Ontario Nonprofit Network’s Post

Interesting new article on how charities are grappling with CRA's guidance on grants to non-charities. Opens with "The Canada Revenue Agency’s guidance on how registered charities can make grants to non-qualified donees mentions “risk” 31 times". https://lnkd.in/gnRbbHQY

Nonprofit organizations that are categorized as public charities are required to have one-third of their support come from the general public and/or governmental sources in order to maintain their nonprofit status. But what do you do when you're expecting a major gift that can throw off this ratio? The Independence Public Media Foundation explains what you need to know about this tricky IRS rule and how to avoid losing public charity status 👇

When it comes to due diligence on charities, funders and donors consistently agree that an effective board of trustees is fundamental for the success of a charity. Guided by the Charity Governance Code, the Charizone Charity Performance Framework assesses 4 aspects that contribute to the effectiveness of a board. One of them is the number of trustees on the board. Here is a very helpful analysis by David Kane on how the right number of trustees is linked to meeting submission dates for their annual accounts and thus compliance with basic company secretary requirements. A great example of how data analysis can give us valuable insights. 💡 Would love to hear your thoughts on this analysis?

We couldn't agree more with the recent report from the Centre for Social Justice highlighting how grassroots charities like ours are routinely overlooked when it comes to public contracts and grant funding. Despite being deeply embedded in our local community and having years of experience delivering impactful mental health interventions for children and their families, we often find ourselves unable to compete with large national charities for funding opportunities. These big organisations may have more resources, but they lack our on-the-ground knowledge and specialisation. The report found that 79% of British adults feel small local charities are underfunded and overlooked, while 76% believe we understand our communities better than large national charities. Yet procurement practices frequently favour scale over local expertise. We've been passed over for contracts that we were perfectly placed to deliver, simply because the criteria disadvantaged smaller organisations like ours. It's frustrating to have the proven capabilities but not get a fair chance to expand our impact. We call on government, businesses, and funders to level the playing field. Listen to the frontline workers embedded in communities. Provide more opportunities for grassroots non-profits to secure funding. Only by investing in organisations like ours can we truly create lasting change. Our communities deserve better, its time statutory services realised the value of the VCSE sector and funded them for the thousands of referrals they make in to our services. https://lnkd.in/eB_9KHCq

An interesting article, it certainly outlines a problem for small local charities. However, it would have been nice to see some balance. Many large charities operate more like regional franchises with their own local leadership teams, board of trustees etc. Age UK, Mind and Relate come to mind, but there are many others. I'm sure industry leaders like Dan Skipper, Lynn Perry MBE, Mark Russell 🇺🇦,Vicki Thornton and Jackie O'Sullivan, FRSA - to name but a few - could've provided a balanced view and signposted examples where local partnerships have been effective. That said, it is a problem. Having set up and ran a #nonforprofit that did run a government funded service, I have some experience here. Our solution was to partner with the contract holder, in order to deliver the Government Enterprise Allowance business support programme for unemployed on the Isle of Sheppey. It worked really well. I believe most large charities would welcome the opportunity to work with local charities to deliver services in an area. It's a shame that the article didn't highlight some of the examples where collaborative partnerships and regional boards help to overcome some of the issues raised.

NCVO and ACEVO are urging the next government to create a "civil society charter" to enhance collaboration between charities and government. Their joint manifesto highlights the need for a civil society engagement strategy, a cabinet role for public service oversight, and 0% VAT for charities. Read more in this article: https://bit.ly/3RmgXFv #CivilSociety #CharitySector #UKGovernment #JointManifesto

Is your charity clear on what ‘membership’ means for you? The term is widely used but often misunderstood. Depending on your structure, ‘members’ can refer to trustees, supporters, or service users. Helen Kidd, Partner and Head of Charities and the Third Sector, explains why reviewing your membership structure can ensure your charity’s governance is effective and sustainable. #CharityGovernance #CharityLeadership #MembershipModels

Fundraising and solicitation of donations are an integral source of revenue for #nonprofitorganizations to support their missions. However, with this practice comes a complex web of legal obligations that vary from state to state, specifically, the “𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐭.” #AskMarcum #nonprofits

NFPs need to spend to get it right. There is a continued expectation that charities should be spending almost all donations directly to the end cause. Yet we also expect charities to be well managed and be accountable to how funds are best spent. Here's another thought – perhaps charities should be allocating budgets to reasonable administrative costs (like any other successful business) so that charities can 'optimise current performance and future resilience' for the benefit of society? https://lnkd.in/gi5h4K4f #nfp #charities

NCVO and ACEVO are urging the next government to create a "civil society charter" to enhance collaboration between charities and government. Their joint manifesto highlights the need for a civil society engagement strategy, a cabinet role for public service oversight, and 0% VAT for charities. Read more in this article: https://bit.ly/3RmgXFv #CivilSociety #CharitySector #UKGovernment #JointManifesto