Fundraising Standards Board Complaints Process for Suppliers
What are your obligations?
If you become a member of the Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB) self-regulatory scheme, you will need to:
- Nominate a complaints co-ordinator
- Include the Fundraising Standards Board scheme logo and strapline, and make reference to your complaints procedure, on your promotional materials wherever practical
- State your complaints procedure in writing and/or on your website (if you have one), and state how a complaint can be made
- Abide by the Institute of Fundraising's Codes of Fundraising Practice and the FRSB Fundraising Promise when fundraising
- Endeavour to resolve fundraising complaints as promptly and as amicably as possible
- Keep a record of all fundraising complaints
- In your annual review acknowledge your scheme membership and, where practical, display the scheme logo and website address of the Fundraising Standards Board
- Complete and file with us an annual return about the number and nature of any fundraising complaints received within the period covered by the return
- Ensure that staff members who are engaged in fundraising know all about the scheme and your fundraising complaints procedure
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What if you don't have an internal complaints process?
As a member of the Fundraising Standards Board scheme we will supply you with a generic fundraising complaints process. This can be found on the members area of our website. Please note; this is intended to be a guide only - you should adapt it so suit your organisation.
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What should your complaints process include?
It should identify how a complaint can be made
It requires your complaints co-ordinator to keep a complaints record containing the items below. If a complaint is received by us at stage two of the complaints process, we will ask the member charity for the following information:
- A copy of the complaint
- Details of the Code or section of the Fundraising Promise it is alleged has been breached [Note 1]
- The date on which the complaint was received
- A copy of all the communication with the complainant in connection with the complaint
- Details of the investigation undertaken into the complaint
[Note 1: Complaints should be reported and referred to the Fundraising Standards Board if they are about a breach of any aspect ('must', 'ought' or 'should') of a Code of Fundraising Practice]
When handling a complaint from a member of the public about your fundraising on behalf of a charity client, you are required to provide them, within 14 days of contacting you, with written details of:
- The charity you were fundraising for and either (b) or (c) below
- If the charity is a member of the Fundraising Standards Board scheme, the name and contact details of the charity's complaints co-ordinator
- If the charity is not a member of the Fundraising Standards Board scheme, the fact that the charity is not a member of the scheme
Your complaints process should also contain a commitment to co-operate promptly and fully with a charity and/or us in connection with the handling of the complaint.
When handling a complaint from a charity relating to services provided to them (and not involving a complaint from a member of the public), your complaints process:
- Requires your complaints co-ordinator to acknowledge in writing a complaint about fundraising within 14 days of receipt of the complaint
- Should contain a commitment to investigate a complaint from a charity within 30 days of receiving it, and to report the outcome of your investigation promptly to the complainant charity
- Should contain a commitment that you will endeavour to resolve the complaint amicably with your charity client before resorting to legal remedies
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How do we define a complaint?
In order to be clear about which complaints we will investigate (at Stage’s 2 & 3 of the Fundraising Standards Board Complaints Process) we have provided the following definition:
The Fundraising Standards Board will investigate all complaints that are concerned with a breach of the Institute of Fundraising’s Codes of Fundraising Practice or a breach of the Fundraising Promise, provided that the complainant has first directed the complaint to the charity concerned but is not satisfied with the answer received.
We will NOT deal with complaints that are not about good practice in fundraising. For instance:
- Complaints about the services a charity provides
- Administration and staff costs
- Administration or processing errors
- Retail issues
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How does the complaints process work?
Stage 1: The member supplier attempts to reach a resolution
The complaint is received by the Fundraising Standards Board scheme member and they attempt to reach a resolution with the charity or the member of the public concerned.
Scenario 1: The supplier receives a complaint from the charity they are fundraising on behalf of. The supplier and the charity attempt to come to a resolution. If the charity (Fundraising Standards Board member or non-member) is dissatisfied with the response, they will need to look at legal remedies.
Scenario 2: The supplier receives a complaint from a member of the public about fundraising that the supplier they carried out on behalf of a charity. The supplier will contact the complainant and ask permission to forward the complaint to the charity concerned, and also provide details of the complaints co-ordinator at that charity (if a scheme member), or explain that the charity isn't a member of the scheme. The supplier and the charity will then work together to resolve the complaint and the charity will then send the response to the complainant. If the complainant is happy, this is the end of the process. If the complainant is dissatisfied with the response and the charity concerned is a Fundraising Standards Board scheme member, they can refer the complaint to us.
If a complaint is received by us at Stage 1 before the supplier or charity has had a chance to respond, we will refer the complaint back to the Fundraising Standards Board scheme member.
Stage 2: The Fundraising Standards Board seeks a resolution
The complaint has been through the member's internal complaints procedure and the complainant is still dissatisfied and requires further response. The complainant has contacted us within two months of receiving the response from the Fundraising Standards Board scheme member. Once we have received the complaint, we will contact the scheme member concerned to let them know and to get background information about the complaint (please see 'What should my complaints process include?'). We will investigate the complaint and seek a resolution with all parties concerned within 30 days. If the complainant is still not satisfied, they can seek adjudication by the FRSB Board (Stage 3 below).
Stage 3: The Board upholds or rejects a complaint
The complaint is referred to the FRSB Board for adjudication. They will review the complaint and report their conclusion within 60 days. They have the discretion to specify that either no further action is appropriate, or to censure the charity and prescribe one or more sanctions.
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How do we judge complaints?
Our role is to ensure that charities and fundraisers are adhering to the Institute of Fundraising's Codes of Fundraising Practice and the Fundraising Promise. This means that we will only be able to uphold a complaint if it is about a breach of a 'must' or 'ought' regulation contained in the Institute's Codes, or is a breach of the Fundraising Promise. In particular, 'must' indicates a requirement that is mandatory at law and 'ought' indicates a requirement that is mandatory within the Institute of Fundraising's Codes of Fundraising Practice and therefore for all members of the Fundraising Standards Board scheme.
The word 'should' used in the Institute's Codes indicates a course of action that is recommended as best practice, therefore we will not legislate based on these guidelines, unless there are exceptional circumstances. However, it is still important for charities to report and refer complaints to us that are about a breach of a 'should' guideline in a Code, so that we can monitor the effectiveness of them. For instance, if we receive a high volume of complaints about a breach of a certain 'should' guideline, we will advise the Institute of Fundraising of the situation, so that they can evaluate whether any changes or additions to the Codes are necessary.
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What can happen if the complaint is upheld?
If a complaint against you is upheld by the FRSB Board, they will have the discretion to specify either that no further action is appropriate or to censure you and to prescribe one or more of the following sanctions:
- You should apologise to the complainant
- You should provide additional training for the fundraiser whose conduct was the subject of the complaint
In more serious cases or in the case of repeated complaints:
- You should desist from using the fundraising method or the conduct that was the subject of the complaint
- You should withdraw and/or reprint any fundraising materials that were the subject of the complaint
- You pay compensation to the charity and/or the complainant
In the most serious cases, or in cases where, despite being asked to do so, you have failed to desist from an unacceptable practice or take remedial action, your membership of the scheme will be withdrawn.
For more detailed information, you can download the supplier complaints process in pdf format.
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