BULLETIN MARCH 2010

This is a monthly bulletin going out to around 10,000 clients, contacts, friends, friends of friend's and so forth, to keep them in touch with what's going on in the world of charities. Tip: if like me you have a low attention span or this came to you by mistake, scroll down to the .And Finally.

Daryl Martin

CHRISTIAN RESOURCE EXHIBITION - 11th to 14th May:
Soon be time for me to gird myself for battle; the crowds, trying to remember people's names, having to stand for far too long, wondering why I am there anyway paying far too much for a stand! You can make it easier for me by dropping by and saying hello (if you bring me coffee you will be even more welcome). If you want to see Kay or Viv, who know far more than I do, they will be there on Friday, by which time I will have dropped down with exhaustion. This year they are even making us stay until 7 pm on Thursday; thanks very much. E-mail us for free tickets.

DARYL'S BLOG:
Confession being good for the soul, in a recent blog, I tell how I came seriously unstuck when I lost my presence of mind. Some of my friends think I need therapy; others a good kicking. My wife says she will gladly buy tickets for either. My latest is on the subject of how to really get the best out the team (whether the team runs a country, a plc, a church, or the local WI)

CONFIDENTIALITY:
Bullying makes most of us see red, unless of course we are the bully in which case we are generally in denial, but still, the question of confidentiality will have to be looked at by the CC as they investigate the National Bullying Helpline. There do seem to be other issues with this charity; don't forget that if the CC does decide to look at a complaint that has been made against your charity, they will have a good poke around to see if they can find anything else. They will be looking particularly to see if trustees have used the charity for personal benefit. Some benefits are ok and expected, but if financial or other benefit is involved I'm happy to run my eye past it to see if you pass muster. Also, there can be data protection issues which there might be in this case. Another charity got criticised a few weeks ago because they seem to make a habit of allowing supporters' information to be stolen. I hate secrecy, because it allows the bullies to flourish but we must have appropriate confidentiality or we can do worse damage.

CHARITY SHOPS LOSING OUT:
Donations of clothes and goods are at an all time low apparently, down by almost a half in some parts. We are hanging onto our clothes for longer. An extra bag of clothing from every family would raise an extra £740m in a year. So if you haven't worn it for a year, get it round to a local charity shop (and are you really going to lose that weight you keep promising to?). I have to keep an eye on my local shops to buy back favourite shirts that my wife takes in when I'm not looking.

HOW SAFE IS YOUR LAND?
Interesting one from Anthony Collins, who asked some pertinent questions in their newsletter.
How often do you visit each of your properties?
How often do you walk the boundaries?
How quickly would you know if squatters moved in?
Would you know if a boundary fence got moved?
They go on to encourage you to register your properties at the Land Registry. I think these questions are worth asking whether you are registered or not. Remember, if something goes wrong, you may have the law on your side, but enforcing the law is often fraught and costly, and sometimes even impossible.

VICTIMS OF CRIME TRUST and CHARATHON:
These 2 charities have been wound up by the CC after it was found that many hundreds of thousands of pounds can't be accounted for. Boiling it down it looks like the usual story of too much power being concentrated into the hands of one person. It's absolutely vital that trustees have a clear understanding of why they are there. Don't be sidelined. I have written up some notes to help trustees/ CEO work out a healthy relationship which releases and empowers both sides. Happy to e-mail you information on this.

HR ISSUES:
There's a particularly unpleasant matter before an employment tribunal right now where a charity is caught up in allegations of staff moonlighting and flirty e-mails. I'm not going into details but it is a reminder to us in two areas: first we must have an effective recruitment process, and secondly, our contracts of employment and supporting documentation must have adequate provision in the case of behaviour likely to bring the organisation into disrepute. This is of absolute importance. If your HR needs strengthening we have high quality resources available, which won't cost the earth but might spare you heartache down the road. In this particular case the new chair of trustees, (none of it happened on his watch) is working very hard to contain the damage and see that the issues are worked through with integrity (and mercy).

TRUSTEE SUSPENSION LEADS TO £45K LEGAL BILL:
Third Sector reported on a charity which suspended a trustee, but didn't do it properly and then went and spent £45,000 on legal advice, almost as much as their entire spend on staff salaries. It could be considered bad stewardship to be spending this sort of money. The lawyers concerned must have thought Christmas had come early. The CC had advised that they seek mediation which is a lot cheaper and has other benefits (like the chance of reconciliation?). We are partnering with high quality well thought of mediators so give us a call before you start spending shedloads of money. It will avoid adverse publicity for one thing. I don't want to give my donations to a charity so they can pass it onto their lawyer (don't even get me started on the Princess Diana Memorial Fund!) For more on our chosen mediators click on the link: Peaceworks

AND FINALLY... (being the main or only thing a lot of people read)

A letter to God I couldn't resist; thanks Chris

If you are still there, here are three predictions that didn't quite turn out:

'There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home' - Ken Olsen 1977

'Law will be simplified (over the next 100 years). Lawyers will have diminished, and their fees vastly curtailed.' - Junius Henri Browne 1893

'The problem with television is that the people must sit and keep their eyes glued on a screen; the average American family hasn't time for it.' - New York Times 1939

'Stocks have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau.' - Irving Fisher, Yale 1929.

'I predict the internet will go spectacularly supernova and in 1996 catastrophically collapse.' - Bob Metcalfe, Infoworld 1995. (I'm with Bob on this one; worry about it all the time. Does anyone even know what it is?)