Rogare | Ethical Marketing News

Call for safeguards to protect fundraisers receiving commission payments

February 22, 2026February 7, 2026 Stuart Mitchell

With commission-based pay recently deregulated in the UK (and in Australia back in 2021), a new paper by fundraising think tank Rogare re-evaluates the ethics of paying fundraisers in this way, and suggests that safeguards may be needed. The discussion paper, Playing the percentages: Re-evaluating the ethics of paying fundraisers by commission, looks at 14 regularly deployed ethical arguments against commission payment, finding many of them weak, whilst also raising an additional argument regarding fundraiser wellbeing. The paper says that ethical arguments warning of possible harm from this form of…

CIOF calls for charities to sign Donor Code of Conduct pledge.

December 18, 2025November 25, 2025 Stuart Mitchell

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising, along with Rogare – the Fundraising Think Tank, has today called on charities across the UK to sign a pledge committing to develop and implement a Donor Code of Conduct that will safeguard fundraisers from inappropriate donor or supporter behaviour. This comes after more than half of surveyed fundraisers reported having experienced behaviour by a donor or supporter that made them feel physically or mentally unsafe. Earlier this year, the CIOF and Rogare asked fundraisers to anonymously submit their views and experiences of inappropriate behaviour…

Charity values may not be so important to the ethics of turning down donations

December 19, 2024November 9, 2024 Stuart Mitchell

Many fundraisers – and perhaps more non-fundraisers, such as senior leadership and trustees – might consider that not aligning with their charities’ values is an important consideration in deciding whether to refuse a donation from a ‘tainted’ source. However, new work from Rogare – The Fundraising Think Tank – produced in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Fundraising and published in the new paper: Take it or Leave It: The Ethics of Gift Acceptance and Refusal– argues that values alignment may not be the best way to make the most…

Think tank launches project to resolve ethical dilemmas in fundraising for schools

October 28, 2024September 16, 2024 Stuart Mitchell

Fundraising think tank Rogare has launched a project to create tools and theories for resolving ethical dilemmas in fundraising for schools. The project is being carried out in Australia and New Zealand in three phases, and will form a foundation for the ethics of school fundraising that will apply in other countries. With an expected completion date of July 2025, it is the second major project that Rogare has conducted outside the USA and UK – after its work with AFP Canada on the Canadian Fundraising Narrative. Project objectives The…

New Rogare project to create concepts and tools for resolving ethical dilemmas in fundraising for schools

October 12, 2024September 2, 2024 Stuart Mitchell

The international fundraising think tank Rogare has begun a new project to: identify the ethical issues, challenges and dilemmas specific to school fundraising adapt the ideas, theories and frameworks of professional fundraising ethics to solve these dilemmas devise new ways to do this if the existing resources are not up to the job. The project – which aims to be completed by July 2025 – will be conducted in three phases in Australia and New Zealand. Phase 1 – This first phase has been to review current thinking on secondary educational ethics to…