Page 3 | Would this annoy you? Charity donations?

SpookyScarySkeletons · 2021-12-26T13:00:49+00:00

Fully accepting I might be told I'm wrong in this one but I just wondered if this would annoy you?? There is a cat rescue that is very close to my heart. I support them a lot financially, send food and adopted both my girls from there. They really struggled during the pandemic as they couldn't do fundraising activities. I took on a real hard challenge and raised £300 for them earlier this year. On Christmas Eve they asked for donations for vet bills for a little kitten they have just taken in. I sent a donation on Christmas morning. I've just read on their Facebook group that as a "kind gesture" the rescue have sent £100 to another charity (nothing related to animals at all). I'm honestly feeling a bit miffed as I sent my money thinking it would go towards kittens vets fees. And why are they asking for support if they can divert those funds to another charity who i (and other supporters) may or not support?? Am I being a miserly old grinch here???

Original poster

SpookyScarySkeletons · 26/12/2021 16:52

@Puzzledandpissedoff

Are you quite sure that all these "kittens who need vet bills paying" even exist? Because to me the whole thing stinks to high heaven (and what a coincidence that it appeared on Christmas Eve

)

Yeah I am sure to be honest. Before I became disabled and unable to drive I used to visit the rescue regularly. They have a lot of disabled cats there and used to hold weekend coffee mornings that I would go to with DD and see the cats I had donated for. I have no doubt they are genuine. I'm just questioning the validity of sending money to another charity when I'm my Donation I specified in the transaction it was for kittens care.

OP posts:

Kite22 · 26/12/2021 17:15

I wouldn't be happy either ....I'd also express this to the rescue to be honest

This ^

As has been stated, it is against Charity Commission rules.

There is a good reason why people should focus their charity giving to registered charities, as they are regulated.

You are right to feel cross OP , and it is really important to write to them and let them know that too.

Buytoomuchonebay · 26/12/2021 17:17

There is a dog charity near me that (I’ve heard) breeds from the dogs already in there
Nobody I know will go near it so god knows how they carry on

twelly · 26/12/2021 17:18

I don't think the cat rescue was right to send the money elsewhere - morally or ethically. When you donate to a charity you expect the money to be used by the charity.

icedcoffees · 26/12/2021 17:20

I wouldn't be donating money to any "rescue" that wasn't a registered charity.

icedcoffees · 26/12/2021 17:20

@twelly

I don't think the cat rescue was right to send the money elsewhere - morally or ethically. When you donate to a charity you expect the money to be used by the charity.

They're not a charity, though, just a private rescue.

bruffin · 26/12/2021 17:34

Money that is donated is put into two boxes

Restricted funds - this is money that is raised for a specific purpose ie the kitten needing an operation. The money received from donors who send money for that specific purpose must be spent on the kitten, if not then they must contact the donor and ask if it can be used for another purpose. A small amount can be taken for overheads

Unrestricted funds - which can be used for any purpose and is part of a general fund.

Just because they say they are donating money to another charity , it does not mean that it is coming out of the fund for the kitten.
They may have raised or received money specifically for donations to that charity or taken it out of the unrestricted funds.

OP-Why do you think in the whole year the only money they have received is from you

Original poster

SpookyScarySkeletons · 26/12/2021 17:35

OP-Why do you think in the whole year the only money they have received is from you

I'm pretty sure I didn't insinuate that.

OP posts:

Guacamole001 · 26/12/2021 17:35

Moral of the story is to only deal with proper registered charities in future.

MissMaple82 · 26/12/2021 17:47

Yeah I'd be totally pissed off. To the point I'd actually be asking for a partial refund. Its really out of line actually. People have very specific reasons for who they donate to and why so you are not being unreasonable at all.

Kite22 · 26/12/2021 17:48

They're not a charity, though, just a private rescue.

Yes, not a registered charity, but, they have made it known it known publicly that they are wanting people to donate funds for a specific cause. To then use money that people have donated for a different cause, has to be morally wrong.

I don't think OP has in anyway implied she is the only person who has donated.

CovidForChristmas · 26/12/2021 17:57

I wouldn’t be happy about this either.
To ask for donations to pay a vets bill and then a couple of days later announce you have enough money to give away some… doesn’t add up.

SnowmanFace · 26/12/2021 18:12

I live next door to an unregistered charity. The woman who runs it is a conwoman quite frankly. She organises charity events, like football matches and concerts in pubs and then uses that money to buy equipment/vehicles and rent buildings that she then uses to make money which she uses to fund her lavish lifestyle and her dh, her and their three dc are fully supported by her charity. She will get a donation of an item and 'raffle' it for example with no mention of where the money will be going.

