About the organisation
An organisation applied to the ACNC for charity registration.
Its work supported the operation of a school to provide educational opportunities for disadvantaged children and young people overseas – including those facing financial hardship, or those without parents.
About the application
In its application, the organisation outlined the processes it would have in place to select beneficiaries. These included meeting with families and working with community leaders in the areas from which the school’s students were drawn.
Beneficiaries would also be supported with educational resources, and to fund its work, the organisation said it would raise money locally and send it overseas.
The organisation also told the ACNC that some of its Responsible People were involved in the ownership and management of the school.
The ACNC was satisfied that the organisation’s governing document – as provided through the registration process – contained appropriate not-for-profit and winding up clauses and showed compliance with ACNC Governance Standards.
The ACNC needed more information about the organisation’s work overseas – given it would be working with vulnerable people in a location deemed to be of higher risk. The request included more information about how the organisation planned to work with vulnerable people, as well as about the relationships between the applicant organisation and those overseeing the school.
Charities that operate in certain countries overseas will face greater risks based on several factors, including the level of security in the country of operation, any ongoing conflict, or any issues related to government transparency, corruption or instability.
The ACNC will take into account information provided by other government agencies and international bodies – for example, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) – when assessing the risk of a country or jurisdiction.
About the registration process
The information sought from the organisation focused on how it would ensure adequate governance and oversight of the activities it managed.
This included:
- how it would manage any potential conflicts of interest
- how the organisation would send the money it raised overseas
- the measures it had in place to monitor overseas activities – including through reporting and supervision
- how it would ensure the welfare of vulnerable people was looked after – in this case, particularly young people.
Organisations that operate outside Australia must comply with the ACNC’s External Conduct Standards.
The standards require charities to take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate standards of behaviour, governance and oversight when undertaking activities or providing funding overseas.
A vital part of the ACNC’s registration process is to ensure any applicant operating overseas demonstrates its compliance with the External Conduct Standards.
This means the ACNC will often ask applicants about the measures they have in place to meet the standards, or to show their compliance through the provision of documents like policies and procedures.
Doing so allows the ACNC to ensure the applicant will comply with the standards, or helps us identify any shortcomings early on and then work with the applicant to properly address them before any decision on registration.
In response to the ACNC’s questions, the organisation provided a variety of documents and information, including:
- documentation and agreements between the organisation and the school that outlined ways to address potential conflicts of interest – especially any involving Responsible People’s ownership and management of the school. These included measures set out in the organisation’s constitution
- a description of methods it would use to send money overseas, including regulated banking and funds transfer services
- how it would work with and communicate with those in charge of the school overseas, including an MOU with the school that outlined financial and other reporting requirements, as well as requirements for the supervision and care of vulnerable people
- evidence that it would use a mediator to resolve disputes
- further guidelines on protecting vulnerable people, including restrictions on visitors to the school grounds, details about the physical layout and features of the school itself, and how the organisation would ensure staff members were appropriately qualified and had the necessary checks to cover their work with children.
In addition, the organisation said it worked with trusted local and Australian representatives, who would visit the school each week and check the school was complying with its agreed commitments to the organisation, and report back.
Vulnerable people are those aged under 18, or other people who might not be able to take care of themselves or cannot protect themselves from harm or exploitation.
Everyone must be protected from harm, but there are further considerations when it comes to protecting vulnerable people.
For charities operating overseas, there are specific requirements for protecting vulnerable people as outlined in External Conduct Standard 4.
The ACNC expects that a charity considers the risks to vulnerable people associated with its overseas work. Importantly this includes any work carried out with a third party.
Reasonable steps and procedures to meet this standard differ depending on each charity’s individual circumstances. The ACNC website outlines several of these steps.
Outcome
After examining the documents and responses provided by the organisation, the ACNC was satisfied it was complying with its obligations, including responsibilities outlined in the ACNC’s External Conduct Standards.
ACNC registered the organisation as a charity.