Further memorandum from the Home Office
(DCH 20)
POSSIBLE INDICATORS
FOR GAUGING
THE SUCCESS
OF THE
LEGISLATION
1. The draft Bill has been the subject of
thorough consultation, and the sector and other stakeholders have
welcomed the vast majority of its provisions. The main purpose
of the legislation is to create a modern legal and regulatory
environment that encourages a vibrant and diverse charitable sector,
independent of Government, in England and Wales.
2. The key benefits of the legislation should
be realised by the charitable sector, enabling it to develop,
diversify, and grow, and in strengthening the public's perception,
confidence and trust in charities, and their regulation. These
two groups of stakeholders will ultimately judge the success or
otherwise of the legislation.
3. Whilst there are a number of provisions
within the draft Bill that would have quantifiable indicators
against which the success of the legislation can be judged, many
of the provisions would not have an immediately measurable effect.
Indeed for many of the provisions it would be difficult to claim
that the Bill's specific contribution to the growth and development
of the sector, or the public's confidence in it, could be measured
in isolation from other influencing factors.
4. As the proposed legislation is founded
on the recommendations of the Strategy Unit report[8]
its success could be assessed against the aims of that report.
Potential indicators of success are set out against each of the
Strategy Unit's aims below, although there will be overlap between
some of the provisions and aims.
5. Modernise charity law and status to provide
greater clarity and stronger emphasis on the delivery of public
benefit:
— Existing surveys of the public's
perception of charity and charitable purposes demonstrate some
confusion over what a charity is, and what organisations hold
charitable status. The proposed legislation clarifies the definition
of charity, and charitable purposes, and this should be reflected
in future surveys of the public's perception of what a charity
is, and which organisations are charitable.
— The conduct and outcomes of public
character checks by the Charity Commission should demonstrate
that only charities providing public benefit are able to acquire
or maintain charitable status. This should also be reflected in
public perception.
6. Improve the range of legal forms enabling
organisations to be more effective and entrepreneurial:
— Monitoring the take-up of the new
corporate legal form of Charitable Incorporated Organisation,
which is designed specifically for charities, will provide a measure
of the success of this provision.
— The draft Bill includes provisions
to facilitate charity mergers. The Charity Commission already
records mergers between charities, and an increase in the number
of mergers would be expected as a result of the legislation.
— Measures recommended by the Strategy
Unit, such as the Community Interest Company, and measures for
Industrial and Provident Societies are being taken forward in
other legislation, but their impact could be similarly measured.
7. Develop greater accountability and transparency
to build public trust and confidence:
— The growth of the charitable sector,
in terms of the number and diversity of charities, their assets
and turnover, and the amount of public giving, would be obvious
measures of the longer-term success of the legislation. However,
various socio-economic factors, and other legislative changes
would affect such growth, so it would not be possible to equate
growth trends directly to the impact of this legislation.
— The provision on improved statements
indicating benefits for charitable institutions and fund-raisers
should raise public trust and confidence in charities. One of
the greatest concerns in recent public surveys was regarding the
amount of a donation that was actually received by the charity
or cause. It will not be easy to measure the effect of this provision
directly, but indirectly through public survey growth in public
confidence could be expected.
— It may be appropriate after a period
of approximately five years to review the success of the provisions
relating to exempt and excepted charities, in particular the effectiveness
of the monitoring of exempt charities by main regulators other
than the Charity Commission. At this time it might also be appropriate
to review whether the proposed £100,000 registration threshold
for both exempt and excepted charities should be reduced.
8. Ensure independent, fair and proportionate
regulation:
— The Charity Commission will have
a number of statutory objectives, against which it will report
its progress. Progress is already underway on a number of the
Strategy Unit's recommendations for reforming the Charity Commission
that do not require legislative changes.
— It is the Governments intention that
the Charity Commission, with advice from the Cabinet Office's
Regulatory Impact Unit, will quantify the impact of regulation
on charities and other not-for-profit organisations, monitor it
over time, publish the results and highlight areas where regulation
appears excessive.
— The Charity Commission has already
conducted research into the public's perception of charity regulation.
Following the implementation of legislation, a further survey
of the public could be expected to reflect a greater awareness
and confidence in the regulation of charities.
— The views of charities, their representative
bodies and other stakeholders will also provide a valuable indication
of the impact of the legislation on the regulatory framework.
— The impact of the Charity Appeal
Tribunal could be demonstrated by the number of cases it deals
with each year and, of the unsuccessful cases before the tribunal,
the number that go on to successfully appeal to the High Court.
— Self-regulation was viewed as the
first resort in improving fundraising standards and practice.
Should self-regulation fail the draft Bill provides the Home Secretary
with a reserve power to make regulations controlling charitable
fund-raising. The Home Office will work with the Charity Commission
to establish the criteria against which the success of self-regulation
will be assessed.
June 2004
8 Private Action, Public Benefit, Strategy Unit, September
2002. Back
|
