FOR John Flanagan going to work each day isn't just a job. It's personal. As head of supporter relations for St Peter's Hospice, he is proud to ask for your money.
He joined the team at the city's only adult hospice 11 years ago, after his twin sister Jayne passed away at the age of 31 from breast cancer.
John – a successful businessman, who had carved out a niche in the world of office design – could not forget the "extraordinary levels of end-of-life care" Jayne received at the hands of the dedicated team of nurses.
He was left so in awe of the work they do, he was moved to leave behind his lucrative career in order to work for the hospice – to take on the challenge of raising the £6.5m that the charity needs to find annually in order for the hospice to keep afloat.
For a decade he worked as fundraising manager, dealing with everything from working with those organising sponsored events and local community initiatives to advising people on how to raise money for the hospice.
But 12 months ago, John took on a new challenge as head of supporter relations. With the recession biting, and traditional donation streams being badly hit, John was given the role of encouraging support from the wealthy few whose riches had left them relatively immune to the dreaded double-dip.
"There was an opportunity there, not just to ask them for financial support, but to develop a relationship with them – encourage them to engage with the charity, to come and see the facilities we have, the work we do, and to meet some of our wonderful team at the hospice," he explains.
The new approach had been showing signs of early success, but then a bombshell fell on John's world as Chancellor George Osborne unveiled his budget in the Commons in March.
As part of the Chancellor's austerity budget, which focused heavily on tightening-up the tax system, a new tax cap was announced on charitable donations – effectively scrapping income tax relief on donations of more than £50,000.
"I couldn't believe what I was hearing," John says. "This was hitting those larger donations that we had been specifically targeting. It was a real kick in the teeth, not just for St Peter's Hospice of course, but for all charities across the country."
Now he's had a few weeks to take in the news, John says he is seriously concerned about the effect the announcement will have on the hospice's fundraising capability.
"This was the one funding stream that was on the increase.
"We were doing so well to encourage giving from the area's wealthier individuals, and then this has come along and sown seeds of doubt into the minds of potential donors.
"It's a knock to donor confidence, and my concern is that it will be enough of a setback to make them question their donations."
John is not alone in his fears. The budget created a ripple of horror among charities across the country. An online campaign was even set up – "Give It Back George" – calling for a rethink on the changes to Gift Aid law.
"When you're running a charity like this it's difficult to estimate exactly what the effect of this kind of uncertainty can be – it's the long- term effect we have to worry about. Doing this job you're not just thinking of how you're going to raise funds for the following year – you're having to think five or 10 years ahead all the time.
"Of the £6.5m we need to find each year, £5m comes directly from the people of Bristol. It's an enormous part of our budget.
"But we're a part of Bristol life – more than 2,000 people reach the end of their lives while in our care each year, and we support 6,000 family members. St Peter's Hospice was started by the people of Bristol for the people of Bristol and the service that we provide all year round is free of charge to patients and their families.
"The good folk of Bristol understand how important the work we do is, and they understand the importance of raising money and making donations towards our work.
"My problem with Osborne's new policy, beyond the financial impact it could have on our donations, is the way it somehow portrays wealthy donors as the bad people – it suggests they're all just interested in tax avoidance. That's simply not the case.
"For me, the wealthy people who come here and give us money are good people. They really are. They don't have to sign those cheques.
"Being wealthy does not mean you're a bad person. The vast majority of these individuals are Bristol people who have made good through their own hard work – they're successful business people who are keen to give something back to the city. The idea that they should be framed as tax dodgers is appalling.
"As we approach our 35th anniversary next year, we're very conscious of the fact that what we call 'lifetime giving' needs to be a big part of our future. But this tax cap is going to make things all the more difficult at the worst possible time."
If you would like to support the work of St Peter's Hospice and talk to John about making a financial gift to the hospice you can contact him on 0117 9159318 or email john.flanagan@stpeters hospice.org.
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