Fresh CRC revelations further highlight need for quality standard mark for charities – Noone

Fine Gael Dublin Senator, Catherine Noone, has today (Friday) called for the urgent introduction of a quality standard mark for charities, to help restore confidence in the sector. Speaking in response to the latest revelations concerning the Central Remedial Clinic (CRC), Senator Noone said it was clear that action must be taken to restore confidence in the charities sector.

Senator Noone added that this quality mark could be awarded to charities that adhere to certain standards, such as publishing annual accounts and using a fixed amount of donations to pay for administration.

“We saw in the run up to Christmas that charitable donations had slumped following the series of revelations about top-ups paid to senior executives at the CRC. This has unfairly inflicted untold reputational damage on the charities sector, which certainly won’t be boosted by the latest revelations about the CRC.

“I am repeating my call for an urgent reappraisal of how we can benchmark and grade our charities. Establishing a quality standard for charities would help people to feel that they are donating with confidence, safe in the knowledge that their money will be spent on services for the vulnerable or needy.

“Furthermore, I believe the vast majority of charities would be in favour of a quality standard mark, which would reassure members of the public that a charity adheres to a certain set of standards, such as publishing annual accounts and committing to spend a fixed percentage of donations on administration. A logo to represent the ‘Charities Quality Standard’ could be displayed by organisations in compliance.

“We need to take action to address the damage inflicted on the charities sector by recent revelations. I believe that if charities act quickly, the sector can respond positively by embracing regulation and reform. This would help to restore public confidence in the sector into the future.”

ENDS