Alumni and Friends

Guidelines for UK Higher Education Institutions

As charitable entities whose work brings direct public benefit to the UK and the rest of the world, universities in the UK take pride in seeking gift income from UK and internationally-based donors. More than185,000 donors made gifts totalling over £500m to UK universities in 2009/10 to support the role of Higher Education and research in opening doors to education; in fostering just, sustainable and civil societies; and in seeking solutions to many of the world's most pressing problems. This support also plays an increasingly important part in helping to maintain the UK Higher Education sector's global reputation for excellence.

The development of this vital income stream needs to be guided by clear policies and procedures with regard to the criteria that determine whether any particular gift or donor should be accepted. As independent institutions, it is right that each university makes its own decisions in this area in the light of its own circumstances.

With the growth in the scale of, importance of, and public interest in philanthropy across the UK university sector in recent years, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education Europe, the Ross Group and the 1994 Group of Development Directors came together to review practice in gift acceptance. As a result, a set of core principles were identified which Glasgow Caledonian University proudly subscribes to.

The 10 principles are:

1. Universities should seek philanthropic support which is aligned with their values, strategic goals and financial needs, as a legitimate, sustained and vital component of their income.
2. Ethical guidelines for the acceptance of such gifts in any institution should be available in the public domain.
3. Impartial, independent research, scholarship and teaching are the basis for the furtherance of knowledge. Universities should not accept philanthropic gifts if this is not clearly understood and accepted by all parties.
4. Universities are charitable bodies and must observe the requirements of charity law and other relevant legislation in relation to the receipt and expenditure of funds. Ultimate responsibility regarding the acceptance and refusal of donations rests with the governing body of each university.
5. Where the authority for the acceptance of donations is delegated to the Vice-Chancellor and other senior academics or officers, that authority should be explicit and the responsibility of those accepting gifts to implement the institution's detailed ethical policies and procedures on donations must be clearly understood and consistently applied.
6. Universities should take all reasonable steps to ensure that they are aware of the source of funding for each gift, and have processes in place to satisfy themselves that the funds do not derive from activity that was or is illegal, or runs counter to the core values of impartial, independent research, scholarship and teaching.
7. Discussions with potential donors that are likely to give rise to significant public interest, or which raise complex questions with regard to acceptability, should be considered at the earliest stage possible by the appropriate decision makers who should be fully informed of the purpose and the background to the donation and the source of funds.
8. The legal and reputational rights of potential donors should also be considered as part of any due diligence undertaken in assessing the acceptability of a proposed donation. In this regard, a clear distinction should be drawn between rumour or speculation and matters of confirmed fact or legal finding, whilst also accepting that institutions may wish to consider the reputational risks that could be incurred through public perception of any particular donor.
9. Donors must accept and, for significant gifts (as determined by individual institutions), sign appropriate gift agreements to confirm that the management and governance of programmes funded through benefaction rest solely with the university. Individual institutions typically choose, without undermining this core principle, to offer donors opportunities for continuing engagement with the activities that they have funded. Universities should employ their standard procedures relating to recruitment, admissions, hiring, promotion, procurement, management and governance for all research, teaching, outreach, capital development, or student scholarship programmes funded by gifts.
10. Universities should have procedures in place for reviewing and reconsidering previous decisions taken in good faith relating to the acceptance of particular gifts if subsequent events or the subsequent availability of additional information require it. The response to such circumstances should be transparent and proportionate to the particular circumstances that have arisen.

Last updated: 20 September 2011

If you would like any further details concerning the 10 ethical principles behind the acceptance of gifts then please contact Robert Fleming, Director of Development at Robert.fleming@gcu.ac.uk