Военная благотворительность устанавливает бесплатную бесплатную систему WI-Fi на радиостанциях RAF на базе RAF

Ассоциация RAF заявляет, что этот шаг поможет решить проблему изоляции некоторых сотрудников во время службы

. Треть персонала RAF теперь может лучше общаться с друзьями и семьей после того, как на 16 радиолокационных станциях RAF была установлена ​​свободная коммунальная система Wi-Fi на 1,2 миллиона фунтов.

Ассоциация RAF, благотворительная организация, оказывающая социальную поддержку семье RAF, разработала проект после того, как ему рассказали о социальной изоляции, которую испытывают многие новобранцы, когда они начинают жизнь. Вопросы безопасности часто препятствуют доступу к военному Wi-Fi для личного использования, а стоимость дополнительной инфраструктуры для доступа к более отдаленным базам RAF часто препятствует созданию систем.

Ассоциация заявила, что для тех, кто живет в одном месте, возможности для общения и общения со сверстниками уменьшаются, и родители могут пострадать, если они работают от своих семей. Wi-Fi-горячие точки создаются в общественных местах на станциях для поощрения одноранговых контактов, а также помогают персоналу поддерживать связь со своими существующими сетями поддержки: семьей, друзьями, партнерами и детьми дома. Ожидается, что выиграют около 11 000 военнослужащих и женщин.

Рори О'Коннор, директор по вопросам социального обеспечения и политики Ассоциации RAF, сказал: « В этом возрасте мы полагаемся на цифровые технологии, чтобы оставаться на связи

«Мы стремимся предоставить программу цифровой поддержки всему обслуживающему персоналу, независимо от того, прибывают ли они на службу или они являются опытными профессионалами вдали от своих друзей и семьи в другом туре ».

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Military charity installs £1.3m communal free wi-fi system at RAF stations

The RAF Association says the move will help to tackle the isolation some personnel feel while serving

A third of RAF personnel can now keep in better contact with friends and family after a £1.2m free communal wi-fi system was installed at 16 RAF stations.

The RAF Association, a charity that provides welfare support to the RAF family, developed the project after it was told about the social isolation that many new recruits feel when they begin service life. Security considerations often prevent access to military wi-fi for personal use and the cost of extra infrastructure to reach the more remote RAF bases has often prevented systems being put in place.

The association said that, for those housed in single person accommodation, the opportunities to socialise and engage with peers are reduced, and parents can be affected if they are working away from their families. The wi-fi hotspots are set up in communal areas on stations to encourage peer-to-peer contact as well helping personnel to stay in contact with their existing support networks: family, friends, partners and children at home. About 11,000 servicemen and women are expected to benefit.

Rory O’Connor, director of welfare and policy at the RAF Association, said: “In this age, we are reliant on digital technology to stay in touch with friends and family, but also to manage our online presence and daily tasks.

“We are dedicated to providing a programme of digital support to all serving personnel, whether they are newly arrived in the service or they are seasoned professionals away from their friends and family on another tour.”

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Tribunal overturns Charity Commission name-change order

The regulator had ordered the Cambridge Islamic College to change its name because it was too similar to the nearby Cambridge Muslim College

The charity tribunal has ruled that an Islamic college does not need to change its name, overturning an order issued by the Charity Commission last year.

The tribunal’s decision, which was published this week after a hearing was held last month, said that Cambridge Islamic College should not have to change its name despite a section 42 order issued by the commission.

The Charity Commission had ordered the name change in September last year because of similarities with the existing Cambridge Muslim College, which made a formal complaint to the commission in June 2016.

But the tribunal ruled that the regulator’s order “gave inadequate consideration to a number of important factors” and should be quashed.

It is the first time the tribunal has overturned a Charity Commission order since June 2015.

The Charity Commission said it had concerns about the tribunal’s judgment and was considering an appeal.

The tribunal ruling said the commission ordered Cambridge Islamic College to change its name because it was similar enough to Cambridge Muslim College to give the impression that they were connected, when they were in fact separate organisations.

The commission had also concluded there was evidence of people confusing the two charities, and a likelihood of further confusion and potential financial loss to Cambridge Muslim College if Cambridge Islamic College retained its existing name, the commission decided.

Cambridge Islamic College then appealed the decision to the charity tribunal, although an internal review by the commission concluded in December that the name-change order should stand.

Cambridge Islamic College argued during the tribunal hearing that the words “Islamic” and “Muslim” were both distinct words with different meanings – which differed from the Charity Commission’s ruling that the words were interchangeable – and that the two charities’ objects were sufficiently different.

The tribunal also heard that Cambridge Islamic College feared financial losses would occur after the name change took place.

