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| CharityComms | |
|---|---|
| Name | CharityComms |
| Type | Nonprofit trade association |
| Founded | 1990s |
| Headquarters | London, England |
| Area served | United Kingdom |
| Key people | Chief Executive |
| Focus | Charity communications, fundraising, public engagement |
CharityComms CharityComms is a British professional membership body for communications and public engagement professionals working within the nonprofit sector. It serves as a hub for practitioners drawn from charities, foundations, and voluntary organisations, fostering networks among communications directors, digital strategists, campaign managers, and fundraising leads. Its activities include training, benchmarking, events, and advocacy intended to strengthen public-facing messaging and stakeholder relations across philanthropic and civil society institutions.
Founded in the late 20th century amid a growing professionalisation of nonprofit communications, CharityComms emerged alongside contemporaries such as The National Council for Voluntary Organisations, Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations, and Institute of Fundraising. Early years saw relationships with organisations including BBC, Guardian Media Group, ITV, Channel 4, and The Times for media training and profile-raising. During the 2000s and 2010s it intersected with policy milestones such as debates around the Charities Act 2006, the Charities Act 2011, and the regulatory role of the Charity Commission for England and Wales. The organisation adapted through digital transformation shaped by platforms including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and later TikTok, while engaging with data protection developments exemplified by the Data Protection Act 2018 and General Data Protection Regulation.
CharityComms positions itself to support communicators from small voluntary groups to large international NGOs such as Oxfam, Save the Children, Barnardo's, British Red Cross, and Macmillan Cancer Support. Its remit connects with major national campaigns like those led by Cancer Research UK, Marie Curie, RSPCA, Shelter (charity), and Mind (charity), providing guidance on media relations, digital strategy, crisis communications, and reputation management. It frequently collaborates with institutions such as Nesta, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Big Society Capital, Arts Council England, and National Council for Voluntary Youth Services to translate research into practice.
Membership comprises communicators, campaigners, and fundraising professionals from organisations ranging from Locality (charity), Turn2us, and St John Ambulance to larger entities like The Salvation Army and British Heart Foundation. Governance typically involves a board with sector leaders drawn from charities, foundations, and academic institutions including London School of Economics, University College London, and University of Oxford communications faculties. CharityComms aligns with professional standards referenced by bodies such as Chartered Institute of Public Relations, Institute of Directors, and the Code of Fundraising Practice overseen by the Fundraising Regulator.
The organisation has supported sector-wide initiatives addressing public trust, fundraising transparency, and digital innovation. It has been involved in conversations around the Fundraising Preference Service and responses to high-profile episodes involving organisations like Save the Children and Oxfam that prompted wide media scrutiny. CharityComms has convened roundtables with stakeholders including representatives from Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, and regulatory actors such as the Information Commissioner's Office to shape sector responses to legislative and reputational challenges. It has partnered with research funders including Wellcome Trust and Economic and Social Research Council on evidence-driven communications practice.
Regular programmes include workshops, masterclasses, and annual conferences that attract speakers from media outlets like BBC Newsnight, Channel 4 News, The Guardian (UK), Financial Times, and The Economist, as well as digital experts from Google, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft. Publications and toolkits produced or disseminated have referenced case studies involving UNICEF, World Wildlife Fund, Amnesty International, Greenpeace, and Doctors Without Borders. Training often cross-references guidance from institutions such as Institute of Fundraising, Chartered Institute of Public Relations, and academic research from University of Cambridge and London School of Economics.
Funding sources historically include membership dues, event fees, sponsorships, and partnerships with corporate entities and philanthropic foundations. Corporate collaborators have included technology and media firms such as Google UK, Facebook UK, Twitter (now X), YouTube, LinkedIn, as well as agency partners in the communications sector like Ogilvy, Edelman, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, and M&C Saatchi. Philanthropic partners and funders have included Comic Relief, Big Lottery Fund, Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, and Barrow Cadbury Trust for project-specific work.
CharityComms, operating as an intermediary for sector communicators, has faced critique common to membership bodies: questions about commercial sponsorships from corporate entities including technology platforms and PR firms, and debates on editorial independence when partnering with media organisations. Instances in the wider sector—such as controversies involving Oxfam in 2018 or fundraising disputes involving British Heart Foundation and Cancer Research UK—have intensified scrutiny of communications best practice that CharityComms seeks to influence. Critics point to tensions between fundraising imperatives and reputational risk management highlighted in high-profile inquiries and reports by bodies such as the Charity Commission for England and Wales and parliamentary committees.