SPCA TELLS RSPCA TO STOP STEALING

The Scottish SPCA today challenges the RSPCA to stop stealing food from the mouths of Scotland's defenceless animals and tell the truth to the Scottish public.
Scotland's animal welfare charity has launched an unprecedented campaign calling for the English and Welsh charity to admit it can't save a single animal in Scotland.
Chief Executive Stuart Earley said, "Many people do not know that the RSPCA does not rescue or rehome any animals in Scotland and by advertising here it has been intentionally adding to the confusion to make money.
"The RSPCA is in breach of Institute of Fundraising guidelines it helped draw up which require charities to be explicitly clear about where they work. Occasionally using small print to tell the Scottish public it is registered in England and Wales is in no way explicit.
"We are a completely separate charity and have asked the RSPCA to make it clear it does not save animals in Scotland so people can make an informed choice about who to donate to. However, after six months of talks we are no further forward.
"This has been increasing the huge pressure on our resources for many years and enough is enough. It's time the RSPCA told the truth."
Research has demonstrated that 70% of the Scottish public believe the RSPCA saves animals in Scotland. High profile RSPCA campaigns in Scotland last year included a membership drive in Scottish supermarkets and adverts on Scottish radio stations.
"The RSPCA seems determined to portray itself as a UK charity, even if it is at the expense of animal welfare in Scotland," said Mr Earley.
"Further RSPCA advertising has included television adverts on UK channels. While these particular adverts cannot be restricted to England and Wales, they should not deceive the Scottish public.
"We are therefore calling for the RSPCA to be explicitly clear in its advertising that it does not rescue or rehome animals in Scotland.
"This could be by explicitly stating where it works or even describing itself as the ‘RSPCA for England and Wales'. Either would clear up the confusion almost immediately.
"We are also calling for the RSPCA to at all times make it clear to anyone donating from Scotland that their donation will not help animals in their country.
"This should extend to any legacies it receives made out to the ‘Scottish RSPCA' or ‘RSPCA Scotland'. We believe these should come to us and be used to care for animals in Scotland but even this basic and fair principle has been rejected.
"It is impossible to quantify how much we have lost to the RSPCA but any loss is damaging because we receive no government or lottery funding and rely on public support.
"While anyone can of course support any charity they wish, we know the majority of the Scottish public would prefer their donations to help charities in Scotland and it is on this basis, in defence of the abandoned and neglected animals in need of our help, that we are taking this stance.
"We did not want to have to campaign in this way and very much hope this brings about a change in RSPCA policy."
Mr Earley continued, "People will ask why we don't merge. The answers are simple, the most significant of which is the Scottish SPCA is subject to Scottish law and, like the police in Scotland, is a reporting agency to the Crown Office, a status far greater than that afforded to the RSPCA.
"Animal welfare is also a devolved issue in Scotland and the Scottish SPCA is in effect a legally recognised defender of animal welfare on behalf of the Scottish Government, which again is a status the RSPCA does not have in England and Wales.
"Indeed, we are extremely proud of our influential role in the development of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act of 2006 and subsequent legislation, which is a reflection of the excellent reputation the Scottish SPCA has with MSPs.
"The Scottish public have their own animal welfare charity in the Scottish SPCA and it is essential they are aware of this fact."

http://www.scottishspca.org/news/142

RSPCA DONT OPERATE IN SCOTLAND

BUT THEY TAKE DONATIONS FROM THE SCOTS, DESPITE THE FACT THAT THE SCOTTISH SPCA DO ALL THE WORK !


Charities that receive donations from people living outside their areas of operation must let donors know if there are other organisations with similar missions in their area, according to the Institute of Fundraising's new best practice guide on cross-border fundraising.
The guide, published today, is a response to concerns from some Scottish charities about English charities that fundraise in Scotland even though they don't operate north of the border. Last year the Scottish SPCA ran a poster campaign alerting Scots to the fact that the RSPCA does not operate in Scotland (Third Sector, 22 August 2007, page 5). "Many Scots don't understand that we are entirely separate from the RSPCA, which adds to the confusion by continuing to advertise in Scotland," said Mike Flynn, chief superintendent of the Scottish SPCA. "The fact they care only for animals in England and Wales is only ever in the small print. This leads to many donations going south of the border."

Recent research suggests, for instance, that a majority of Scots are unaware of the fact that the RSCPA does not operate in Scotland. Partly in response to that research, the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is running an awareness campaign on inflatable billboards in Scotland that bears the message: "The SSPCA starts where the RSPCA finishes ... at the border!"
Michelle Feenie, marketing manager of the SSPCA, said: "It is vital that we not only continue to raise the SSPCA's profile, but that we also do so in a context that makes it clear that the society is Scotland's national animal welfare charity."
Feenie said that an argument could be made for stopping English and Welsh charities from fundraising in Scotland, but the most important thing was to ensure that any advertising informed the public about where charities operate.

The code, which has been drawn up by a working group including institute members from across the UK, says donors must be told where their donations will be spent, and charities must be sensitive to their expectations.A spokeswoman for the RSPCA said the charity fully supported the open and honest approach promoted by the code, which it helped to create. She said: "We have always been mindful of the damage that sister charities operating on either side of the border could do to each other and have for many years operated informal procedures with the SSPCA very close to those advocated in the code. Despite not being registered in the whole of the UK, the RSPCA is regarded by many as a national brand."
The guide says:
Donors must know where their money will be spent
Charities must be sensitive to donor's expectations of where their money will be spent
Charities receiving donations from donors residing outside their areas of operation must make them aware of services offered by any sister organisations offering equivalent services there
All parties should be involved in joint working from the earliest stages and throughout the process
The institute's code of practice on accountability and transparency must be followed
Any agreements or protocols between sister organisations must be endorsed by all high-level stakeholders, particularly chief executives and trustees
Information and publicity materials must make clear the agreement between cross-border charities.
http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/News/DailyBulletin/858919/Institute-unveils-code-cross-border-fundraising/85A2C16B3675C33360C84E2246235455/?DCMP=EMC-DailyBulletin