The tribunal specifically said the regulator’s order did not provide any evidence to back its claim that the words “Islamic” and “Muslim” were interchangeable, and questioned the regulator’s claim that general confusion about the two charities fulfilled a legal test of whether a charity was giving an impression of a relationship to another.

The commission’s original decision also failed to consider the financial impact on Cambridge Islamic College of the name change, the tribunal ruled, and the regulator did not properly carry out a two-stage test as part of the name-change order.

Chris Willis Pickup, head of litigation at the Charity Commission, said: “We have some concerns about the tribunal’s approach to the legal framework for our name-change power, particularly that its narrow interpretation of the legal tests might prevent the commission from acting where there is a genuine issue with a charity’s name.

“We are therefore considering whether to appeal this decision to the upper tribunal to clarify the legal framework.”

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Charity Commission appeals for help to test its digital services

The regulator says volunteers will have the opportunity to positively influence its services

The Charity Commission has called for volunteers from the sector to help it develop its digital services.

The regulator said it was developing the services to make it easier for users to complete tasks online.

“As part of this development we are testing services with the charity sector and using the feedback to improve them,” a statement on the commission website said.

The regulator said it would be hosting several sessions on the subject around the country in the coming months.

Interested parties are being invited to complete an online form via the commission’s website.

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Allotment appeal dismissed by charity tribunal

The Charity Commission was correct in making a scheme to transfer the ownership of land in Buckinghamshire to a charity, the tribunal has ruled

An appeal against two Charity Commission rulings to transfer allotments from a parish council to a charitable trust has been rejected by the charity tribunal.

The claimant in the case said the decision, published last week following a hearing in June, said the decision could affect approximately 800 parishes across the country.

A tribunal’s ruling says that the Charity Commission was correct in ordering allotments owned by Hughenden Parish Council in Buckinghamshire to be transferred to a charity called the Hughenden Community Support Trust.

Pauline Densham, who shares an allotment in Hughenden and who brought the appeal against the Charity Commission’s decision, claimed Hughenden Parish Council was the rightful owner of the 10-acre allotment land and should not have to transfer it to the charity.

Because the council has a statutory duty to provide allotments, according to Densham, it would then be forced to rent the land back from the charity.

The allotments were created following the Enclosure and Improvement of Commons Act 1845, which fenced off and divided up common land, and as part of the act, two parcels of land were awarded to the council in 1855 and 1862 to provide allotments for the labouring poor.

A council clerk registered the allotments as a charity under the name Allotments for Labouring Poor in 1966, a move Densham argued was an error.

Densham said changes to the law introduced by the Local Government Act 1894 backed up the council’s claim to the land.

The charity lay dormant on the register until the council was considering selling part of the plot off in 1994, and a clerk wrote to the Charity Commission to find out what the legal position was.

The commission created a scheme in early November 2015 to transfer the allotments to the charity, following a public consultation in 2014.

The charity’s first trustees were eventually appointed in 2006, but Densham’s appeal argued that these appointments were invalid, as there was no statutory power which could be used to appoint trustees for the charity.

But the tribunal has rejected that the charity and the appointment of trustees are invalid, and has found in favour of the Charity Commission.

Speaking to Third Sector, Densham said: “Following registration, councils will be forced to give up their ownership of the allotments. Individual trustees will be appointed from members of the public, and the ownership of the land will be vested in the Official Custodian for Charities. 

“There will not be a legal requirement for the land to be kept as allotments, and the new trustees will have the freedom to use the land in whatever way they think is best.

“It is thought that, as a result of this decision, more than 1,000 acres of allotment land will be lost and approximately 800 parishes affected.”

Densham also said she would ask for permission to appeal to the upper tribunal against the latest ruling.

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Bradley Lowery Foundation registered with Charity Commission

The charity has been set up in memory of the young football fan, who died in July from a rare form of cancer aged six

A charity set up in the memory of Bradley Lowery, a young football fan and fundraiser who died from cancer earlier this year, has been registered with the Charity Commission.

Bradley, who died last month aged 6, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare form of cancer, when he was 18 months old.

More than £700,000 was raised to send Bradley to the US for treatment, and Bradley’s fundraising efforts were supported by prominent footballers and football clubs, including Sunderland FC – the team he supported – and the England international and former Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe.

The new charity, called the Bradley Lowery Foundation, will help other people with terminal illnesses, and was officially registered by the regulator on 22 August. 

In a post on the Bradley Lowery’s fight against neuroblastoma Facebook page, Gemma Lowery, Bradley’s mother, said she was extremely proud to have successfully registered the foundation.

“We’re hoping to support, advise and encourage families on their fundraising campaigns to reach their target and get their child medical treatment and equipment,” the Facebook post says.

