Monday 21 May 2012
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Charities Minister encourages people to 'sign on the line'
26 January 2010
The UK charity retail sector has the potential to raise an extra £75million from the tax-man each year* – and it’s as simple as a signature to help it reclaim these much needed vital funds.
Currently 4,000 charity shops in the UK are claiming gift aid on donated items (which represents approximately half of the charity retail sector) and collectively raised an estimated £18.7million through the tax efficient system in the financial year ending March 2009**.
Although Gift Aid on donated items was established by Sue Ryder three and a half years ago (May 2006) – in which time the healthcare charity has secured an extra £5million to support it provide health and social care nationwide - the full potential of the system remains unrealised.
Minister for the Third Sector, Angela Smith, showed her support for the Gift Aid system by becoming a member when she visited her local Sue Ryder shop in Essex recently. She said: “Gift Aid is a simple way for people to help charities raise extra funds they so desperately need to support a wide range of voluntary services and organisations that improve the quality of lives – and the society we live in - nationwide.”
The Gift Aid System, which is compliant with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, works by allowing the charity to track all gift aided sales by donor. All that is required is signed permission from the person donating the goods for charities to claim 28p Gift Aid on every pound raised on the sale of donated items.
Angela added: “In these recessionary times, every extra 28p counts and, as Sue Ryder has proved, collectively can equate to millions of pounds. Sue Ryder’s success at reaching £5million from Gift Aid demonstrates that a simple signature really can make a difference.”
All money raised through the sale of gift aided donated items at Sue Ryder’s shops helps the charity to provide end of life and long term care to people living with conditions including; Cancer, Stroke, Brain Injury, Multiple Sclerosis, Dementia, Huntington’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease and Motor Neurone Disease.
Julie Beames, Retail Business Development Manager at Sue Ryder – who implemented and manages the Gift Aid system in the charity’s 350 shops, added: “Our shop staff, volunteers and customers have really embraced the Gift Aid system as a means to help the charity raise much needed funds. We currently have 300,000 gift aid members that support us, and on average 40% of all donated items sold in our shops are gift aided. However, with 60% of donated items to our shops nationwide not gift aided there is still huge potential to raise even more extra funds.
“I’d encourage everybody to sign on the line and become a gift aid member. By doing so, people can help us to make a real difference to the quality of thousands of people’s lives.”
Become a gift aid member online by clicking here
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