially to allow for variable market conditions. This is odd, because we instinctively understand it makes sense to protect and lock in gains made in the good times. So, why not take a similar approach when markets become overvalued? Given current market valuations (and the end extensive of monetary expansion), it certainly makes sense to take stock now.” Andrew Wauchope, senior investment director, Psigma Investment Management

“T

he investment risk a charity is prepared to take should be commensurate with its objectives and time horizons. Generally, charities have long time horizons, which means that they can make bolder investment choices and invest in more illiquid, higher-yielding assets to preserve capital and provide growth. That said, they must also ensure that they have sufficient liquidity to meet their spending requirements, which can vary from hard and optional to aspirational. Every charity is different and as such will have its own risk tolerance.” Pradeep Kachhala, UK director of UK charities, SEI Institutional


“T

he recent market turmoil heralds an end to the ‘new normal’ of solid equity returns accompanied by low volatility. Even if markets recover, the fundamentals have shifted. Inflation is edging higher, which sows doubts about the predictability of monetary policy, which has been a key source of market support. For charities, lower equity returns accompanied by higher volatility poses a particular challenge, insofar as sources of income remain scarce and bonds offer little diversification. Consequently, portfolio construction becomes more important, featuring equity exposure where earnings remain supportive, augmented by liquid alternatives to enhance the stability of returns.” Larry Hatheway, chief economist and head of investment solutions and Arun Shetty, portfolio director, GAM Investments

PERSPECTIVE

We take the widest possible view to help charities achieve their long-term goals in a responsible manner. For more information: Jon Bell T: 020 7163 2448 E: [email protected] newtonim.com/charities

Your capital may be at risk. The value of investments and the income from them can fall as well as rise and investors may not get back the original amount invested This is a financial promotion. These opinions should not be construed as investment advice and are subject to change. This document is for information purposes only. Issued in the UK by Newton Investment Management Limited, The Bank of New York Mellon Centre, 160 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4LA. Registered in England No. 01371973. Newton Investment Management is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Charity funds

Data investment

Multi-Asset Funds

Investment Manager

Fund Size (£m)

Cash %

Barclays

174.4

1.3

Armed Forces Common Investment Fund

BlackRock

351.2

Charifaith

BlackRock

Charity Multi-Asset Fund

Bond %

Equities UK %

Intl %

13.7

46.8

28.8

-0.7

11.7

38

39.4

160.6

6

10.8

40.2

30.7

Cazenove

572

3.9

1.4

32.4

31.7

CBF Church of England Investment Fund

CCLA

1,326.40

4.1

-

18.9

54.4

COIF Charities Ethical Investment Fund

CCLA

423.9

6.9

-

20

52.5

COIF Charities Investment Fund

CCLA

2,118.40

5.5

-

18.8

53.6

EdenTree

24.7

1.6

32.3

38.3

23.3

M&G

187.8

4.9

13.1

53.5

28.6

Newton Growth & Income Fund for Charities

Newton

763.3

2.3

14.5

38.4

44.8

Newton SRI Fund for Charities

Newton

104.8

5.1

17.9

31

46

Newton Growth Fund for Charities

Newton

50.4

9.7

17.4

30.8

41.2

Active Income and Growth Fund for Charities

Rathbones

173.5

9.4

16.3

25.3

30.1

Core Investment Fund for Charities

Rathbones

68.9

2.4

12.2

37.6

35.3

Ruffer

100.3

6

43

11

31

Alpha CIF for Endowments

Sarasin & Partners

1,742.30

0.8

14.5

27.5

39.6

Alpha CIF for Income & Reserves

Sarasin & Partners

152.5

7

71.3

9.2

9.5

Barclays Charity Fund

Amity Balanced Fund for Charities National Association of Almshouses CIF

Charity Assets Trust

Peer Group Indices1 Sterling Cautious Charity Index

ARC

23.3

35

4.9

5.9

Sterling Balanced Asset Charity Index

ARC

13.7

25.6

21.7

16.8

Sterling Steady Growth Charity Index

ARC

7.6

18

39.3

21.2

Sterling Equity Risk Charity Index

ARC

2.4

10.2

52.6

22.4

Market Indices1 UK Equities

iShares

International Equities

iShares

UK Sovereign Bonds

iShares

UK Corporate Bond

iShares

UK Property

iShares

Cash

48


-

Charity funds

Data investment

Other %

Last Quarter

Last 12 Months

YTD 2017

Return1 % p.a.

