Policy paper

Charity Sector Counter-Fraud Group: terms of reference

Published 11 April 2016

This policy paper was withdrawn on

Out of date. No longer current government activity.

Applies to England and Wales

© Crown copyright 2016

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/charity-sector-counter-fraud-group-cscfg/charity-sector-counter-fraud-group-terms-of-reference

1. About the group

The group’s objectives are to:

  • raise awareness of fraud risks within the charity sector and foster information sharing partnerships with each other, as well as OGDs, professional bodies, regulators and the police
  • develop a robust counter-fraud culture within the sector through development of fraud prevention initiatives and improved systems of control in charities
  • enhance the sector’s fraud detection, deterrence and prevention capabilities through closer liaison with law enforcement agencies and sector stakeholders
  • communicate key counter-fraud messages effectively across the sector and with partner organisation
  • work to identify and promote best-practice initiatives, existing and new

2. Group members

The Charity Commission leads the CSCFG and chairs its core steering group, which meets quarterly. The steering group is made up of organisations/representatives from the sector, the police, government partners and professional bodies. These include:

  • Association of Charitable Foundations
  • Association of Chief Executives for Voluntary Organisations
  • Big Lottery Fund
  • Cabinet Office (inc. Cert UK)
  • Charity Commission for England and Wales
  • Charity Commission for Northern Ireland
  • Charity Finance Group
  • CIFAS
  • City of London Police
  • Fraud Advisory Panel
  • Fundraising Standards Board
  • Foundation for Social Investment
  • Get Safe Online
  • HM Revenue and Customs
  • Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales
  • Institute of Fundraising
  • National Council of Voluntary Organisations
  • National Crime Agency
  • National Trading Standards
  • Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator
  • Public Fundraising Association
  • Small Charities Coalition
  • University College London
  • Wales Council for Voluntary Action
  • Assorted charities including Oxfam, Save the Children, Help for Heroes, Plan International, Macmillan and British Council

CSCFG also has a wider stakeholder membership, which is open to any sector organisation, partner or government agency committed to reducing the risk of fraud in the sector and feels that it can contribute to the aims above.

3. How the group works

The Group’s activities will be focused on agreed priority areas, such as grant-funding fraud, fundraising fraud, cyber-fraud and ‘professionalising’ the sector (to better equip its counter-fraud capabilities). In the interests of expediency, dedicated sub-committees will be established, comprising members of the core group, with the intention of overseeing discrete policy areas. Aims, objectives and membership of sub-committees will be agreed in outline by the wider CSCFG and progress shared at quarterly meetings.

4. Achievements to date

  1. Support for first national Charity Fraud Conference (Oct 2015), hosted jointly by Fraud Advisory Panel and Charity Commission - several CSCFG members supported this event via presentations and workshops.
  2. Promotion of ‘Operation Safeguard’ amongst CSCFG members (Nov).
  3. Awareness raising to support the Met Police’s Mandate Fraud campaign (Dec/Jan) / Charity Commission issued an Alert on MF (mid-Jan).

5. Communications Strategy

Effective messaging is key to raising fraud awareness, disseminating good practice and developing a strong counter-fraud culture across the charity sector. The CSCFG will:

  • explore development of dedicated webpages, to be hosted by CC via .gov.uk
  • share, disseminate and co-ordinate key-counter fraud messages
  • encourage members to raise the profile of counter-fraud activities through presentations at conferences and events, social media and articles in professional/ sector press

6. Current and future plans

  1. Creation and oversight of dedicated sub-committees in agreed priority areas of: * Cyber-Fraud * Fraud, Risk & Resilience (FRR)

Aims, actions and membership of both agreed and initial scoping meetings taken place.

Back to top