The Charity Blackhole - Can the charity you support tell you exactly where your money is going?

CAF (Charities Aid Foundation) reports that in 2018, the total amount given to charity increased to ￡10.1 billion. But in that same report, they discovered trust in charities has decreased significantly since 2016 from 51% to 48% agreeing that they believe charities to be trustworthy. There are many, many reasons for this, some of which have been well publicised but I think this is less about deception or thief and more about complacency.

From my many, many conversations with individuals and businesses who have been regular charity donors in the past, one question is being asked more and more - Where exactly is my money going?.

And my big question is can the charity you support answer that question?.

Can they tell you where every penny of your donation goes?. Not in their annual report or in their charity commission submissions but there and then when you are smiling with that big novelty cheque. Or even better before you start fundraising at all. There are charities out there that have grown so big and have received so much support that there is an expectation that donations will continue to come in and they are wondering why donations are slowing down, far too late!

"There is nothing more frustrating than making a donation, smiling sweetly for a photo as you hand over the cheque and then not knowing where that money has gone, who it has benefitted or what difference it has made". These are the words of one Managing Director I spoke to recently who's concerns have reached a point where they are considering reducing the amount they donate annually. Instead, they are considering increasing the number of volunteering days their staff take because in his words, "At least with volunteering our team can, see and feel the impact they are having".

I firmly believe businesses and individuals still make a massive impact when they donate financially but in some cases just don't "see and feel it". I'll give an example of a charity that is showing their supporters exactly the impact their donations are having.

I recently attended an event held by the Bodie Hodges Foundation, a charity that offers support to families who have been bereaved of a child of any age and to promote organ donation. At the event, the founders showed their guests exactly where the money had been spent the year before and laid out their plans for the year ahead, the costs and the impact these plans would have. The costs were there on the screens for everyone to see!

One guest on my table tripled what he spent that evening because the charity had shown him the impact donations were having, their clear plans for the year ahead and the costs required to put these plans into place. He left that evening knowing exactly what part his company was playing in delivering a project that would have a huge impact on other's lives.

It really is a case of showing and telling where the money is spent, it sounds so simple but again can the charity you support tell you this?.

"I'd rather know that for every ￡5 donated by me, ￡1 goes to administration costs to keep the doors open" another statement from a well known Businesswoman based in the East Midlands I know. "I know every organisation has costs, it's the knowing that matters to me" she continued.

It really is that knowing that counts. I am almost certain that charities don't just pluck a number from the air when they set their fundraising targets and yes I know things change almost daily in some cases but that should still be known by those making donations.

During my time at Dorothy Goodman School, a Leicestershire Special Needs School where possible we would always give donors a choice of projects they could support or a list of equipment the young people required. This way they chose where their money went and see the impact they had by supporting the organisation. In return, a majority of supporters would return to support another project or in some cases raise more money because they could see the impact they were having. And those that just sent a cheque and said "do what you need with the money" we would allocate the money and let them know as specifically as possible where that money had gone in the fastest possible time. On the phone, by letter, social media or where possible in pictures and videos of the children and young people benefitting from whatever that money went towards.

I appreciate not everything done by charities has a tangible 'thing' people can donate towards or purchase but every non-profit should be able to pinpoint projects where your ￡5, ￡50, ￡500 or ￡500,000 is helping them to achieve their aims and aspirations. And if they can't you shouldn't be afraid of asking them to tell you!.

Again I think with many cases where this is not happening it is more to do with complacency and sheer size of the organisation rather than wrongdoing. But with donors questioning more and more what they donate, whom they support and the impact their money is having I think it's time for those that can't answer the question - Where exactly is my money going? to take a long hard look at the message they are communicating.

There should be no "pot of money" or "blackhole" in my opinion.