Curbing charity chuggers – reactions from across the sectors

Having originally proposed a controversial ban on face-to-face street fundraisers , Islington council has now modified its stance on the beleaguered tribe of so-called "chuggers" and is pushing instead to limit their hours. The council is consulting with lawyers to prepare a "watertight" case where possible bylaws can be enacted to limit public collections. Islington councillor Paul Convery would like to "significantly reduce" fundraising to "a few hours, one or two days a week, although I don't think that would be acceptable to the industry," he says. He and other councils, says Convery, are contributing to the Hodgson review of the Charities Act 2006 which reports back to parliament next summer. The review will look at the licensing regime for public charitable collections, including how to facilitate "responsible fundraising whilst deterring bogus collections and preventing public nuisance". According to the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association (PFRA) and many charities, face-to-face is one of the most cost-effective ways for charities to find new donors, with the PFRA estimating that £130m of annual revenue comes from street and door gifts, £45m of which is raised on the street. Councils and charities give their reactions to banning or curbing street fundraising Councillor Paul Convery, voluntary and community sector lead, Islington council : "We've asked the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association to stop this kind of fundraising in our streets because … it is becoming out of hand. We'd like to significantly reduce the amount of activity on the streets. Right now, pretty much every location [of seven sites] is being used, pretty much every day, from 9am to 6pm. I'm happy for peak moments – it's the intensity of activity. It's like spiking oil in the North Sea – they're getting lots of money off our streets. "I've had letters in the dozens – groups of businesses have complained, particularly shops with chuggers outside their premises because they're saying [the fundraising] is deterring customers. I'm not a huge fan of bylaws though because they say you can impose fines – I'd rather we licensed and regulated. "We're not targeting charities, charities make a decision to use on-street services from commercial companies who are not charities, especially the large national and international charities. "[Islington] has small, local, voluntary organisations that you can argue are being crowded out. Does that suck out some of the money that has been raised in the borough?" Chris Reynolds, face-to-face fundraising manager, Greenpeace UK : "We understand that being approached in the street, however politely, isn't always perfectly timed, particularly in business areas where everyone is in a hurry, but we wouldn't fundraise on the street if the response was mostly negative. "Greenpeace can't use broadcast media (TV or radio) to fundraise, as we're not a charity and are subject to the broadcasting restrictions imposed on advocacy groups, and so our options are already quite limited. It's not an easy time for fundraising in the UK, and for us and others it would be very difficult to replace this form of fundraising." Spokesman, Wolverhampton city council : "[We use] a bylaw [which] came into force in 2010 designed to tackle touting and the soliciting of custom which causes an obstruction and/or annoyance to the public. No 'chuggers' have yet been fined using this bylaw. "We are doing something about this issue because it is annoying our residents and visitors to the city centre. We had an unprecedented level of feedback on our social media channels when we asked people to tell us what they thought about chuggers and the tactics they employ. The overwhelming majority of people made it very clear to us they want something to be done about it." Simon Nicholls, direct marketing manager, Amnesty : "Face-to-face fundraising is very important, enabling us to engage with a wide range of people. This year we're looking to recruit just under a quarter of new supporters in this way. Seeking to ban street fundraising is heavy handed and unnecessary. At Amnesty we have a dedicated training manager, working with our agency and small in-house team, and we tackle every complaint received both internally and with our agency, but the complaints are few and far between – amounting to just 0.04% of the people spoken to." Councillor Alan Cullens, Clayton North Ward in Chorley borough : "Most people would view that chuggers can be a little bit aggressive in their approach. We'd had a number of complaints from the shop owners and from residents going into their shops. This was in spring last year. We now have an agreement with the PFRA which gives us clear expectations. We've agreed that the chuggers can only operate in pairs, they're in designated places within the town centre and they also can't approach within a certain distance of a member of public. They're limited to certain days – three days a week – and not market day. Now, barring one or two traders, the reports are that it's a lot more positive; we've had no breach of agreement." Ian MacQuillin, head of communications at PFRA : "It is, to say the least, ethically dubious to try to stop charities fundraising in an area just because the people they help don't live in that area. Why would Islington council try to stop a charity whose mission is to relieve third-world poverty from fundraising from local residents? "In a liberal democracy, central and local government should have no role in deciding which charities are allowed to ask the public to help them. Charity fundraising should be free of political control." Peter Box, chair of the Local Government Association's economy and transport board : "If shoppers and local people raise concerns about street fundraisers then it's important that this is addressed to ensure that they don't feel harassed in future. "These decisions need to be taken at a local level by councils, who have a strong understanding of their local areas, in consultation with residents." Karl Wilding, head of policy, research and foresight at the National Council of Voluntary Organisations : "Self-regulation enables charities to work in partnership with local authorities." Peter Lewis, chief executive, The Institute of Fundraising : "Statistics show that face-to-face fundraising is a vital source of income for many charities, offering an effective return for the good causes they support. Contrary to popular opinion some of these causes are local to the areas in which face-to-face fundraising takes place and are conducted by charities of a modest size like St. Mungos, Tree Aid and Cumbria Wildlife Trust – it's not just national charities that get the best from this valuable fundraising method. Currently our best practice code for face-to-face fundraising is under review and we urge all those who believe the system can be improved to get in touch and help shape this, ensuring that all charities can continue to benefit from public donations." This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional. To join the voluntary sector network , click here .