Recruiting trustees is an ongoing challenge for charities. The latest statistics suggest there are more than 100,000  unfilled charity trustee vacancies in the UK, with 74% of charities reporting difficulties hiring the trustees they need in 2018. It’s not only recruiting trustees that is challenging, it’s recruiting trustees with the right skills. Many charities face serious skills gaps, for instance many lack relevant legal, digital and marketing skills at board level. Increasingly, trustee boards are recognising the need to recruit trustees with more diverse skills, from a variety of different professional backgrounds to improve their effectiveness. The Charity Commission’s Taken on Trust report found that out of 700,000 trustees, two-thirds were male, the average age is 55-64 and 92% are white. The report highlighted there is a “danger that charity boards might become myopic in their views and in their decision-making”.  So how can charities ensure they have a diverse board with a broad range of skills and experience and that this is maintained? Here are some tips for recruiting Trustees in 2019: Conduct a skills audit Carry out a skills audit to check what skills the board already has and where the gaps may lie. Also check when the term of office is over for current trustees, so you can plan accordingly and ensure good succession planning. Think about your charitable objectives What is your mission? Does the board reflect the community you are serving? For instance, if you are a youth charity, can you appoint some younger trustees on the board that understand the issues younger people face today. If this is the case, you may need to change things to accommodate them. Younger trustees might not be able to take time out of their working day to attend meetings, so you may need to hold evening meetings instead.   Clear role description Conduct an audit of the competencies, knowledge and experience needed for the role and recruit in line with that brief. Make sure you have a clear vision of what your ideal new trustee will be like. Think about why someone would be interested in coming to volunteer for you. Robust recruitment process Plan the recruitment process properly scheduling in all activities and making sure those involved in the process are fully briefed. Recruiting a new trustee can take several weeks, so make sure you allow the time to do it well. Communication channels To attract the best talent, charities need to look outside their immediate networks. This may mean using communication channels such as social media. Think about where the people you would like to attract would be likely to see your advert – whether it's a local venue, specialist press, a volunteering website or elsewhere. Advertise the role Write a punchy advertising post it on your website and link to this via your social media networks. If you produce a newsletter, make sure you include the advert. Also use your current networks and engage the whole board in the process. Make sure everyone knows there is a trustee vacancy available. Use a specialist recruitment firm Consider using a professional recruitment firm with a track record of recruiting trustees. A recruitment firm will have a huge database of professionals seeking trustee roles and will able to match candidates to your exact requirements. Many companies offer a cost-effective service based on the size of the organisation. Be clear about the decision making process This needs to be clear upfront to avoid surprises later. Have a clear process for informal meetings, tours of services and interviews and who will conduct these. Interviews should be evidence based to test motivation as well as skills and experience. Make sure you always take verbal references at interview stage. Engaging new trustees A great induction can make all the difference to engage new trustees. It can also be useful for charities to assign a buddy to mentor and support new trustees. We find this can help new recruits get up to speed quickly and learn some historical details about the work of the trustees, which will help them feel more able to participate from the start at board meetings. Remember, trustees are custodians of the whole organisation, so recruiting the right people who will fit culturally with the organisation is crucial. Recruitment is an opportunity to talk about what the charity does and spread the word about the great work you are doing. The process itself can help to induct new trustees making them feel part of the organisation by the time they’re formally appointed. Sophie Livingstone is Managing Director of Trustees Unlimited. She is also Chair of early years charity Little Village and a trustee of the Royal Voluntary Service and of youth social action charity Generation Change, which she co-founded in 2013. Sophie also provides leadership to our burgeoning Step on Board programme which is transforming senior level employee volunteering.    

