CharityGiving website suspended - latest advice
The Charity Commission acts to protect public donations.
Monitor www.charitygiving.co.uk and www.charitycommission.gov.uk for updates.
For more information, see the Commission’s press release at www.charitycommission.gov.uk/news/charitygiving-website-suspended/
Contact the Interim Manager on DoveTrustInterimManager@crowecw.co.uk
Is my money safe?
The Dove Trust’s banks have been instructed not to accept any further donations from 12 July 2013. If you made a donation to a charity using the website CharityGiving.co.uk before 12 July 2013, the first thing to do is check your bank or credit account to see if the payment has been accepted.
We know that before the restrictions on The Dove Trust’s bank accounts were in place, The Dove Trust had passed on numerous donations to many charities, so your payment may already have been received by the charity. The Interim Manager is trying to identify how much is still payable to which charities and what funds are available to pay them. This will allow them to consider how much and when charities can be paid.
What should fundraisers or charities expecting payments do?
Understandably, many fundraisers and charities are very concerned about the status of money donated through CharityGiving. The Interim Manager is currently checking the amounts payable and the amounts available to make payments - this is a process that is ongoing and will take some time. The Interim Manager will be providing updates on the progress as they become available, which will be posted on CharityGiving.co.uk. If you are a fundraiser wanting to know if your donation has been received by your appointed charity, please be assured that the Interim Manager and his team are working as quickly as possible to establish the true position. Updates on what is happening with the funds for individual fundraising pages can’t be given at this stage.
The Interim Manager is contacting charities to discuss their accounts and the amounts they have received from Charity Giving. Having received this correspondence, charities should email accountcheck@charitygiving.co.uk with any discrepancies.
We advise fundraisers who are preparing for an event, or mid-event, to set up a new page with a different online giving site and update your CharityGiving.co.uk page with a message that advises potential donors of alternative ways in which they can give to the charity you support. The Interim Manager is now advising fundraisers who have created a fundraising page with Charity Giving to review their page. If it is not showing the correct balance please email our team at accountcheck@charitygiving.co.uk. If you know that you have had more money donated than what is showing on your page, this is a discrepancy, and you should report it to our team. If there is no discrepancy you don’t need to contact us.
Our investigation lies solely with The Dove Trust and CharityGiving.co.uk. Please don’t let this deter you from fundraising and using other websites to donate online.
Why was the web site suspended without any warning?
Suspending the fundraising portal was not a decision taken lightly by the Interim Manager. After careful consideration and consultation with the Charity Commission, the Interim Manaager had to act swiftly to protect the funds the public have raised and to ensure that no other pledges made via the website were at risk. It was not possible to give advance warning to the public.
Why were the payments to the charities stopped without any warning?
The Interim Manager was appointed on 6 June 2013 to carry out certain functions alongside the trustees. The Interim Manager’s recent assessment indicated that there was a significant shortfall, and the trustees could not satisfy the Interim Manager or the Commission about the charity’s financial position or the shortfall. So the Commission acted to restrict movement on the charity’s bank account to prevent payments leaving the accounts without approval from the Commission. When it became clear there was no other option but to suspend the donation portal, the Commission acted quickly on the basis of the findings to appoint the Interim Manager to take full control of the charity. The Interim Manager took the decision, in consultation with the Commission to suspend the fundraising portal. The Commission and the Interim Manager were acting in order to protect the existing charitable funds and any future donations.
The Interim Manager now needs to ascertain the true position and decide what payments to which charities can still be made. If you are a concerned charity, email the Interim Manager with your details.
If it was known that there was a problem and possible shortfall why weren’t charities warned earlier?
The concerns about the charity’s financial position and more recently the trustees’ management of the fundraising portal became clearer during the Commission’s investigation. The Interim Manager’s recent assessment indicated that there was a significant shortfall. He is now carrying out detailed further work to reconcile the balances and decide what payments can still be made.
‘Shortfall’ refers to the shortfall between the funds due to the charities donating through CharityGiving and the money available to meet them, including cash and other assets held by The Dove Trust.
I am using another website - is my money safe?
Our concerns are limited to the Dove Trust and the CharityGiving.co.uk portal. No other fundraising websites are the subject of our investigation. It is important that this action and our investigation does not affect public trust in confidence in other charities or charitable giving through these and other means.