blonde, & Charity Events

We have been chewing the cud on this for some time. We have a Duty of Care to the blondes to see that when they are urged to donate to charities via blonde, there is some degree of accountability.

We have decided, therefore, to implement the following GuideLines. They have been drawn up after checking with the Charities Commission that they are "fair,reasonable, & compliant". We WILL be implementing them, in some shape or form, from midnight Monday. However, we would welcome, & indeed invite, feedbck from the blondes as to whether we have omitted anything or, in fact, maybe gone too far. In the light of your feedback, we may well amend the Guidfelines. We are indebted to Tighty, who did most - well, ALL - of the work on this. Thanks Tighty.

Charitable Giving on blonde: Guidelines.

The key principles that blondepoker expects registered charities and individuals to follow when seeking to publicise events on the blonde forum and thus solicitate donations for the good cause(s) are produced below. They are not meant to cover small personal achievements such as sponsored weight loss, walks, runs etc but multi person events that might be attended by a number of members.

The guidelines are:

1. Any individual blondeite publicising a charitable event should make his/her relationship with the registered charity known.

2. The registered charity should be prepared to provide upon request an annual report. The annual report should describe the charity’s purpose(s), programmes, activities, tax exempt status, the structure and responsibility of the governing body of the charity, and financial information.

3. The registered charity should provide upon request complete annual financial statements. The financial statements should present the overall financial condition of the charity and its financial activities in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and reporting practices.

4. The likely ratio (expressed in pence per pound raised) of funds going to the named cause out of the total donated to be known in advance via provision of data for the charity overall over the last 12 months, with information for specific events if available.

5. How much is raised at the event to be made known to the forum within 48 hours after the completion of the event, together with a timetable and process for forwarding the funds to the named good cause(s).

6. The registered charity to provide after the event the total sum taken from the sum raised in costs and personal expenses.

7. The registered charity should be prepared to make available the composition of the management board and trustees, including the authority and responsibilities of the individuals in case there is a need for recourse after the event.

8. The registered charity should clearly state its goals and purposes so that anyone examining its disbursement of funds can determine whether the charity is adhering to those goals.

9. Solicitations for donations should accurately and transparently tell donors how and where their donations are going to be expended.

10. The registered charity should substantiate on request that solicitations and informational materials, distributed by any means, are accurate, truthful, and not misleading, in whole or in part.

11. The registered charity should make disbursements by cheque or transfer, but not in cash so that an accurate audit trail is present if required subsequently.