We rely on voluntary donations for 87 per cent of our income. Without your support we would have to close our vital services in just over seven months.

We work with very tight budgets and we ensure that every penny we spend on fundraising is spent with good reason. We are constantly assessing every method of fundraising, be it television, mail events or catalogues (for example) to ensure that it will help us raise more money to help more children.

We are pleased to say that for every £1 we invest in fundraising, we raise £4.55 for our work to end cruelty to children in the UK.

For full details of our income and expenditure, please see our NSPCC Annual Review 2009.

Why do you send out unaddressed mailings?

Some appeals are delivered on our behalf by the Household Delivery Service at a reduced rate; these have to be delivered to every house on the postal route.

Our hope is that these appeals reach potential supporters who have not supported the NSPCC int he past. We do realise that some of our existing supporters will receive it and we are sorry for any inconvenience this causes. As it is delivered at a reduced rate and is an extremely cost-effective way of reaching new supporters, we thank you for your understanding.

Should you wish to opt out of unaddressed mail, please write to the address below. Please also be aware that this can take time to arrange. There are other companies who deliver door to door and therefore it may not be possible to eradicate all of the letters you get. If you are already a supporter please feel free to pass this letter on to your friends or family who may be interested.

Royal Mail Door to Door Customer Services
Opt-Outs
Room 130
Wheatstone House
Wheatstone Road
SWINDON
SN3 5JN

Or email: optout@royalmail.com

Why do you send out postal appeals?

The reason we do this is that many of our supporters wish to make ad hoc gifts in addition to their regular support. It only takes a small number of people to respond to make an appeal worthwhile. At the same time, even if supporters are unable to respond, we hope they will find the letters interesting and informative. We do think it is important for our regular donors to feel involved in the work we are able to do with their generous support.

We would like to assure you that we monitor, the costs against response of all our fundraising activities very carefully indeed. In fact, for every £1 we invest in fundraising we raise £4.55 for our work to end cruelty to children in the UK.

Does the NSPCC use street fundraisers?

Yes, the NSPCC does use face-to-face fundraisers. It has proven over the past six years to be an effective way of recruiting new supporters; last year alone it raised over £2 million. We work very hard to make sure that our face-to-face fundraisers treat passers-by with respect and senstivity - it's always our aim to give everyone a rewarding experience of the NSPCC.

Why do you spend money on TV advertising?

With regards to the cost of our TV adverts, the NSPCC has found this method to be a very cost effective way of recruiting new donors and is one of our biggest sources of income. The Society has a responsibility to use its resources efficiently, and would not continue with TV advertising if the money could be better spent elsewhere. The performance of each advert and TV advertising as a whole is monitored on a weekly basis. If it is felt that one or another particular advert is flagging, then we do rest them for a period of time, making them much more effective when we show them again.

Across the NSPCC as a whole, for every £1 which is donated, 76.4p is spent directly on activities which aim to end cruelty to children in the UK. The other 23.6p is spent on administrative costs, a small proportion of which includes fundraising activities across all media, including TV. The NSPCC relies heavily on such advertising and for every £1 that the NSPCC spends on fundraising, a further £4.55 is raised.

Your adverts are hard-hitting - should they be shown during the day?

In our advertisements we have to find the balance between putting across the frequently horrifying facts about our work, and including anything that might in itself detract from our end purpose of protecting children.

Before we are allowed to screen any of our adverts, they need to be cleared by the BACC (The British Advertising Clearance Centre - www.bacc.org.uk). The BACC tell us what time of day the adverts can be shown, and they give each particular advertisement clearance for a particular time of day, for example after the 9pm watershed (This is similar to the way that cinema films have a PG or 15 rating). Our fundraising adverts are cleared to be shown at any time of day, but not during programmes specifically aimed at children. TV stations therefore would not show the advert during programmes just for children, but are cleared to be shown during programmes with a general audience.

How do I make a complaint about the NSPCC's fundraising?

The NSPCC is committed to ending cruelty to children in the UK. While the nature of our work is hard-hitting, we never intend to offend or upset you with the content or tehcniques of our fundraising. Each step we make is dependent on our voluntary funding through fundraising and we are committed to the highest standards. We operate within fundraising guidelines set down by the Charity Commission, the Institute of Fundraising and the Fundraising Standards Board and strive to ensure all our fundraising activity is open, fair, effective and honest.

Step 1 – “I am not happy about… ” Raising a concern about the NSPCC’s fundraising

If you have any concerns about an NSPCC fundraising activity, dislike the way you have been asked for a donation or are in any other way dissatisfied or upset about our fundraising - please get in touch.

The easiest way is through the Supporter Care team. In particular they will respond to issues around the NSPCC’s direct marketing fundraising (such as mailings, telephone calls or street fundraising), but you can contact them about any aspect of the NSPCC’s fundraising. You can contact the team:

by telephone on 020 7825 2505, between 9.00 - 17.00 Monday to Friday and 8.00 -12.00 on Saturdays.
by emailing supportercare@nspcc.org.uk
by writing to: Supporter Care, NSPCC, 42 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3NH.

If your issue or concern relates to a local fundraising event please contact the NSPCC representative for the event/activity. If you are unsure about who that might be, please ask the event organiser or contact the Supporter Care team to find out who the NSPCC representative is.

We will always seek to resolve the issue you have raised through this initial contact and as quickly as possible. However, if following your contact with an NSPCC representative you are not satisfied that your concerns have been addressed, you can make a formal complaint using the procedure below.

Step 2 – Making a formal complaint

To make a formal complaint about any aspect of NSPCC fundraising activity contact the complaints coordinator by:

emailing fundraisingcomplaints@nspcc.org.uk
telephone on 020 7825 2797,
writing to the fundraising complaints coordinator, NSPCC, 42 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3NH.

If you make a formal complaint about our fundraising activity, you should expect to hear from the NSPCC within five working days. The reply will either

be a full explanation, detailing what action we have taken to rectify the situation
or inform you that we are looking into your complaint, with details of when you should expect a full reply.

The NSPCC is a member of the Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB). The FRSB is an independent board that has been set up to help people to give to charitable organisations with confidence. If you are unhappy with the way in which we have dealt with your complaint, you can contact the FRSB to progress it further. FRSB contact details are:

Fundraising Standards Board
Hampton House
20 Albert Embankment
London SE1 7JT

www. frsb.org.uk

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