Absolute Risk2 %

Minimum Initial (£)

Minimum Additional £)

4.8

4.7

4.4

11.7

11.7

9.4

7.5

250,000*

20,000

7.9

3.7

3.7

13.3

13.3

10.4

6.8

1,000

100

7.2

5

3.3

11.6

11.6

9.4

6.5

5,000

1,000

9.4

21.2

2.9

7.9

7.9

7.6

6.3

1,000

500

3.6

19

4.4

13.1

13.1

11.2

7.1

1,000

None

3.4

17.2

3.4

12.1

12.1

10.3

7.1

1,000

None

3.4

18.7

3.8

12.8

12.8

10.7

7

1,000

None

-

4.5

1.7

9.5

9.5

7.2

6.4

1,000

1,000

-

-

3

9.5

9.5

9.1

7.3

None

None

-

-

4.7

13

13

10.5

9.1

5,000

2,500

-

-

2.9

10.6

10.6

8.8

8.4

5,000

2,500

-

0.9

2.4

10.3

10.3

8.9

8

5,000

2,500

9.3

9.7

3.9

11.7

11.7

9.2

6.7

10,000

2,000

5.9

6.7

3.4

10.6

10.6

10,000

2,000

-

9

2.9

3

3

4.8

5.2

500

None

10.2

7.4

3.2

10.7

10.7

8.2

7.1

1,000

250

1.2

1.8

1.7

4.1

4.1

4.9

4.8

1,000

250

1.2

29.7

1.1

3.5

3.5

3.1

2.3

Key

2.1

20.1

2.4

6.9

6.9

6.2

4.6

2.7

11.1

3.1

9.4

9.4

8

6.3

presented are based on

3.3

9.1

3.5

10.8

10.8

8.9

7.5

estimates provided by

(less than 3 years’ history)

1

Source / Asset Risk Consultants

Property %

The asset allocations

ARC. The estimates are calculated using statistical methods that attempt to

5

11.9

11.9

9.5

10.1

4.5

11.5

11.5

14.5

10.1

whose historical returns

1.9

1.7

1.7

3.9

7.6

most closely match the

2.2

4.3

4.3

5.7

8.1

8

11.8

11.8

4.3

14.9

0.1

0.2

0.2

0.3

0

derive a model portfolio

actual ACI results.


49

Asset Risk Consultants

Column investment

Tilting at windmills More transparent reporting is essential among charities, but is the receipt of a MIFID II 10% depreciation rule notification an unnecessary alarm?

WRIT TEN BY Ma r k j ef f er i es, d i r ec to r a n d

G r aHaM H arri so n, Gr oUP Man aGin G dire c to r, a r c co ns ULta nts

i

n Don Quixote by Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes, the eponymous hero sees a series of windmills on the plain and imagines that they are “hulking giants” that need to be slain. He believes that his mission “is a righteous war and the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless”. One wonders whether the bureaucrats in Brussels went through a similar thought process when designing a client reporting rule where discretionary fund managers are required to inform clients on the same day should their portfolios suffer a 10% depreciation in value intra-calendar quarter. The argument might have gone something like this: losses are bad; double digit losses are very bad and should be avoided; uncertainty as to whether an investor has suffered such losses must be removed; more transparency

Figure A


is our mission; we will wage a righteous war on discretionary fund manager reporting practices.

Giants or windmills? Whilst Don Quixote squared off against thirty or forty giants, how likely is it that the typical charity will have such an encounter? Figure A shows the quarterly maximum depreciation (fall in value from the start of the quarter) over the 14 year history of the ARC Sterling Charity Indices (‘ACI’) using the daily estimated series. The chart shows, for the majority of charity investors, such events are likely to be rare, with only two reportable events in Q4 08 and Q1 09 for Sterling Steady Growth charity investors, despite experiencing a c.30% drawdown over the financial crisis as a whole. Even Sterling Equity Risk charity investors would have only received five MIFID II 10% rule notifications

in the last 14 years and at no point a subsequent notification for a 20% fall have been triggered. For Sterling multi-asset class charity investors, being notified of a 10% depreciation during any given calendar quarter is likely to prove a rare event, which given the alarm it may cause raises the risk of a knee jerk reaction that may do more harm than good. It will be incumbent on charity discretionary managers to provide sufficient information to enable investors to understand the circumstances and to take any decisions on an informed basis, a challenge given the tight timeline for notification.

Fight or Flight? Given the considerable challenges in meeting the new reporting requirements, the natural question is to ask how the new notifications might help charity investors make better informed decisions. Figure B

Asset Risk Consultants

Column

shows the three reportable intraquarter depreciation events for Sterling Equity Risk ACI through the 2008- 2010 drawdown of the financial crisis. The chart illustrates the difficulty for charity investors and managers in responding to such events given the fall in value itself gives little information on the previous or likely future path of asset values. The potential risks are also evident, with the Q1 09 notification occurring at the start of a prolonged rally that would have compounded underperformance for those choosing to reduce risk.

The wrong giant If a discretionary charity fund manager has followed best practice in assessing suitability and then communicating those findings to their clients, it seems highly unlikely that the introduction of the 10% depreciation reporting rule will have a material impact on the behaviour of those clients as and when financial markets experience a sharp correction. For those charity clients who genuinely did not understand the potential volatility of the mark-tomarket value of their portfolios, this rule is more likely to provoke

a potentially damaging emotional response than be of genuine assistance.

