Our Vulnerable Supporter policy
We believe that giving to Global’s Make Some Noise should be a positive experience for all.
Who do we support?
Make Some Noise is a national charity that funds and empowers projects, helping disadvantaged children, young people and their families, as close to home as possible.
These small charities are often the only place for families to turn to when their lives suddenly change. We’re here to fund vital equipment and life-changing services to help children and young people through challenging times, including therapy, counselling, nursing and support groups.
What is a vulnerable person?
We recognise that some of the people we engage with through our fundraising activities will not always have the capacity to fully understand the nature of the donation they are being asked to make to Global’s Make Some Noise, or the consequences of making that donation.
An individual who finds it difficult to immediately make an informed decision about the choices offered to them is called a ‘vulnerable person’.
A vulnerable person may experience:
- a diagnosed condition such as dementia
- a recent bereavement
- an undiagnosed or temporary mental health condition such as severe anxiety
- learning difficulties
- difficulty understanding the language
Our obligation to protect vulnerable people
Make Some Noise has an obligation to protect vulnerable people and those in vulnerable circumstances. Whenever we suspect that someone we engage with is lacking capacity or is in vulnerable circumstances – we call them a ‘vulnerable supporter’ – we will take steps to terminate the contact in a way which seeks to:
- protect that person
- protect their dignity
- note any desire they have expressed to support Make Some Noise
Fundraising and vulnerable supporters
If a fundraiser suspects that a person they are talking to may be vulnerable, they must end the conversation immediately. They should do this politely, without:
- making a request for a donation
- asking about the individual’s capacity to make a decision or the existence of vulnerable circumstances
We know that it may be difficult in some situations for fundraisers to decide whether or not someone is in a vulnerable circumstance or lacks capacity. We provide guidelines for fundraisers but our approach is always to err on the side of caution.
This applies to all fundraising, by our direct employees and volunteers or through a third party or agency.
We believe everyone has the right to donate if they wish to and are able to do so. That’s why we offer further support for people in vulnerable circumstances who want to make a decision about whether to make a donation.
Our policy is informed by the Institute of Fundraising’s (IoF) code of fundraising practice and their guidance, Treating Donors Fairly.
How a vulnerable person could learn about Make Some Noise
Make Some Noise is supported by Global, the media and entertainment group. With a portfolio of some of the biggest and most respected media brands and music events, Global reaches 31 million people every week including 25 million on the radio alone.
This means we’re able to unite some of the country’s best-loved radio stations – Heart, Capital, Capital XTRA, Classic FM, Smooth, LBC, Radio X and Gold – to give a voice to small projects that struggle to get heard. This reach also means that vulnerable people are exposed to our work and may look to become supporters.
Our vulnerable person policy
- Make Some Noise is compassionate towards its supporters and will never exploit vulnerability
- we will always do everything we can to assist supporters to make informed decisions about the support they choose to give to Make Some Noise
- we fully comply with the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Fundraising Practice
- Make Some Noise allows supporters or those acting on their behalf to declare vulnerability
- Make Some Noise will not contact supporters with the aim of asking for an increase in their giving where the supporters’ records indicate a declaration of vulnerability
- regardless of whether a declaration has been made or not, Make Some Noise does not accept donations where it has reason to believe that a supporter may be experiencing vulnerable circumstances and that accepting the donation would be ethically wrong and/or harmful to the donor
- should a situation arise where Make Some Noise becomes aware that it has unknowingly accepted donations from an individual during a time that he or she was experiencing vulnerable circumstances, it will endeavour to return all donations accepted during this period
- should Make Some Noise receive information regarding a supporter’s vulnerability from a third party, it will not act on any request to alter the supporters’ preferences unless the third party can provide evidence that he or she has authority to act on behalf of the supporter
- if Make Some Noise becomes aware of a situation where a third-party agency acting on its behalf has not acted in accordance with this policy, it may stop working with the agency or ask that individual fundraisers responsible for non-compliance with the policy be removed from Make Some Noise campaigns
- Make Some Noise recognises that it may sometimes be difficult for fundraisers to assess the vulnerability of a supporter; in cases where a fundraiser is unsure, they must ask their manager for a second opinion and approval to accept any donation
- if you believe you have interacted with a vulnerable supporter and you are concerned about their welfare, you must follow the Make Some Noise safeguarding policy
Wider Safeguarding Policy
Make Some Noise interacts with a wide range of individuals including direct employees, staff from the projects we support, volunteers and fundraisers. As well as ensuring that we interact appropriately with vulnerable donors, we have a wider Safeguarding Policy that aims to protects any of this groups from harm that may be caused due to their contact with Make Some Noise.
Wider Donations Policy
There are a number of instances, in addition to donations from a vulnerable person, where Make Some Noise may need to refuse or refund donations. Details of this can be found in our Donations Policy.