Sleep quality, age diversity, funder meltdowns and the future of Gift Aid

A big welcome to Rachel Cross, our new Trusts Fundraising Consultant, who has written this latest edition of Unconventional Wisdom: our periodic round-up of the most interesting perspectives and ideas published recently by charity specialists, fundraisers and other experts.

Sleep quality and sleep duration are associated with charitable donations
Written by Allison E. Nickel and Michael K. Scullin and published by Science Direct

We’re hearing more and more about the health benefits of good night’s sleep, with a number of popular science books, TV and radio shows dedicated to giving us advice on improving our sack time. It turns out that we might also want to be sharing shuteye advice with our donors, as a national study released in Sleep Medicine online just this month reveals positive correlations between sleep quality and charitable donations.

Across two national surveys of a total of 2837 responders, they found that better sleep quality was associated with a greater likelihood of donating to local charitable organisations and places of worship. However, they also discovered something interesting about a happy medium when it comes to sleep duration. Sleeping for too long or too short a time actually reduced respondents’ likelihood of giving charitably.

The Future of Gift Aid project
Published by Charity Tax Group

Untapped funding, is there even such a thing in the current climate?! It turns out that there is! The Future of Gift Aid Project is a cross-sector project, led by Charity Tax Group, that is working towards automating the Gift Aid process in the UK, helping to unlock over £500m for UK charities each year.

The collaborative project spans stakeholders in the legal, financial, government and charity sectors to help reduce what goes unclaimed, reduce the £180 million claimed in error, and help over 126,000 charities that currently do not benefit from Gift Aid finally take advantage of the valuable tax relief, all whilst operating within the current Gift Aid policy. We sincerely hope this hard work quite literally pays off! 

Fundraising Regulator invites sector to have its say on the new draft Code of Fundraising Practice
Published by the Fundraising Regulator

In more regulatory news, the Fundraising Regulator is currently in the process of updating its Code of Fundraising Practice and is inviting fundraising professionals to have their say. The Code of Fundraising Practice is the Holy Grail when it comes to carrying out public fundraising ethically and responsibly.

Informed by a first public consultation last autumn, fundraisers are now being given the opportunity to review and give feedback on the new draft code before the launch of the final publication next year. This is an important step in making sure the new code not only responds to the needs of donors and the public, but works to support the needs of charities, too. But you’ll need to act quickly if you’d like to respond to the consultation, as it will only remain open until 1st November 2024.  

Harnessing the power of age diversity
Written by Maya Bhose and published by ACEVO

Diversity is a hot-topic in every sector right now, and we applaud it when organisations seek to engage with integrity and flexibility in their approach to racial, gender and socio-economic diversity. But one variable we hear less about within the diversity conversation is age, often only raised in HR incidents where it’s clear someone has been discriminated against due to their age. This issue is highly intersectional and like all questions of diversity, highly intertwined with power imbalance.

In the non-profit sector, sadly it’s not uncommon for the average age of a board of trustees to be two decades (or more) above that of its staff members. However, a recent guest blog for ACEVO by Maya Bhose explores the immense value of age diversity on every level of a charity’s operations, enabling organisations to strategically marry fresh thinking with experienced leadership and make more balanced and informed decisions.

Boost Gift-Giving with These 5 Donation Page Improvements
Published by Clairification

I’m sure we’ve all had experience of trying to make an online donation to a charity we care about, only to find ourselves frustrated over a fiddly process that is disproportionately time-consuming and inefficient. A recent blog post by Clarification provides some solid tips on improving the accessibility of your online donation page, making the process easier and hassle -free for donors and hopefully encouraging them to give larger gifts, more often.

Is there a UK non-profit meltdown?
Written by Alex Evans and published by Barely Civil Society

We can’t possibly end this without mentioning the dire state of financial affairs we’re currently facing in the charity sector. We particularly loved this extended article, which delves honestly into the messy and multi-stringed web of the funding crisis we find ourselves in.

In one swoop, Alex wittily takes on charity closures, pausing grants programmes, power dynamics, the Victorian model of charity governance, voluntarism, the Tories and ultimate accountability, recognising that “the situation is far more nuanced than an us vs them dynamic can capture”. We thoroughly recommend sitting down with a nice cuppa to properly appreciate this piece – we guarantee it’ll have you laughing and crying at the same time.

If you'd like to receive this regularly, along with our monthly fundraising and strategy blog, click here to subscribe.