When I started my career as a fundraiser 30 years ago, many of the things we now take for granted did not exist.  We did not have the internet, mobile phones, smart phones, e-mail or social media. A shared computer sat, neglected in the corner of the office as we struggled to use its counter-intuitive software and retreated to the familiarity of our desks, telephones, Rolodex, pens and paper.  I was a Community Fundraiser.  We had the best jobs in fundraising.  We could not compete with the glamour of the High Level Donor teams, or the prestige of the slick, suited Corporate Fundraisers. But we didn’t care because in our hearts we knew that we practiced the art of building relationships in all their human, unpredictable, chaotic, grassroots glory.  The community was the place to be. Then, one day my boss arrived and with great fanfare installed something called Windows. From that moment, the world changed quickly.  We saw unprecedented mass marketing and data crunching. Words like acquisition, retention, attrition and segmentation became part of our fundraising vocabulary. The rise of the database meant that big charities cultivated direct marketing teams who mapped out donor journeys and, in turn generated work for a vast number of creative agencies and fulfilment houses. In the mid-1990s we could feel the tectonic plates of fundraising shift.  In the big-charity world community fundraising became the poor and noisy relation of teams that delivered a better, faster, more clinical return on investment.  Technology meant that significant funds could be generated quickly at arm’s length. Suddenly there was no need to get down into the messy grassroots, or engage with challenging, complex, emotional people. Since then I have worked my way up through the fundraising ranks, to middle manager, Department Head and Director of Fundraising.  I’m no luddite, but there have been times during my career that I have hankered after the days when fundraising was about communities, not segments. When we valued the quality of relationship above the in-year return on investment. To my delight I feel the tectonic plates shifting once more. I see global and local hashtag communities coming together to demonstrate, march and fundraise in all their messy, noisy glory.  I see the arm’s length direct marketing one-way traffic slowed by legislation, regulation and reputation.  And I see emotional and passionate people and communities back at the heart of fundraising and activism. Ironically technology has helped us to come full circle and given a voice to communities once again.  There was a point when I thought that technology would kill off Community Fundraising. But now I have hope, because they are two sides of the same coin.  So, my message to all those fantastic, entrepreneurial, innovative local charities and groups is embrace technology. Not to send one-way, direct marketing, envelopes through doors asking for £2 per month. Embrace technology to find your voice, tell your story and build your community, whether it’s on your doorstep or another continent. This is a new, reinvigorated, generation of community fundraisers.  

Most people who work in the charity sector do so because, in some way or another, they want to make the world a little better. For those of us involved in marketing, our role is to engage people with our cause and persuade them to take action (donating, volunteering, building barricades etc). So far,  so simple. The problem is that the actions we take in achieving our goals are not neutral – no action ever is. Indeed, in some cases our actions have negative repercussions that can outweigh the good they are intended to achieve. To state ‘actions have consequences’ is not exactly ground breaking.  However, in recent years numerous charity scandals have come about specifically because charity marketers and fundraisers have become so blindly goal-orientated that they have entirely neglected to take into account the consequences of their actions. While very few charities are involved in actively (or knowingly) unethical behaviours, all of us must think more carefully about the potential wider impact of our marketing strategy and output.   If we are serious when we use the phrase “what I love about what I do is the knowledge that I am making a positive difference”, then we need to be consistently weighing up whether our intended ends justify our means. Of course, this is not a simple question and will rarely have simple answers. For example, if a charity successfully persuades donors to give £2 per month by using imagery that perpetuates “white saviour” myths, is this justified? My immediate response would be that the wider negative impact of this type of campaign does not justify the use of this imagery.  However, the uncomfortable truth is that these images are emotionally potent and therefore highly effective when it comes to persuading people to donate.   Sadly, this means that marketers who choose not to use such imagery are often playing catch-up.  As are those who take the time to ensure their images have alt-text so they are accessible to visually impaired people. As are those who opt against using aggressive sales techniques. Striking a balance between hitting targets and maintaining an ethical marketing strategy comes with serious challenges.  The reality is that, taking a more ethical route will often be more time-consuming, more resource sapping and will require far more creativity. Given these challenges, it would be significantly easier for marketing professionals to take these risks if they have the support and understanding of their senior management and board. Indeed, in an ideal world, this approach should be adopted into the wider culture and values of the organisation as a whole. In some cases  achieving this support will be easier than others.  However, given the arguments, I believe that the majority of board members and senior managers will be receptive because ultimately they are (one hopes) in involved in the voluntary sector for exactly the same reason as you and I. For more on ethical marketing strategy: People Before Stories: Working With Beneficiaries' Narratives 3 tips for building an ethical fundraising strategy