“We’ll give out some grants, but we’ll also spend time building rapport with families to support them in all kinds of different ways. We’re also hoping to get a holiday home for families to use for short breaks, to give them some normality in their lives.”

According to the Charity Commission website, the charity’s objects are to help fund treatment, recreational breaks and equipment for people with life-limiting illnesses.

A JustGiving page for the Bradley Lowery Foundation has raised almost £393,000, as of midday today.

A website for the new charity is in the process of being set up.

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Regulator opens inquiry into charity over unexplained payments to a trustee

The Charity Commission will examine whether the funds of the Orphan Relief Fund and Charitable Trust have been used for charitable purposes

The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into a poverty relief charity over allegedly unexplained payments to a trustee and failure to provide records about its spending in Iraq.

The commission announced today that it had opened an inquiry into the Orphan Relief Fund and Charitable Trust following a compliance visit in May, which was carried out because the charity operated in high-risk countries.

The charity provides poverty relief and education for young people who have lost one or more parent, and works in Iraq, Pakistan and Somalia, as well as a number of other countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

During the compliance visit, the commission found that the trustees were unable to provide records about a significant amount of its spending in Iraq between 2013 and 2017.

A number of unexplained payments had also been made to one of the charity’s trustees, the commission said.

The regulator also found that the charity had spent charitable funds on activities that fell outside the charity’s remit.

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According to the charity’s entry on the Charity Commission’s website, the trust had an income of £583,485 and spent £596,199 in the year to 31 July 2016.

The latest accounts were submitted 43 days late, the Charity Commission website shows.

The regulator said the inquiry, which was opened on 24 July, would examine the administration, governance and management of the charity by the trustees and their conduct.

It will also look at the financial controls and management of the charity and whether its funds have been used for charitable purposes and can be accounted for, as well as whether the trustees have complied with charity law.

The Orphan Relief Fund and Charitable Trust did not respond to a request for comment before Third Sector’s deadline.

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Bill Gates donates £3.6bn to unknown charity

The Microsoft co-founder hasn’t stated which charity has benefited but it is believed to be his own foundation

Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft and the world’s richest man, has donated £3.6bn to charity, according to documents filed in the US.

The donation, which is documented in an annual statement of changes in beneficial ownership filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, consists of 64 million Microsoft shares.

The shares are worth a combined £3.6bn, or $4.6bn, in the current stock market.

It is not yet known which charity will benefit from the donation, but media reports suggest the likely beneficiary will be the world’s richest charity, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The foundation was set up in 2000 with a donation from Gates of approximately $5bn.

The donation amounts to approximately 5 per cent of Gates’ wealth, and reduces his shares in Microsoft to 1.3 per cent, according to Bloomberg.

Gates has donated significant amounts of his wealth to charity over the past two decades, and in 2010 set up the Giving Pledge with the US billionaire Warren Buffet.

The Giving Pledge commits billionaire philanthropists to give away more than half their wealth to charitable causes, and more than 170 wealthy individuals, couples and families have so far signed the pledge.

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Charlie Gard’s parents announce plans to found a charity in his memory

Chris Gard and Connie Yates say they will use the money raised to pay for their son late Charlie’s treatment to support other children with rare diseases

The parents of Charlie Gard, the baby at the centre of a high-profile legal battle, say they are planning to start a charity with the money they raised for his treatment.

Charlie Gard died on 28 July a week short of his first birthday, as a result of a rare condition called mitochondrial depletion syndrome.

His parents, Chris Gard and Connie Yates, had raised £1.3m via the fundraising platform GoFundMe to take him to America for experimental treatment, but Great Ormond Street Hospital, which was treating the baby, objected, saying the treatment was unlikely to help. Gard and Yates appealed to the High Court against a ruling that treatment should be withdrawn and that Charlie should be allowed to die, but eventually conceded that nothing could be done for him.

Today in a statement on their campaign website, Gard and Yates thanked donors for their support and announced their plans for the money which had been donated.

“In the following weeks we will be setting up The Charlie Gard Foundation: a foundation that will help other children with mitochondrial diseases, and rare childhood illnesses,” the statement said.

The charity will fund research on rare medical conditions, as well as providing information for parents in a similar situation on parental rights and the availability of treatment and expert clinicians.

The statement said: “All existing donations from our GoFundMe fundraising account – and any new donations – will now go towards Charlie’s foundation.”

Go Fund Me has contributed an extra £10,000 to the fund, the statement said, describing the donation as “a wonderful gesture”.

The statement said: “We feel that the foundation will be a lovely legacy for Charlie, and we hope that you will all continue to support us in honouring the life of our little warrior as he helps other poorly children and their families.”

A GoFundMe spokeswoman confirmed its donation but declined to comment further. 

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