Plan of action So how should charities react if and when they receive an intra-quarter notification from their discretionary manager that their portfolio has fallen 10% or more since the last reporting date? We would suggest three courses of action: 1. Before taking any action speak with your investment manager to understand the context and to listen to their recommendations as to what, if any, actions they are planning to take within their discretionary mandate. 2. Revisit the reasons why the current investment strategy was deemed suitable at the outset. If your charity’s investment goals have not changed, the charity’s circumstances are similar but your risk appetite has fallen, consider carefully whether short term thinking is dominating long term planning. By definition financial markets are cheaper after a fall of 10% or more. Passive multi-asset class strategies will be rebalancing by

purchasing those assets that have fallen the most. Contrarian managers may well be doing likewise. Selling asset classes that have fallen in value due to general changes in market sentiment is rarely a good idea. 3. Check how other charity multiasset class investors are likely to have fared by referring to the relevant ARC ACI series. The daily ACI estimates are refreshed on www.suggestus.com every day and can be accessed free of charge.

No need to panic In summary, receipt of a MIFID II 10% depreciation rule notification is not a cause for panic or precipitate action. Before making any changes, speak with your manager; review your investment strategy; and check that other investors are in a similar position. To quote Cervantes: “Forewarned, forearmed: to be prepared is half the victory.” The hulking giant to be slain is surely where an investor has agreed an investment strategy that is unsuitable, not the fact that charity clients are not receiving day-by-day accounts of the short term volatility of their portfolios. ■ Figure B


51

Suppliers Directory To advertise in Suppliers Directory contact Linda Libetta +44 (0)20 7562 2431

ACCO U NTA NTS AND AUDITORS Doing the right thing since 1918

Griffin Stone Moscrop & CO 21-27 Lamb’s Conduit Street London WC1N 3GS

From a single office in Central London, our team of Charity experts advise more than 80 NFP and Charity organisations on their financial reporting and performance.

Contact: Richard Hill

Year after year they know GSM will always do the right thing by them, their supporters and beneficiaries.

T: 020 7935 3793 E: [email protected] W: www.gsmaccountants.co.uk

Renowned for our wise counsel in your sector, we provide value for money, auditing excellence, charity accounting expertise and the highest levels of partner-led service, giving every good cause reason to review their accountancy provision. Contact us now to arrange a meeting.

A S S O CI AT I O NS ACEVO Regent’s Wharf 8 All Saints Street London N1 9RL T: +44 (0) 20 7280 4960 F: +44 (0) 20 7280 4989 E: [email protected]

The Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO) supports members by providing access to:

•

Third sector leadership and governance resources to support boards and senior management teams • Information, publications and reports on key third sector issues • Conferences, courses and networking opportunities to enhance skills and build knowledge • Dedicated helplines and support services such as CEO in Crisis - a service for third sector CEOs facing disputes with their board.

ACEVO also acts on behalf of members; connecting members to key contacts in government.

Charity Finance Group 15-18 White Lion Street London N1 9PG T: 0845 345 3192 F: 0845 345 3193

Charity Finance Group (CFG) is the charity that champions best practice in finance management in the charity and voluntary sector. Our vision is of a financially confident, dynamic and trustworthy charity sector. With this aim in sight, CFG delivers services to its charity members and the sector at large which enable those with financial responsibility to develop and adopt best practice.

Company Registration No. 3182826

With more than 1,300 member charities, managing over £19.3 billion, we are uniquely placed to challenge regulation which threatens the effective use of charity funds, drive efficiency and help charities to make the most out of their money.

Charity Registration No. 1054914

For more information please visit www.cfg.org.uk

Institute of Fundraising Charter House 13-15 Carteret Street London SW1H 9DJ T: +44 (0) 20 7840 1000 Twitter: @ioftweets Facebook: www.facebook.com/ instituteoffundraising www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk

The Institute of Fundraising (IoF) is the professional membership body for fundraising in the UK. Our vision: Excellent fundraising for a better world Our mission: Creating the environment and understanding for fundraisers to excel We support our individual members, organisations as well as the fundraising community and the general public and donors through: • Leadership and representation • Best practice and compliance • Education and networking • Championing and promoting fundraising as a career choice. We are a charity that supports charities and public benefit organisations in connecting donors and supporters with the causes they care passionately about. Excellent fundraising is the essential ingredient that enables us to make the world a better place. Find out how we can enable you to be the best fundraiser you can be.

BA N KI NG Charity Bank Limited Fosse House, 182 High Street, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1BE Call our lending team: T: 01732 441919 E: [email protected] W: charitybank.org Twitter: @charitybank Facebook: /charitybank

If you could borrow from a bank run for and owned by charities and social purpose organisations, would you be interested? Every single one of our shareholders is either a charitable trust, foundation, or social purpose organisation: our mission is to support your mission. You can apply for loans from £50,000 to £3.25 million and more in partnership with other lenders. We offer loans to support your organisation, a deep interest in what you do and a team of regional managers that is there to be your partner in doing good. Talk to our lending team to enquire about a loan.


