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Thursday Nov 16, 2006
Oh my God! They killed Pudsey!
Intelligent Giving, the new independent guide to charities, has put the boot into the BBC's Children In Need. There are four things wrong with Pudsey (the appeal's mascot), researcher Adam Rothwell says:
1) Since Children in Need is a grant-giving charity donors' money will incur admin costs from both it and the organisations it funds;
2) Donors have no control over where the money goes;
3) The organisation's Summary Information Return this year "contained information that was in some parts incomplete, in others plain false";
4) They don't provide enough information about how they judge the success of projects or future plans.
I'm not qualified to know whether this argument is conclusive, but hats off to Intelligent Giving for a PR triumph. Attacking the BBC's treasured annual tin-rattling jamboree has garnered extensive coverage in The Times, The Observer and probably lots of other places too.
And they've been quick to rebut the subsequent accusations that have flown about their own work.
I like the new Intelligent Giving website. Their discussion boards are a bit dormant at the moment and some of the 'humour' is weak, to say the least ("Shop with Alain de B'Argain") but basically they're providing a service that the public needs. (See my interview with David Pitchford for some background).
Charities should be held to account. Chief Executives and Chairs should worry about whether they are doing their jobs properly. There should be debate in the press – especially at a time when politicians are planning large scale transfers from the public to the voluntary sector.
And the BBC should reply directly to the criticisms Intelligent Giving has made.
Posted by Tom Green ( 4:06 PM ) Link to this post Comments[0]