Charities, Campaigning and Elections

Campaigning and Political Activity by Charities

Charities are not prevented from undertaking political activity to achieve their objectives (such as seeking to influence Parliament to pass new legislation or pressing a local authority to change its policy). The Charity Commission expressly states that campaigning is a legitimate and valuable activity for a charity to undertake, provided it is clearly related to promoting or furthering the charitable purposes of the organisation, and not in the interests of a particular party or candidate.

• See the Charity Commission's CC9 'Speaking Out' Guidance on Campaigning and Political Activity by Charities for further details.

Charity Law and Electoral Law - Campaigning during an Election

During election time, charities should take special care to ensure their political neutrality and the limits to what they can do become tighter. In particular, charities must operate within the stricter rules set out by the Charity Commission's updated guidance on 'Charities, Elections and Referendums'.

Charities must also have regard to the following legislation that affects them:

• the Representation of the People Act 1983 (RPA); and
• the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA).

National Campaigns by Third Parties

Although a charity cannot support a particular political party or candidate, it is allowed to produce 'election materials', as long as this is part of the organisation's policy agenda. However, if charities produce 'election materials' they may need to register as a third party with the Electoral Commission.

• More details about registering as a third party can be found in the Electoral Commission's 'Guidance for Non-Party Campaigners on Expenditure and Donations for Elections in 2010'.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. We're a registered charity, can we campaign during the election?
2. When exactly does the Charity Commission guidance on charities and the election come into force?
3. What can we do during an election?
4. Can I publish a newsletter which gives a summary of each party’s view on a specific issue?
5. Can our charity publish its manifesto once the election has been called?
6. Can we engage with politicians during the election period?
7. Does that mean that if I invite a representative of a political party to an event, I have to invite them all?
8. I organised an event ages ago with our local MP. Now the election has been called what does that mean?
9. A candidate who recently spoke at our annual conference has written about it on his website and included our charity’s logo. Do we need to do anything?
10. I work for a charity and I am standing as a candidate or councillor - is this a problem?
11. The manager of our charity has been invited to a fundraising dinner for a local parliamentary candidate. Can she attend?
12. A branch of a local political party has asked to hire our facilities. Is this ok?
13. A political party has asked us to attend a session relating to the development of their manifesto. Can we attend?
14. I’ve heard that the Electoral Commission have also published guidance on campaigning – does this affect me?
15. What if my charity is campaigning in coalition with another organisation – does that make any difference?
16. What constitutes 'election material'?
17. Does that mean my organisation's website could also be considered election material?
18. What are my responsibilities as a trustee when considering whether to launch a campaign?

1. We're a registered charity, can we campaign during the election?

Yes. Campaigning and political activity are legitimate activities for charities to undertake. Any charity can become involved in campaigning and political activity, as long as these can be shown to support the delivery of its charitable purposes, it remains independent, and it never engages in party political activity.

However, once an election is called the rules set out in the Charity Commission Guidance on Charities and Elections should be followed.

Essentially, at election time charities should take special care to ensure their political neutrality and independence.

2. When exactly does the Charity Commission guidance on charities and the election come into force?

The guidance comes into force from the dissolution of the current Parliament and applies until the election of the next one (a period often known as ‘purdah’).

Charities must ensure their activities are in line with the CC9 Guidance on Campaigning and Political Activity by Charities at all times. 

3. What can we do during an election?

Charities can undertake any activity that is in support of their mission and contributes to the delivery of the charitable purposes for which the charity was established, to an extent that justifies the resources used.

The fundamental principle is that a charity does not engage in any activity that can be deemed party political, and must remain independent and politically neutral.

In particular, this means you must not give support or funding to a political party, candidate or politician.

4. Can I publish a newsletter which gives a summary of each party’s view on a specific issue?

Yes, you can publish the view of candidates and the position of each party. However the motivation should not be to promote a particular party or candidate – the aim must be only to raise public awareness of an issue , or to influence the policy of parties on your issue. You must also be aware of the language and tone used to describe each party, and cannot imply support for a particular party on the basis of the information you publish.

5. Can our charity publish its manifesto once the election has been called?

Yes, provided the aim of your manifesto is to raise awareness and initiate public debate around the issues your charity works on and advocates. The purpose must not be to promote or denigrate a particular party or candidate and the manifesto must not have that effect.

6. Can we engage with politicians during the election period?

Yes, you can approach and engage with individual politicians, for example by inviting them to an event or asking them for their views on a particular subject to promote debate.

However, at all times you must remain neutral and maintain public perceptions of neutrality, for example by inviting other representatives from across the political spectrum.