She doesn't actually use the word charity. Words like benefit and foundation. She's also has had a pile of lottery money.

nordica · 26/12/2021 18:23

I'm quite careful about where I donate after volunteering with one rescue and realising that despite them publicly saying everyone is a volunteer, the founder pays herself £1,500 per month as a salary and also has lots of her expenses paid by the charity. The trustees are all her friends and have nothing to do with the day to day running of it. And they are a registered charity. Always asking for donations too...

I prefer to donate to slightly bigger charities who have staff but are generally well managed, not run by one individual.

Puzzledandpissedoff · 26/12/2021 19:04

I have no doubt they are genuine

Fair enough, OP - so it's some sort of private "initiative" and those running it clearly feel entitled to do whatever they want with the money they've requested for a certain purpose

Not on in my book either, which is why - like many on here - I only deal with registered charities. Some still get away with blue murder, but at least there's someone you can take it up with

WonderfulYou · 26/12/2021 19:06

So you can donate to charity but they’re not allowed to?

They receive donations all of the time so I think it’s nice they paid it forward and donated to someone else too.

I get that you want your money spent on the cats but they could have sold their own items or raised the cash in a way that meant they weren’t giving their own donations away.

If you are worried about giving money in the future ask if you can buy food or bedding instead.

Pedalpushers · 26/12/2021 19:13

This is why you sadly shouldn't ever donate to an organisation not registered as a charity - they have no governance or legal oversight.

Insidelaurashead · 26/12/2021 19:18

@bruffin that was a really helpful post, thanks for that. Do you know what happens if like in the OP's scenario she's donated for Kitten A', and then Kitten A gets rehomed and the Kitten A pot still has funds in it, should the place then be saying 'hi OP, Kitten A is sorted can we use this for Kitten B' or is it acceptable for them to go well Kitten B is pretty much the same situation as Kitten A so all good, but we would've had to ask if we wanted to give the funds to Local Children's Charity Z?

(I'm just interested, so no problem if this question isn't answered!)

bruffin · 26/12/2021 19:56

They should really ask the donors if they are happy for the money to used for kitten b or offer money back
Hypothetically we don't know if the money is coming out of the restricted funds for kitten A , or unrestricted funds or another restricted fund for the other charity.

Original poster

SpookyScarySkeletons · 26/12/2021 20:08

I'm really not fussed if they have managed to pay kitten A's vet bill so put it towards kitten B. As long as it pays towards the cats care I am happy.

What I didn't like was the passing on of donations to a second and now third charity that I didn't agree for my donations go to.

OP posts:

WouldIBeATwat · 26/12/2021 20:08

@SnowmanFace

I live next door to an unregistered charity. The woman who runs it is a conwoman quite frankly. She organises charity events, like football matches and concerts in pubs and then uses that money to buy equipment/vehicles and rent buildings that she then uses to make money which she uses to fund her lavish lifestyle and her dh, her and their three dc are fully supported by her charity. She will get a donation of an item and 'raffle' it for example with no mention of where the money will be going.

She doesn't actually use the word charity. Words like benefit and foundation. She's also has had a pile of lottery money.

It’s near impossible for registered charities to get lottery/comic relief etc type funding. I’d be amazed if an unregistered charity did.

tectonicplates · 26/12/2021 20:09

I would personally avoid any "hobby" animal rescue places. You never know if they're being run properly, or if the money is being used properly. Yes, it's true that some charities behave badly too, but at least they are accountable to someone.

SnowmanFace · 27/12/2021 22:25

It’s near impossible for registered charities to get lottery/comic relief etc type funding. I’d be amazed if an unregistered charity did.
I was pretty amazed. I find the whole thing amazing. And as you can probably tell, fascinating.

They got £10,000 in August 2019 from the 'National Lottery Community Fund'.

I've just has a look on the Lottery website in case I had got it all wrong and there is a charity number on there but no company number. But when I looked in the charity commission website this didn't tie in with a registered charity and it's not there under the business name either. So I don't know what the story is. But I do know she got the money and bought a significant asset then sold it.

Gazelda · 27/12/2021 22:49

@SnowmanFace

It’s near impossible for registered charities to get lottery/comic relief etc type funding. I’d be amazed if an unregistered charity did. I was pretty amazed. I find the whole thing amazing. And as you can probably tell, fascinating.

They got £10,000 in August 2019 from the 'National Lottery Community Fund'.

I've just has a look on the Lottery website in case I had got it all wrong and there is a charity number on there but no company number. But when I looked in the charity commission website this didn't tie in with a registered charity and it's not there under the business name either. So I don't know what the story is. But I do know she got the money and bought a significant asset then sold it.

I'm stunned that this has been possible.

As a grant fundraiser, I have to provide all sorts of evidence of good governance when applying for funding. The National Lottery, Comic Relief, Children in Need and the like employ a raft of professionals to check out he background of charities they offer support to.

I'd urge you to whistleblow if you feel able to.