NCVO welcomes new Charity Commission guidance on campaigning

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Thursday, 24, Jan 2008 12:00

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has welcomed the Charity Commission's new draft guidance on campaigning, which provides a long awaited clarification of charities' right to campaign and spells out key issues, such as the meaning of 'political activity'.

Stuart Etherington, Chief Executive of NCVO said:

'Campaigning is part of the lifeblood of charities, and so we welcome the unambiguous recognition of charities' right to campaign. This new guidance also means that small charities should no longer fear falling foul of the Charity Commission by campaigning due to the previous Commission guidance which stated that political activities should be ancillary to the charity's purposes. It will undoubtedly be embraced by our members, many of whom have told us that the previous campaigning guidance was unclear and difficult to understand.'

For further information please contact Siobhan Wakely in NCVO's Media Office on 020 7520 2569 or Siobhan.wakely@ncvo-vol.org.uk.

Notes to Editors:

· The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) www.ncvo-vol.org.uk

is the umbrella body for the voluntary sector in England, with sister councils in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. NCVO has over 5,500 members, ranging from large national bodies to community groups, volunteer centres, and development agencies working at a local level. With over 280,000 staff and over

13 million volunteers working for our members, we represent and support almost half the voluntary sector workforce.