BA N KI NG

Triodos Bank

Triodos Bank offers a fresh approach to banking. Our mission is to make money work for positive social, environmental and cultural change.

Deanery Road Bristol BS1 5AS

We do this by only lending money to businesses and projects which benefit people and the planet, including charities and community groups.

T: + 44 (0)800 328 2181 E: [email protected] W: www.triodos.co.uk

This means our depositors know their money is used to make a positive impact, while still receiving a fair return. And the charities we lend to receive informed advice, based on our team’s in-depth understanding of how to balance financial and ethical business objectives. We offer a range of services for organisations of all sizes, including: • Term loans and overdrafts • Deposit and current accounts • Corporate finance (capital raising) Visit triodos.co.uk to find out more.

Unity Trust Bank plc Nine Brindleyplace Birmingham B1 2HB T: 0345 140 1000 E: [email protected]

Looking for a bank that understands your charity? Unity Trust Bank was rated No.1 for Sector Knowledge in an independent charity banking survey (2014) and was also rated top for Relationship Managers, Fees and Charges and Meeting Expectations. Currently, around 7,000 charities bank with Unity and over 50% of our lending last year was to charitable organisations. Established in 1984, positive social impact and financial sustainability were part of our founding principles. Today, more than 30 years later, they remain core to what we stand for. If you’re a charity, look no further – we’re on the same page.

F U N DI NG PayPal Giving Fund Whittaker House, Whittaker Ave, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1EH, UK W: paypalgivingfund.org.uk

PayPal Giving Fund is a registered charity (No. 1110538) that raises millions of pounds each year to benefit UK charities. We enable people to give through programmes operated by PayPal, eBay, Humble Bundle and other leading internet businesses. PayPal Giving Fund receives funds donated through these platforms and seeks to grant them to charities recommended by donors. Contact us at: [email protected]

H R & EMPLOYEE BENE FITS Affordable health insurance from a not-for-profit mutual

CS Healthcare Princess House, Horace Rd, Kingston upon Thames KT1 2SL T: 0800 917 4325 W: www.cshealthcare.co.uk/charitytimes

We’ve been dedicated to protecting the health of our members for over 85 years. As a mutual society, our members are at the heart of everything we do and, unlike commercial insurers, we don’t have any shareholders. We provide a range of health insurance policies to suit your needs and budget, covering individuals and groups. Visit www.cshealthcare.co.uk/charitytimes for more information.

I N S U R ANC E

Ansvar Insurance Ansvar House 31st Leonards Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN21 3UR T: 01323 737541 F: 01323 644082 E: [email protected] W: www.ansvar.co.uk

Ansvar has over 50 years’ experience of insuring the Third Sector. We have a tailored range of policies to meet the needs and challenges faced by registered and recognised charities, community groups, not-for-profit companies, social enterprises and voluntary groups. Most of our policies are ‘packaged’ for simplicity and value, but we recognise that each organisation is unique and special and provide flexibility to select additional cover as required. Have a look at our website for more information about our products and services – www.ansvar.co.uk

Suppliers Directory To advertise in Suppliers Directory contact Linda Libetta +44 (0)20 7562 2431 I N S U R A NC E Ecclesiastical Insurance Office

At Ecclesiastical, we’ve been insuring not for profit organisations for 125 years. Today, we insure thousands of the nation’s charities of all sizes and complexities.

Beaufort House Brunswick Road Gloucester GL1 1JZ

Voted best charity insurer* for the last five years running by both charities and brokers, we’ve worked closely with both to develop a flexible, specialist product that meets the varying needs of different types of charities.

Visit our website or talk to your broker to find out more.

We also offer a complete package of guidance and advice that’s there to give you support when you need it.

T: 0845 850 0307 E: [email protected] W: www.ecclesiastical.com/CTimes

Speak to your broker for more information or visit www.ecclesiastical.com/CTimes * In research conducted by FWD, an independent market research company, of those brokers and organisations who named an insurer in the survey, the majority voted Ecclesiastical as the best insurer for charity

Stackhouse Poland look after 400 charities and “not for profit” organisations in the UK.

Stackhouse Poland Limited

Our specialist team arrange a broad range of insurance programmes for our charity clients, including property and liability as well as motor, charity trustee cover and travel policies for aid workers, etc.

Blenheim House 1-2 Bridge Street Guildford Surrey GU1 4RY

The Company also arranges insurance for a large number of corporate clients and has a specialist private client division advising affluent and High Net Worth clients on their personal insurance needs. Please see our website for the video outlining our services to the Charity sector or contact us to discuss our 10 point Charity checklist for Insurance.

T: 01483 407 440 F: 01483 407 441 W: www.stackhouse.co.uk

Insurance Broker of the Year 2013 Independent Regional Broker of the Year 2007 Finalist Independent Regional Broker of the Year 2009

Unity Insurance Services

Insurance for charities with 100% of our profits returned to charity.