7. Does that mean that if I invite a representative of a political party to an event, I have to invite them all?

You need to consider the risks of only having one political party present – it’s likely this will be seen as favouring one above the others. To avoid this you should extend the invitation to as wide a spread of representatives as possible.

You can exclude minority parties and parties whose presence and views may alienate your supporters (or if you have concerns around a threat to public order).

8. I organised an event ages ago with our local MP. Now the election has been called what does that mean?

As Parliament no longer exists, your MP is now considered to be a candidate. Again you need to consider the risks of only having one political party present, and you may want to extend the invitation to representatives of other political parties.

If you cannot ensure broader representation you will probably have to cancel the event or ask a non political figure to attend instead.

9. A candidate who recently spoke at our annual conference has written about it on his website and included our charity’s logo. Do we need to do anything?

You should ask the candidate to remove the logo from his website immediately. By being displayed in such way, the appearance to the public is that your charity supports that particular candidate.

10. I work for a charity and I am standing as a candidate or councillor – is this a problem?

Not necessarily. However your trustees should be aware of your intention and consider the potential conflict of interest and risks to reputation. In particular if a number of staff or members are linked to a political party this may call the charity’s independence into question, so trustees should consider suitable governance arrangements and risk management. 

11. The manager of our charity has been invited to a fundraising dinner for a local parliamentary candidate. Can she attend?

Unless he has been invited to attend in his private capacity, his presence will be seen as supporting that particular candidate and is therefore not allowed. He should decline the invitation.

Furthermore, if there are costs attached, for example to sponsor a table, they would constitute an impermissible donation to the party.

If he has been invited to attend in his private capacity – and there is no risk that he will be taken to be attending on behalf of the charity - these difficulties should not arise.

12. A branch of a local political party has asked to hire our facilities. Is this ok?

You should weigh up the risks involved in agreeing to the hire, in particular you must consider the need to remain neutral and maintain public perceptions of neutrality. Hiring your premises at the same rate as usual, being clear that they are avaialble to any political party who wishes to hire them, and charging all political parties the same rate, will help to maintain perceptions of your independence. You can refuse to hire your facilities to a particular party if your charity trustees believe this would damage perceptions of neutrality, alienate supporters or create a risk of public disorder.

It is important to note that some charities, (eg some schools) may be required by electoral law to make their premises available to candidates to hold public meetings free of charge.

13. A political party has asked us to attend a session relating to the development of their manifesto. Can we attend?

Charities can participate in discussions (including focus groups) organised by political parties in order to influence their policies. However, helping a political party to draw up a more attractive and persuasive manifesto, thereby promoting its prospects of getting elected, would be wholly improper. It may well be very difficult to decide whether the session really will be an opportunity to influence policy, or will just help to write up a policy to which the party is already committed.

However, it may be possible to find out where the party stands generally on an issue by research and the identity of other invitees may be a clue to how much the political party’s policy might be influenced. You must, of course, be prepared to participate in this sort of discussion with the other major parties.

14. I’ve heard that the Electoral Commission have also published guidance on campaigning – does this affect me?

Yes, you should be aware of the Electoral Commission Guidance on Non-Party Campaigners (PDF). This applies if your charity produces 'election material' costing more than the stated thresholds (£10,000 in England, and £5,000 in the rest of the UK).

15. What constitutes ‘election material’?

The definition of election material covers any material made available to the public, which can be reasonably regarded as intended to promote electoral success or enhance the standing of a particular party or candidate.

Material may be considered election material even if it is intended to achieve another purpose. Charities who are concerned that their publications may be seen as promoting particular candidates should consider amending those publications and adding appropriate disclaimers.

Election material however does not include material sent to members and committed supporters, or material sent directly to parties and candidates as part of your charity’s lobbying activities.

16. Does that mean my organisation’s website could also be considered election material?

No, the Electoral Commission has clarified that websites are not considered as ‘made available to the public’ because people visiting a website normally do so at their own initiative.

However, this changes if you advertise or otherwise promote your website in connection to campaigning (for example enhancing the website’s position in search engine results, placing a link on other websites, displaying the website address on other election material as a source for more information).

17. What if my charity is campaigning in coalition with another organisation – does that make any difference?

Yes, if you are collaborating with other organisations the Electoral Commissions sums up the amounts spent separately and counts the total against both organisations. So you need to be very careful about expenditure.

18. What are my responsibilities as a trustee when considering whether to launch a campaign?

Trustees have a legal obligation to make a considered decision, taking account of a number of factors: is the activity a good use of the charity’s resources? what are the costs and benefits? what are the risks and opportunities? will the charity’s reputation be damaged?

More information

• More practical information about charities and elections is available on the Guardian Society website at Charities Q&A: Elections
• The Electoral Commission has also published a Factsheet on Hustings Events for parties, candidates, agents and hustings organisers.