The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park are doing an appeal with a target of £5000 to get the Burdick family monument repaired. The FoTHCP is the charity looking after the beautiful, atmospheric cemetery park, which opened in 1841 and closed for burials in 1966. It has been a public park ever since, a quiet escape for humans and nature, conservation volunteering, dog walking, and a children's nature club.   In February 2019 a storm blew over one of the first trees planted about 175 years ago, the only silver lime we had.. It hit the Burdick family monument, an Egyptian-style obelisk. The monument broke into seven big, heavy pieces, and it’s going to cost £5,000 to put it together again permanently and safely.   Our biggest challenge is to repair the monument as soon as possible, because if it gets below freezing this winter, frost can break cracks in the stone and make the repair even more expensive.       The monument is the family vault of James & Amy Burdick. They aren't buried here, but two of their sons are. James and Amy had 6 children. James Henry, William, Charles all died before their parents, but Alfred, Lydie and Ethel survived.   The Burdicks were part of the Burdick & Cook merchant shipping company in Poplar. Sadly the company was as lucky with their ships as James and Amy were with their sons. There was a ship with Lydie's name, but it was torpedoed in 1918 by a German submarine. The SS Buresk and SS Burbridge were also sank during WWI.   James Henry drowned aged 21 and was buried in Sebastopol in the Crimean peninsula on the Black Sea, likely on company business. William died when he was 20 years old, and Charles was only 7. We're not sure yet what happened to Alfred and Ethel, but Lydie married a baronet and became Lady Greenaway.   If you'd like to see the Burdick monument for yourself, the cemetery park is open every day.

During these testing times, we have seen a significant increase in the number of crowdfunding appeals being set up by charities using our platform. We’ve also seen an incredible response from the general public - with an increase of over 300% in the donations we are processing through the platform. Many charities and community groups are currently facing an increase in demand for their services or a threat to their long-term existence. Setting up a crowdfunding appeal can be a great way to gain financial support and awareness for your great work.  If you set up a crowdfunding appeal please let us know and we’ll add your appeal to our campaign page, which you can see here: https://localgiving.org/campaign/covid-19/ If you aren’t already a Localgiving member, you can sign up here and we will set up a personal fundraising advice call once you are live. We’ve outlined our top 10 tips for running a crowdfunding appeal in response to the challenges faced by coronavirus below. Setting up the campaign 1. Make it specific Be detailed about the costs you need to cover in order to avoid cutting back the services you provide. These should be reflected in your words, the targets and the timescale that you set for your appeal. Provide examples of exactly what a donation could achieve. We are seeing a significant number of high value donations. Use £50, £100 and £250 as examples. Think about a stretched target. If you are successful in reaching your fundraising target, have a larger target in mind so that you can build on your fundraising momentum. 2. Make it emotive  Use a photo or video that shows the work that you do or the people that you support. Use terminology that makes the donor sound like the hero. Make your wording reflect this e.g. 'because of you, the most vulnerable people can stay safely in their homes during this concerning time'. Outline how time-sensitive your need is during this crisis. Pre-launch  3. Identify how you will reach out to your networks  Bring your team together via phone or video conference software, like Zoom, and identify all of the networks who you can promote your appeal to. Your networks may include: current donors, family/friends of service users, supporters of partner organisations, local media, social media supporters, community leaders, peer organisations, and other groups in your local community. Decide what your call to action is for each network (e.g. donate to us, share our appeal with your friends and family etc.) and the channel (e.g. email, phone, social media etc.) via which you will reach out to them. 4. Secure initial donations before your public launch Most people will be more likely to give to an appeal that has already received some support. We find that the tipping point for success is 20% of the way to the overall target.  