Suites 10 & 10A The Quadrant 60 Marlborough Road Lancing Business Park Lancing, West Sussex BN15 8UW

As a charity owned insurance broker, Unity Insurance Services has a unique insight into your sector. For over 80 years, we have been protecting the people, property, liabilities and activities of charities.

T: 0345 040 7702 F: 0345 040 7705 E: [email protected] W: www.unityinsuranceservices.co.uk

We view each charity as unique so we always aim to provide solutions that fit your exacting needs. That’s why we will spend the time to understand in detail your activities and risks to obtain the best possible cover at the best possible price. Visit our website or telephone to us to find out more.

I N VESTMENT MANAG E ME N T Cerno Capital works closely with charities, helping them organise and manage their investment portfolios.

Cerno Capital Partners LLP 34 Sackville Street, St James’s London W1S 3ED For more information, please contact Mustafa Abbas, Nick Hornby, James Spence T: 0207 382 4112 E: [email protected] W: www.cernocapital.com

It is our view that the only way to obtain a reliable investment return is to identify the prevailing macro-economic themes and then follow a robust methodology for selecting investments. We take a real world approach to risk, concentrating on the risks of losing money and not just the measurement of volatility. We invest globally, across multiple asset classes and take a long term outlook to wealth preservation and growth. We act as both discretionary managers and advisors to charities.

Advertise your services directly to our subscribers using our Suppliers Directory If you are a supplier to the charity and not-for-profit sector and want to maintain consistent visibility amongst potential customers then why not include your company within the suppliers section of Charity Times. Your entry would be listed for 12 months (print & online) and includes company logo, contact details and company description/products. Charity decision makers use this section to find suitable expert suppliers. So call us on 0207 562 4386 with your details and we will create a listing to ensure that your company is visible within this valuable resource.

Call us on

0207 562 2431



I NV ESTMENT MANAGE ME N T Charles Stanley & Co. Limited 55 Bishopsgate London EC2N 3AS Nic Muston - Director of Private Clients & Charities E: [email protected] T: 020 7149 6610 Robert Winterton - Business Development Executive - Charities, Intermediary Sales E: [email protected] T: 020 7149 6265 www.charles-stanley.co.uk

A personal service shaped around you • • • • • •

We currently manage £24.9bn* across a broad range of clients Of which our Charity team manage £1.56bn* on behalf of over 800 charities We provide a bespoke solution for each client, as well as a direct relationship with a dedicated fund manager We use a distinctive investment approach within a robust risk framework as well as offering environmental, social and governance screening We work closely with our clients supporting them by providing both policy guidance and trustee training With our 20 regional offices we are close by to support your needs

*as at 31/12/17 Investment involves risk, investors may not get back what they originally invested. Charles Stanley & Co. limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

EdenTree Investment Management Ltd

Profit with principles

24 Monument Street London EC3R 8AJ

That is what we aim to deliver. We believe that a company’s business activity, it’s environmental and community impact and the way it interacts with its stakeholders can all positively contribute to returns. This is why these factors are integral to our responsible investment process and why EdenTree Investment Management has won numerous awards for its performance.

Philip Baker Head of Institutional Business Development T: 0800 032 3778 E: [email protected] W: edentreeim.com

Call us to discuss how investing responsibly will benefit your charity, learn how our charitable ownership helps us see things from your perspective and how your investment can make a real difference. EdenTree Investment Management Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

C. Hoare & Co.

Stability and Integrity

37 Fleet Street London EC4P 4DQ

We offer charities a full bespoke service across investment management, banking, lending and cash administration.

Simon Barker, Head of Charities T: 020 7353 4522 E: [email protected] W: www.hoaresbank.co.uk

Lombard Odier (Europe) S.A. Queensberry House, 3 Old Burlington Street, London, W1S 3AB Contact: Tom Rutherford, Head of Charities T: 020 3206 6156 E: [email protected] W: www.lombardodier.com/ukcharities

• • • • • • •

Stable family ownership for over 340 years Strong risk-adjusted performance Fully unconflicted with no in-house funds or products Simple fee structure Award-winning service Longstanding connection with the charity sector Values supported by philanthropic family

Investing for impact, with values Lombard Odier is an independent investment manager with a 200-year history of providing stability and investment innovation. Our team provides specialist advice to charities, as well as: •

Bespoke investment services tailored to the priorities of your charity

• Risk-based investment strategy designed to limit fluctuations in portfolio value • Custody services, providing online access and transparent reporting on portfolio performance

Disclaimer: The bank is authorised and regulated by the CSSF in Luxembourg and its branch in the UK by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority

M&G Investments, M&G Charities Department

With M&G, you’re free to choose from two specialist pooled funds for charities, Charifund and Charibond, or alternatively, invest across our wide range of OEIC funds.

