Archived: Anglican Aid: mini-charity review

Mini-charity review of Anglican Aid (AA), an organisation that was one of the first three accredited by the CMA Standards C0uncil, Christian Management Australia’s ‘major new initiative, accrediting Christian organisations against a set of standards of good governance, financial oversight, and fundraising ethics.’

Is it responsive to feedback?

• When sent a draft of this review, on 18 May 2017, they…did not respond.

Is it registered?

• No.
  • It’s clear from its website that AA is a charity, yet it is not registered with the charity regulator, the ACNC.
    • There are already two other charities with ‘Anglican Aid’ in the short names that they use that are registered as charities:
      • Anglican Aid Abroad, used (unregistered) by The Missionaries Of St Andrew Anglican Aid Abroad, and
      • Anglican Overseas Aid, used (registered) by Anglicord Limited.
  • AA is clearly trading under the name ‘Anglican Aid’, yet this name is not registered as a business name.
  • It has many reasons to have an ABN – GST registration being not the least of these – yet it doesn’t have one.
• It doesn’t have any fundraising licences (seven states have a licensing regime).

What does AA do?

• The About page says that
  • Anglican Aid is an overseas relief and aid agency of the Anglican Church of Australia, committed to excel in the provision of Christian aid to vulnerable communities throughout the world.
  • However, this does not match the contents of the website: there are many more activities described than overseas aid. It would be correct if the only charity that they were managing was The Archbishop Of Sydney’s Overseas Relief and Aid Fund, but there are two others.

Do they share the Gospel^[1]?

• There is no evidence on the website that they do.

What impact are they having?

• A search of the website found no report on impact.

What do they spend outside the costs directly incurred in delivering the above impact, that is, on administration?

• NA – no financial information is available.

Can you get a tax deduction?

• Yes, for some donations:
  • Yes, for Community Care and Overseas Development. Donations to Overseas Ministry are not tax-deductible.
  • But there is no explanation of how, if AA is not registered as a charity, let alone as a deductible gift recipient, it can offer a tax deduction.

Is their online giving secure?

• SecurePay is used, so yes.

What choices do you have in how your donation is used?

• Online, on the ‘support’ page:
  • ‘Victims of Violence and Famine in East Africa’
  • ‘Cyclone Debbie Appeal’
  • ‘EOFY Appeal Overseas’
  • ‘EOFY Appeal Australia’
  • ‘Easter Appeal’
  • ‘Syrian Refugees’
  • ‘General Donation’
  • ‘Overseas Ministry’
  • ‘Bunda Girls School Bursaries’
  • ‘Petra bursaries Zimbabwe’
  • ‘Support for Sami’
  • ‘MOCLAM Bible Training’
  • ‘Blessed to Bless (Zambia’s Child)’
  • ‘SOAR China’
  • ‘South Sudan Voices of Salvation’
  • ‘Albert Lamoureux – Mauritius’
  • ‘Growing Hope Myanmar’
• But there is a different, including more extensive, list via the first FAQ.
• By mail: none.
• By phone: not specified.

Is their reporting up-to-date?

• NA – they don’t report.

Does their reporting comply with the regulator’s requirements?

• NA – they don’t report.

What financial situation was shown in that Report?

• NA

What did the auditor say about the last financial statements?

• NA

If a (registered) charity, is their page on the ACNC Register complete?

• NA

Who are the people controlling the organisation?

• The website says that there is a board:
  • The Board of Management, with responsibilities as such under the Corporations Act to govern the Anglican Aid function and organisation, comprises men and women with long seasons of experience in Christian ministry, international mission and business.
    • But AA is not a corporation (company)– in fact it is not officially even a separate entity.
    • Nor are any of the three charities that it manages companies.
  • These are the people listed under this description:
    • Rt Rev PJ Tasker
    • Mrs Emma Penzo
    • Mr David Dennis
    • Is it this David Dennis?
    • Rev Rob Steward (sic)
    • Dr Keith Walker
    • Rev John Menear
    • Rev Canon Peter Rodgers
    • Rev Brett Hall
    • Mr Doug Marr
• With the correction of ‘Steward’ to ‘Stewart’, these are the same nine directors that comprise the board of the three charities that AA runs.
  • There are 10 directorships recorded for the name ‘Douglas Marr’, 9 for ‘Emma Penzo’, and 8 for ‘Peter Rodgers’.  And the register only covers charities, not all not-for-profits, and no for-profit organisations.  Therefore, if after eliminating the charities that don’t belong to the AA director, you are left with their total being more than a handful, it would be legitimate for you to question whether their ability to discharge their fiduciary responsibilities is threatened.

To whom is AA accountable?

• Since being accredited with the CMA Standards Council, that body. Before that, nobody.

1. “Good living and social concern are important [to the cause of evangelism], but they are not uniquely Christian graces…I’ve met a lot of fine Hindus, Muslims and atheists. Just living the life is not going to bring someone to Christ. There is much more to it than that. We must help people, certainly, but we must also share with them why we are motivated to do so. We must stand against injustice, poverty and need, but we must at the same time point to the One who brings justice and who can meet the deepest need. Until they know our reasons, how can they come to know our Lord?” [Dan Armstrong, the Fifth Gospel: The Gospel According to You, Anzea Books, pp. 13-14. ↑