Londoners say rogue charity collectors make them feel uncomfortable and should be made to stay near promotional stands to reduce the risk of harassment.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) spoke to people outside two Tube stations named as hotspots for unlicensed fundraisers, after Islington Council joined calls for a crackdown.
Islington Town Hall said it had seen a “worrying rise” in the number of street collectors in hotspots like Finsbury Park and Farringdon stations where people have reported feeling pressured to hand over money – with persistent fundraisers reportedly using “aggressive” tactics.
The LDRS visited Finsbury Park Tube station, where 18-year-old sixth-form student Wafa Rahman said she was regularly approached and had a mixed view.
“You try to walk away and people may try to follow you. It’s sort of annoying but it’s okay,” she said, though adding that some were “just a bit rude”.
She said: “You’ll say ‘oh sorry, I’m busy’ but they’ll pull an annoyed face. It’s not pleasant.”
Miss Rahman said she was unsure if people who approached her were licensed or not.
Outside Farringdon station, musician, dancer and entrepreneur Marie Helene Bah said that regardless of licences, approaching people for donations “doesn’t look good for the country”. Though she understood the importance of fundraising first-hand, she felt it would be “nicer and more comfortable” if fundraisers stayed by promotional stands instead of walking up to strangers on the street.
The LDRS spoke to another passer-by who shared his sympathy for street collectors on the whole, since he worked in sales and recognised it was a difficult job. However, though he had never had a confrontation, he said members of his family had been coerced into giving money, and that elderly people may be a target for collectors.
A spokesperson for Islington Council said it had warned those unlicensed charities, known as Community Interest Companies (CICs), that following, catcalling and blocking people’s paths is considered harassment.
What local authorities plan to do
The borough’s Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Cllr Angelo Weekes, said that while most CICs acted responsibly, tactics used by companies like We R Blighty and Inside Success Union made people feel “unsafe through persistent questioning and following”.
Arguing that this also hurts local business and those charities that do play by the rules, he told the LDRS (LDRS) further action was needed to deter the minority and “protect the public from unwanted approaches”.
On behalf of the council, Cllr Weekes co-signed a letter to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) alongside the City of London Corporation, the Met and others led by the independent Fundraising Regulator.
The coalition argued that local government should have the power to hand out fixed penalty notices to rogue operators and avoid “costly” court proceedings. They also floated harsher deterrents, including unlimited fines (the current maximum is £200) and possible prison time.
In June, We R Blighty – which says it raises money for homeless military veterans – was prosecuted for unlawful cash collections. According to Islington and the other enforcement groups, the company’s fundraisers were back on the street trading illegally “the very next day”.
Speaking to the LDRS, a spokesperson for We R Blighty said the description of it as a rogue operator “ignored key facts” and suggested the CIC had been accused of fraud or theft when the prosecution was over “licensing interpretation”. They added that they had been found guilty after the City of London changed its rules “without prior notice” making it a condition that unlicensed collectors had to change their “periodical content” on a weekly basis.
“Allegations about our directors winding up or reforming companies to avoid enforcement are false. While our director Mr Mills has previously registered companies, these were dissolved or changed for unrelated reasons, this is entirely lawful and not on the scale or for the reasons alleged,” the spokesperson said.
“We support fair and consistent regulation, but changes must be clearly communicated so that charities, CICs, and businesses can comply without being caught out by sudden, unpublicised reinterpretations.”
Inside Success Union CIC was approached for comment but at the time of writing had not responded.
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