PO Box 9038, Chelmsford CM99 2XF

We’ve been managing charitable funds for over 55 years and now look after £1.4 billion* for charities – making us one of the largest and most experienced managers of these funds in the UK. The value of investments will fluctuate, which will cause fund prices to fall as well as rise and you may not get back the original amount you invested.

T: Richard Macey 020 7548 3731 or James Potter 020 7548 3882 E: [email protected] W: www.mandg.co.uk/charities

*As at 31.03.2016. Issued by M&G Securities Limited who is the fund manager and registered in England No. 90776. The registered office is Laurence Pountney Hill, London EC4R 0HH. M&G Securities Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Charibond’s charity registered number is 271815, and Charifund’s charity registered number is 249958.


I NV ESTMENT MA NAG E ME N T Newton Investment Management Jon Bell Newton Investment Management BNY Mellon Centre 160 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4LA T: +44 (0)20 7163 2448 E: [email protected] w: www.newtonim.com/charities

Quilter Cheviot

At Newton, our sole focus is investment management. We currently manage £53.8 billion for a broad range of clients, of which £4.1 billion is on behalf of charities (as at 31 December 2017). We are a committed and trusted-long-term partner to charities, with a track record of helping them achieve their goals. But we do not stand still: innovation and thought leadership in the charity sector are fundamental parts of our business. We use a distinctive, global thematic investment approach, combined with rigorous analysis of environmental, social and governance issues, in our specially designed charity pooled funds, sustainable strategies, and segregated portfolio services. www.newtonim.com/charities

How do you navigate investment challenges & opportunities?

Contact: Charles Mesquita One Kingsway London WC2B 6AN t: +44 (0)20 7150 4000 E: [email protected] W: quiltercheviot.com

• Over £1.7 billion of charity assets under management (as at 30/06/2017)

When it comes to investment, we help charities by thinking beyond the obvious.

•

Support for the sector: charity seminars, bespoke investment training, ethical investment expertise and knowledge guides

Quilter Cheviot Limited is authorised and registered by the Financial Conduct Authority

Rathbone Investment Management

Rathbones welcomes charities of all shapes and sizes

8 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7AZ

We like to work in partnership with our charity clients which means you will have direct access to the person managing your charity’s investments, resulting in a portfolio that accurately meets your needs and is as individual as your charity.

For further information please contact James Brennan: E: [email protected] T: 020 7965 7102 W: rathbones.com/charities Rathbone Investment Management is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.

Royal London Asset Management 55 Gracechurch Street London, EC3V 0RL Contact: Alan Bunce, Head of Institutional Business – Direct T: +44 (0)20 7506 6570 E: [email protected] www.rlam.co.uk RLAM is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Ruffer LLP 80 Victoria Street London SW1E 5JL For more information contact: Christopher Querée, Investment Director – Head of Charities T: +44 (0)20 7963 8110 F: +44 (0)20 7963 8175 E: [email protected]

Key facts • • • • •

£4.1 billion of charitable funds under management Over 1,000 charities Segregated or pooled investment Dedicated team of charity investment specialists A history grounded in philanthropy

All figures as at 31 December 2016.

Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) is one of the UK’s leading investment companies for the charity sector. RLAM has built a strong reputation as an innovative manager, investing across all major asset classes and delivering consistent long-term outperformance. RLAM manages over £80 billion of assets, split between equities, fixed interest, property and cash, with a market leading capability in sustainable investing. RLAM is proud to manage £3.2 billion in assets on behalf of over 170 charity clients. We pride ourselves on the breadth and quality of the investment options we offer, and we recognise that your main focus is your charitable activity; ours is to construct the best possible investment portfolio, often in multi-asset solutions, to meet your risk and return objectives. Whatever your requirements, we are well positioned to offer a solution. All data as at 31 March 2015.

At Ruffer, we have a distinctive approach to investing which we believe is well suited to the needs and goals of charities and their trustees. We focus on delivering ‘all weather’ investment returns and protecting and growing the value of our client’s assets throughout the market cycle. Instead of following benchmarks, we aim not to lose money in any single year and to deliver a return significantly greater than the risk free alternative of cash on deposit. By aiming to avoid the cyclical gyrations of the market, we aspire to provide a less volatile experience for our charity clients. We manage over £22bn of assets, including over £2bn for over 300 charities as at 31 December 2017. A dedicated portfolio manager works with each charity to build a portfolio, taking into consideration the charity’s responsible investment concerns, where appropriate. We are a signatory to the UNPRI and regularly host conferences and seminars designed to bring charitable organisations together, to discuss the key investment challenges they face. We also manage a Common Investment Fund, the Charity Assets Trust. Ruffer LLP is authorised and regulated by the FCA

Suppliers Directory Toadvertise advertisein inSuppliers SuppliersDirectory Directorycontact contactLinda Sam Ridley To Libetta+44 +44(0)20 (0)207562 75624386 2431

