ActionAid is one of five charities shortlisted for an award as Britain’s most admired charity.
This is the launch year for the award. It is adapted from the prestigious and long-running Management Today Britain’s Most Admired Company Award and sponsored by Barclays.
Britain’s Most Admired Charity Award 2003 is the first and only award that is voted for by the charities themselves. The award – and another, Britain’s Most Admired Charity CEO 2003 – will be based on the results of a poll of the UK’s top 500 fundraising charities. Both awards offer charitable organisations a unique opportunity to publicly recognise and celebrate the work of their peers.
The winners will be announced by Home Secretary David Blunkett on 13 October. The awards ceremony, to be held in Knightsbridge, London, will be jointly hosted by Third Sector magazine and Barclays.
Lyndall Stein, ActionAid’s international marketing director, said: “We are delighted that chief executives have shortlisted ActionAid with four other charities for such a prestigious award. This award salutes the vital work done by so many people in Britain and overseas who strive to build a better world for everyone.”
Lucy Maggs, editor of Third Sector magazine, says: “The idea behind the awards is to recognise the part that voluntary and not-for-profit organisations now play in Britain’s economy. Our shortlisted charities represent best practice within the voluntary sector and serve to highlight the skills and qualities needed to run today’s modern charities.”
Alice Wilcock, Barclays head of community affairs, says: “We see supporting and acknowledging professionalism in the charitable sector as part of our social responsibility. The Britain’s Most Admired Charity Award is achieving this by seeking charities’ views and opinions on the best in their sector.”
In 2001/2 gross income for the UK’s not-for-profit and voluntary organisations was over £26 billion and their assets totalled over £70 billion. Voluntary organisations employ half a million people, which represents 2% of the UK workforce – more than either the post or telecommunications industries.
The other charities to make the shortlist are Oxfam, the Samaritans, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.