The giveaway in a BBC article featuring the word charity is when a government spokesman provides a rent-a-quote at the end agreeing with the charity's suggestions and saying 'more must be done'. Today it's the Alzheimer's Society's turn for special pleading:
The home support given to people with dementia and their carers is an "absolute travesty", a charity says.
The Alzheimer's Society study - based on feedback from carers, health workers and patients - said the problem was causing unnecessary admissions to hospital and care homes. The authors called for better training for staff and access to services in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The government said the charity was right to highlight the issue... [etc etc]
Righty-ho, let's look at their accounts available via the Charity Commission.
They have income of £23 million a year from 'Grants and contracts' and 'Trading turnover and subsidiaries' and (reading between the lines a bit) most of that income is from e.g. local councils and the NHS for providing care.
So not only are they a fakecharity in the ordinary sense of the word and are trying to persuade the government to give them yet more money (fair enoughski), and assuming that they are not stupid enough to describe the care that they themselves provide as "an absolute travesty", the sub text of all this is that they are trying to squeeze out competing providers as well.
Tuesday, 25 January 2011
FakeCharity Du Jour
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2 comments:
Mark, I think you need new reading-between-the-lines specs. The trading turnover from subsidiaries is from this:
Alzheimer's Trading Limited (ATL)
ATL is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Society which generates income from fundraising challenge events, raffles, licensing and marketing a wide range of gifts, merchandise and products. Each sale helps to support the fight against dementia.
They are a bit coy about how much of their income from the LAs is from grants and how much is from contracts, but it appears that some LAs have contracted out their care of Alzheimer's sufferers to the Society. IMHO this doesn't make the AS a fakecharity, because the money received from the LAs is for care services, not campaigning and the AS funds a good deal of it's care work from other sources (only 35% of its income is from LAs and 90% of its expenditure is on care).
Finally, the AS is not asking the Gov't for any money, it's asking the Gov't to give more money to the LAs (admittedly, some of that money will come their way, but it doesn't have to). What it is trying to point out is that the current system, where Alzheimer's sufferers end up in hospital, actually costs the country more than a higher expenditure on care for the same people in their own homes (but the NHS budget is sacred and cannot be cut, whereas the grant to the LAs is not).
Otherwise the article is a classic piece of crap reporting:
"The government said the charity was right to highlight the issue."
What, the whole government, Nick Clegg included?
"The home support given to people with dementia and their carers is an "absolute travesty", a charity says."
No it doesn't, what it actually said (from lower down in the same article) was:
"It is an absolute travesty that so many people with dementia are being forced to struggle without the care and support they need. The consequences of this represent an unacceptable human and financial cost."
Subtle but important difference.
And the Beeb makes sure to give this extra publicity by booking them onto the 'Jeremy Vine' show on Radio Two...
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