I N VESTMENT MA NAGE ME N T Sarasin & Partners LLP Juxon House 100 St Paul’s Churchyard London EC4M 8BU Contact: John Handford T: 020 7038 7268 F: 020 7038 6864 E: [email protected] W: www.sarasinandpartners.com

Sarasin & Partners manages approximately 400 charities* with over £6.1 billion in charitable funds*, representing over 40% of the firm’s total Assets under Management. We also manage investments for UK private clients, pension funds, and other institutions with total funds under management of £14.2 billion* (*as at 30.06.2017). Our particular expertise is determining and reviewing the appropriate mix of asset classes suitable to meet the circumstances of each charity. We are well known for our commitment to education having trained over 3,000 trustees. The reference for this training is our Compendium of Investment. Sarasin & Partners LLP is a limited liability partnership incorporated in England and Wales with registered number OC329859 and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

UBS

Charity focused, performance driven

5 Broadgate

Access all the investment insight and guidance your charity needs through our dedicated team of experts, structured and ethical investment process and worldleading research.

London EC2M 2AN Helen McDonald - Director E: [email protected] T: +44 207 567 0241 W: www.ubs.com/charities-uk

Waverton Investment Management 16 Babmaes Street London SW1Y 6AH Contact: Emma Robertson T: +44 (0) 20 7484 2065 E: [email protected]

The value of your investments may fall as well as rise as a result of market and currency fluctuations. You may not get back the amount you invested. Authorised and regulated by Financial Market Supervisory Authority in Switzerland. In the United Kingdom, UBS AG is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and is subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and limited regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority. Details about the extent of our regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority are available from us on request. Global. Active. Direct. Waverton has been providing charities with investment solutions that are actively managed, directly invested and global since 1986. We combine this investment approach with a highly personal service from charity specialists who take time to understand the unique needs of each client. Waverton offers: • A dedicated charity team • Direct relationship with portfolio managers • Ethical investment screening

• Tailored reporting • Institutional investment process • Trustee training

Waverton Investment Management Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. The value of investment can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than originally invested.

I N VESTMENT RE V I E W S E R VICE S TSA

Independent Charity Reviews

50 Andover Road, Tivoli, Cheltenham, GL50 2TL

TSA provides independent investment reviews and training for trustees to assist with fund management.

T: 01242 263167 F: 01242 584201 E: [email protected] W: www.3sector.co.uk

We can help you with: Reserves Policy Developing a comprehensive Investment Policy Investment policy review – aims & objectives Establishment of investment mandate for your manger to work with. Independent Search & Selection process – designed to help you look for the right manager Continual Trustee guidance to help monitor your investments, and keep up-to date Advice on Ethical & SRI approaches to investment

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M OBI LE The People’s Operator (TPO) John Finch Partnership Development Officer The People’s Operator 40 Underwood Street London, N1 7JQ T: 0207 251 6648 E: [email protected] W: www.thepeoplesoperator.com

The People’s Operator (TPO) is the mobile network that gives back to causes: 10% of customers’ monthly spend is directed to their cause of choice at no cost to them. In addition, 25% of TPO’s profits are passed to the TPO Foundation to distribute to good causes. TPO offers a great range of Pay Monthly contracts and Pay As You Go bundles, running on the UK’s biggest mobile network, supported 7 days a week by the TPO in-house customer services team. Visit our website today to see how your cause can benefit: www.thepeoplesoperator.com


S O F T WARE PR O VIDE RS Advanced Solutions International (Europe) Ltd Basepoint Shoreham Centre Little High Street Shoreham-by-Sea West Sussex BN43 5EG

Advanced Solutions International (ASI) is a recognised global industry thought leader that focuses on helping not-for-profits and associations increase operational and financial performance through the use of best practices, proven solutions, and ongoing client engagement. Since 1991, ASI has served nearly 4,000 clients and millions of users worldwide, both directly and indirectly through a network of over 100 partners, and currently maintains corporate offices in the USA, UK, Canada, and Australia. Our solution is iMIS 20, an Engagement Management System (EMS)™ that enables your organisation to engage your donors – and staff – anytime, anywhere, on any device.

T: 020 3267 0067 E: [email protected] W: www.advsol.com/UKFund

Simply, bluQube is a comprehensive finance and accounting system designed to assist your charity in solving every day financial challenges in a practical and simplified way.

bluQube

The Hophouse The Old Brewery Business Park 7-11 Lodway Pill Bristol BS20 0DH E: [email protected] T: 08456 44 77 88 w: www.bluqube.co.uk

bluQube has been specifically developed to help charities challenge the way they think about finance. Through cloud and browser-based technology with multi-devise access, bluQube transforms finance operations to deliver cross-organisation efficiencies, sophisticated management information and a different way of seeing finance. With a user friendly interface designed to provide your core finance team with all the necessary functionality they need, while remaining intuitive for non-finance budget holders and senior management to tap in and access at a glance information, bluQube will usher in an all new level of efficiency to the way your charity operates. bluQube finance software is developed by Symmetry, based in Bristol.

