Charity Collections Policy

Closed 26 Mar 2025

Opened 26 Feb 2025

Contact

Licensing Team

01235 422556

licensing@southoxon.gov.uk

Feedback updated 19 Aug 2025

We asked

Members of the public, registered charities and charity collectors, businesses/organisations, and district, county and town/parish councils for their views on our new joint policy on charity collections. The proposed policy is aimed at safeguarding donors and beneficiaries, ensuring fair access to collection opportunities and preventing unlicensed fundraising. You can read the full proposed Charity Collection Policy here. 

You said

We received 95 completed responses for this consultation. Most respondents agreed with all the proposals made in the Charity Collection Policy, in relation to both house-to-house collections and street collections. 

More specifically, with regards to house-to-house-collections: 

  • 89% agree with the proposed amends for applicants to provide detailed supporting material about their charity. 
  • 69% agree with the proposed amends to restrict where collections can take place to prevent blanket district-wide collections.  
  • 86% agree with the proposal that a minimum of 80 per cent of money donated during house-to-house collections should go to the charitable cause. 
  • 86% agree with the proposed amends to set grounds for which an application may be refused.  

With regards to street collections: 

  • 75% agree with the proposed amends for any one charity/group be allocated a maximum of four collections per year, to provide equal access to all who wish to collect. 
  • 87% agree with the proposed amendments to set the grounds on which an application may be refused. 

We did

A report with the results of the consultation was presented to the council’s General Licensing Committees in July 2025. The committee reports included details of changes made to the proposed policy as a result of feedback from the consultation. The Committees discussed the results of the consultation, and a number of the comments received and approved the proposed policy to take effect from 1 August 2025. You can read the comments received in our consultation summary report.

Results updated 19 Aug 2025

Files:

Overview

We are introducing a new joint policy for South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse districts related to charity collections.

The proposed policy is aimed at safeguarding donors and beneficiaries, ensuring fair access to collection opportunities and preventing unlicensed fundraising. It introduces key measures, including:

  • A requirement for applicants to provide detailed supporting material about their charity.
  • Restrictions on where collections can take place to prevent blanket district-wide collections.
  • A minimum of 80 per cent of money donated during house-to-house collections to go to the charitable cause.
  • A fairer allocation of dates for street collection.
  • Clear grounds for refusing applications and licence revocations.

The policy includes two separate licences: house to house collections and street collections, the survey will distinguish between the two. You will also have the opportunity to comment on the full proposed policy.

You can view the full proposed Charity Collections Policy here. 

What are house to house and street collections?

Street collection – collections of cash on the street for charity, including sale of goods in the street for charity (e.g. bake sale). Does not cover persons collecting direct debit information for future regular donations.

House to House collection – collections made door to door for charitable purposes, including collections of money, ‘charity bags’ seeking donations of goods, direct debit collections made door to door, etc.

We invite you to share your views on the proposed new policy from Wednesday 26 February until 11.59pm on Wednesday 26 March 2025. 

If you have any questions about this consultation or require it in an alternative format (for example large print, Braille, audio, Easy Read and alternative languages), please email licensing@southoxon.gov.uk and licensing.unit@whitehorsedc.gov.uk or call 01235 422556.

What happens next?

Once the consultation has closed, we will review and consider all the comments raised. A consultation summary report of the results will be produced and published on our website. This report will be shared with the Licensing Committees, who will make the final decision to adopt the policy or not.

Personal details?

If you are responding as an charity collector or individual/member of the public, we ask for the first part of your postcode, you are not required to provide your name or contact details. Any personal information you provide to the councils within your comments that could identify you, will not be published in the summary report.

If you are responding in your capacity as a registered charity, business/organisation, council, councillor or council officer we ask you to provide its name - the summary report will include this information.

The consultation includes equality questions at the end. All questions in this section are optional. All information is confidential and will only be used to help us monitor whether views differ across the community. Further information on data protection is available in our privacy statement. 

Areas

  • All Areas

Audiences

  • Businesses/Organisations
  • General Public
  • Town/Parish Councils