Should All Charities Merge Their Communication and Fundraising Teams?

Charity communications and fundraising departments have not always seen eye to eye. A 2011 survey of 115 professionals in both fields by CharityComms and Forster found that only 14 percent of respondents felt the two departments always worked towards shared goals. “We don’t talk to each other,” said one participant. “The communications team doesn’t know enough about fundraising and vice versa.”

To improve the relationship, a number of charities have begun to merge the departments together. The RSPB did so in 2012, admitting to previous disagreements and in-fighting. The Terrence Higgins Trust did the same in 2011, with then-CEO, Sir Nick Partridge, announcing that the new structure would “help generate vital funds and provide a strengthened voice.”