As restrictions ease, many fundraising efforts will be resuming. The Fundraising Regulator can help if you are receiving unwanted requests for donations.
Coronavirus pandemic restrictions are changing or ending across the UK, which means some fundraising activities may be re-starting near you. As a result, you might have been contacted by letter, email, text or telephone call by charities asking for your support.
Even if you have given money or other items to a charity in the past, you might not want to hear from them again. It is understandable that people feel overwhelmed by the number of unwanted asks for donations they get, and don’t know where to turn for help.
If that is the case for you or someone you know, there is a free service that can help you put a stop to receiving charity fundraising appeals – the Fundraising Preference Service.
UK’s free official service
The Fundraising Preference Service (FPS) is the UK’s only service that allows you to manage the contact you receive from all registered charities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
You can access the FPS online or by phone and it is completely free to use. It is run securely by the Fundraising Regulator, the independent regulator of charitable fundraising.
Save time
It can take time to contact individual charities directly to ask them to stop sending you messages. By using the FPS, you can end contact with multiple charities at the same time in just three easy steps:
- Search for a charity name or registered charity number
- Select the channels of communication you wish to stop – you can choose addressed letters, emails, text messages or telephone calls
- Enter your contact details and we’ll take care of the rest
You can find out more about how the service works, by watching this video.
Help someone you know
Over 13,000 people have used FPS to stop unwanted charity messages and one in three people have used the service on behalf of someone else. You can use the FPS even if you, or someone you care for, have previously given consent to the charity to stay in touch.
If it sounds like the FPS will be of help to you or a friend or family member, visit this website for more information. You can also call the Fundraising Preference Service helpline on 0300 3033 517.