PS Financials - Powering Better Business Decisions

PS Financials Ltd

PS Financials have been providing core accounting, purchasing, budgeting and reporting software to the Not-for-Profit sector in 58+ countries for over 12 years. PS Financials has been chosen by all types of Not-for-Profit organisations with incomes ranging from £1 million to over £200 million per annum.

Park House, Peterborough Business Park, Lynch Wood, Peterborough, PE2 6FZ. Contact: James Vear E: [email protected] T: 01733 367 330

PS Financials is developed for the most modern computing environments including the CLOUD, hosted or locally installed environments. PS Financials uses its Unified Ledger design to provide powerful analysis and business intelligence, coupled with instant consolidation, process automation and ease of use.

C harity S olutions The UK’s top charity experts can help you!

Greenacre Associates Ltd

Affordable, flexible and practical help from Greenacre on demand services

PO BOX 464 Bridgwater TA6 9GX

Using our large team of professional associates we can deliver tailored support and advice to charities quickly and affordably.

T: 0345 222 1539 E: [email protected] W: www.Greenacregroup.co.uk

Low Development Costs! We have comprehensive materials covering financial management (including independent examinations); project development, management and delivery; fundraising and bid writing; trustee and staff training; risk analysis; and much more. Greenacre Associates Ltd have been providing solutions for the not for profit sector at all levels over the past 5 years. Our Associates are drawn from professional spheres as diverse at Accountants and Lawyers to fundraisers and event managers but all have established experience in this sector and demonstrable track records of achievement.

Advertise your services directly to our subscribers using our Suppliers Directory If you are a supplier to the charity and not-for-profit sector and want to maintain consistent visibility amongst potential customers then why not include your company within the suppliers section of Charity Times. Your entry would be listed for 12 months (print & online) and includes company logo, contact details and company description/products. Charity decision makers use this section to find suitable expert suppliers. So call us on 0207 562 4386 with your details and we will create a listing to ensure that your company is visible within this valuable resource.

Call us on

0207 562 2431


FR

SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT

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TO

ESG, SRI, Impact, Sustainability and Governance

AT T

EN

THURSDAY 1 MARCH 2018

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De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, London

AGENDA ANNOUNCED! 12:25 - 12:50 Sustainability

08:30 - 08:55 Registration and refreshments

Robert Hardy, Managing Director, J.P. Morgan Asset Management 08:55 - 09:00 Chairman’s welcome: Simon Howard, Chief Executive, UKSIF 12:50 - 13:15 Why is sustainable investing the key to the future? 09:00 - 09:25 KEYNOTE speaker: Neena Gill CBE, Member of the European Parliament,

Victoria Barron, Responsible Investment Analyst, Newton Investment

The Labour Party

Management & Raj Shant, Portfolio Manager, Global Equity Team, Newton Investment Management

09:25 - 09:50 Actions speak louder than words Jillian Reid, Principal, Responsible Investment Team, Mercer

13:15 - 14:00 Lunch

09:50 - 10:15 How ESG integration helps generate consistent alpha

14:00 - 14:25 Holistic approaches to climate change risk into investment strategies

Lewis Grant, Senior Portfolio Manager, Global Equities, Hermes

Murray Birt, Vice President, ESG Thematic Research Strategist, Deutsche 10:15 - 10:40 Panel discussion: How can smart beta fulfil your ESG investment needs?

Asset Management

Exclusive global research preview Panellists: Professor Gordon Clark, Oxford University, Boyan Filev, Co-Head Quantitative

14:25 - 14:50 KEYNOTE speaker: Butch Bacani, Programme Leader, UN

Equities, Aberdeen Standard Investments & Doug Morrow, Associate Director, Thematic

Environment’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance Initiative

Research, Sustainalytics 14:50 - 15:15 Sustainable investing – Moving into the mainstream 10:40 - 11:05 It’s time to make a positive impact

Mike Fox, Head of Sustainable Investments, Royal London Asset Management

Bruno Bertocci, Senior Portfolio Manager and Managing Director, UBS 15:15 - 15:40 Approaching ESG integration in emerging markets 11:05 - 11:35 Coffee Break

Nicholas Morse, Portfolio Manager and Analyst, Comgest

11:35 - 12:00 M&G Perspective on Sustainability

15:40 - 15:45 Chairman’s summary

Speaker to be confirmed, M&G 15:45 onwards Drinks reception and networking 12:00 - 12:25 KEYNOTE speaker: Edward Mason, Head of Responsible Investment, Church Commissioners for England

Sponsored by

Supported by

Follow us on Twitter: #PASustainabilitySummit REGISTER TO ATTEND AND STAND THE CHANCE TO WIN AN APPLE WATCH ON THE DAY OF THE CONFERENCE!

WWW.PENSIONSAGE.COM/SUSTAINABILITY * Places are FREE to attend for qualifying professions. Please check the website for more information.

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