When you launch your appeal, reach out to your inner circle of supporters and ask them to help you create a solid base of donations which will give you a leg-up on your overall target. Launch 5. Get everyone to launch the campaign together Bring together everyone closely involved in your organisation (e.g. staff, volunteers, trustees, service users etc.) and ask them to all promote the campaign via their social media channels at the same time. 6. Update your website and social media  Don’t forget to add the web address for your appeal to your website, social media and email signature. Why not reach out to any popular websites that your local community uses and ask if they can add it to their website? Building Momentum 7. Review your progress regularly It is important to review your progress. Create a fundraising team and catch up every day. Review what has worked and what hasn’t, identifying what to continue and what to improve. Most importantly - celebrate your successes with your wider team!  Use these reviews to keep people updated on the progress of your appeal as you reach significant milestones (e.g. 50% of the target or 7 days left to donate). 8. Thank donors quickly  Once someone donates they become a key stakeholder in your campaign. Ensure their buy-in by thanking them quickly and guide them to the next level of involvement.  Invite them to follow you on social media for further updates on your appeal progress. Ask them to share your appeal link on their own social media channels. Donor care 9. Turn donors into ambassadors Consider which of your supporters can help you drive momentum by counting down to the deadline and shouting when you get close to the target. Keep them up to date on anything going on behind the scenes and try to make them feel like part of the team - they’ll want to pitch in and champion your cause. 10. Turn donors into long-term supporters  After building up a relationship with these donors through your appeal updates, consider asking them to make a monthly donation to your organisation. The disruptive impact of COVID-19 is likely to affect the economy, your community and the services that you provide for longer than the current period of social distancing in place.  Regular donations will help to secure your organisation’s future and help broaden awareness of your work. We hope that these tips can help you set up and deliver an excellent crowdfunding campaign. Remember, if you set up a crowdfunding appeal please let us know and we’ll add your appeal to our campaign page, which you can see here: https://localgiving.org/campaign/covid-19/ If you aren’t already a Localgiving member, you can sign up here and we will set up a personal fundraising advice call once you are live. Good luck with your fundraising!

Small and local charities often operate on a shoe string so are acutely aware of the need to balance income and expenditure whilst generating social value. Critically, each charity must generate enough income to fulfill its mission whilst meeting social objectives.    For a charity to be viable, donors, funders and supporters must be in no doubt that the money that they give to a charity will be used to make a positive change in the lives of beneficiaries.   Outcomes and long-term impact are the significant changes, benefits and learning which has resulted from an organisation’s work. All too often, charities find it easier to communicate about outputs, detailing the numbers of people who have attended an event for example (quantitative information), rather than provide the more interesting qualitative information, detailing the difference made to someone’s life following an intervention. A lack of understanding about this can have a detrimental effect on an organisation’s ability to communicate the difference they make. This is also directly linked to the ability to raise funds and write compelling proposals to funders.   At the centre of performance management and understanding impact, is the requirement for services delivered by charities to serve the needs of beneficiaries who, after all, are the reason that small and local charities exist. This includes creating projects or areas of work that will address specific problems or issues, being able to evidence that need and explain why the need exists. The ability to analyse performance is also a management tool which allows organisations to ascertain whether the services they are delivering are effective and whether they are wanted or needed by beneficiaries. With the right information about need and impact, small and local charities can develop new services based on the changing needs of beneficiaries and abandon ineffective ones.   There is an inherent need for small and local organisations to demonstrate the effectiveness of their work but with limited resources this can be difficult. A first step is to have a clear plan of what must be achieved for a project or area of work, to clearly define aims and the outcomes/impact that will be produced, along with objectives and outputs. The NCVO Charities Evaluation Services planning triangle is a simple theory of change framework which can be used to achieve this. A monitoring and evaluation framework can be created to record outcomes and outputs by defining a series of KPIs (outcome and output indicators). Learning from the evidence collected and communicating successes with the world outside, including funders, is the part that is often neglected. Understanding impact with the ability to engage supporters is vital as impact is like a commodity which is bought/funded by donors.   Impactasaurus is a free impact monitoring and reporting tool which was designed for small and local charities. It is easy to use and focuses on soft outcomes, ideal for organisations helping individuals over time. Demonstrating and learning from your impact has never been easier.     Lydia Edwards – Corporate Fundraiser and Impactasaurus volunteer who has worked in organisational development roles at CVS’ building the capacity of small/local charities and in several fundraising/communications roles.