Quick guide

The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation has completed the compliance checklist process and complies with the principles and practices of the Governance Code for Community Voluntary and Charity organisation’s in Ireland.

This process was completed in January 2017 and we are now deemed ‘Compliant’ on the Governance Code website. (www.governancecode.ie)

Corporate Governance is simply transparency and compliance with the Charity Commission regulations. Corporate governance is a term that refers broadly to the rules, processes, or laws by which businesses are operated, regulated, and controlled. Governance of an organisation is an ongoing endeavour and the basic principles need to be adhered to on an ongoing basis and is the overall responsibility of each and every staff member from the Board of Directors/Trustees down.

Implementing and complying with good practice codes such as the Governance Code for the Community, Voluntary and Charity sector, ‘good governance’ is a continuing journey where you constantly aim to apply good practice principles and check regularly on how you are doing. It is not a tick box exercise or about producing big binders of policies and controls that nobody pays attention to. It is about leadership, compliance, accountability, transparency, effectiveness, honesty and fairness. It is about seeking to do the right thing in the right way at all times.

Good governance matters not only because it promotes compliance with the law but also because it has a strong bearing on the organisation’s effectiveness in achieving its mission. Good governance is at the heart of any organisation.

It is about being transparent, open and encouraging trust. The annual report and financial statements represent a real opportunity for charities to communicate and demonstrate transparency and their adherence to good governance more effectively and in doing so build greater trust.

There are five basic principles of the Code of Practice for Good Governance of Community, Voluntary and Charitable Organisations in Ireland (www.governancecode.ie):

1. Leading the Organisation
2. Exercising Control over the Organisation
3. Being Transparent and Accountable
4. Working effectively
5. Behaving with Integrity

We have reviewed and accepted all of the above principles at Board and Management level. It is the duty and responsibility of the Board and the Executive to ensure that the operation and adoption of the above principles is undertaken across the organisation.

The checklist will be revisited as a Board meeting agenda item annually as well as a management item annually and we are required need to resubmit our public statement of compliance every three years.

A well-defined and enforced corporate governance provides a structure that, at least in theory, works for the benefit of everyone concerned by ensuring that Jack and Jill adheres to accepted ethical standards and best practices as well as to formal laws. Good corporate governance helps to prevent corporate scandals, fraud, and potential civil and criminal liability of the organisation. A good corporate governance image enhances the reputation of the organisation and makes it more attractive to donors, investors, suppliers and staff.

Corporate governance is about the methods and processes we put in place to provide for the proper guidance and oversight of the organisation. It is the systems that set out what we want the board and management of the organisation to do, the rules or policies they need to adhere to and how they need to account for the deployment and use of the organisation’s resources. It is about how the organisation is directed and controlled. How decisions are made and how the organisation reports on the impact of those decisions. It is critical to the effectiveness of the organisation and those involved in it. Good corporate governance has to be at the heart of the organisation, constantly reviewed, evaluated and improved.

In addition to the Governance code, Jack and Jill has also subscribed to the ‘Triple Lock’ standards as set out by the Charities Institute of Ireland. This includes Corporate governance but also transparent reporting (financial and otherwise), good fundraising standards.

We prepare a Trustees Annual Report (Mazars) and financial statements in full compliance with Charity SORP (Standard of Reporting Practice under FRS102 Accounting regulation) and make them easily available to the public on our website.

We have formally adopted and are publicly signed up to the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising.
See www.charitiesinstituteireland.ie

Maeve Beggs
Board of Trustees

Summary:

• We respect your contact data.
• We will store it securely.
• We will never share it with anyone else.
• We will delete it when you ask us to.
• We may send you content we think is relevant or interesting to you, but will stop contacting you when you ask.

At Jack & Jill, we are committed to protecting your privacy according to existing laws and regulations. You can browse through most of our website without giving us any information about yourself. But sometimes we do need information to provide services that you request. This Website Privacy Policy (“Policy”) provides you with information concerning our practices and procedures as they relate specifically to information we collect at this website. If you have additional questions or would like further information on this topic, please feel free to write to us at info@jackandjill.ie. By visiting this website, you are accepting the practices described herein. We may update this Policy from time to time, so please check this Policy periodically for changes.

Collecting your Personal Information
We do not collect any personal information about you on our website unless you choose to provide it to us voluntarily. We define “personal information” as information that personally identifies you or allows us to contact you. Such information might include your phone number, name or email address. Generally, this information is requested when you are making a donation, when you are asked to register before subscribing to e-mail newsletters, completing an online survey, viewing resource information, or when requesting information about or purchasing Jack & Jill products and services or registering for events. If you encounter a screen or page that requests information you do not want to share with us, do not enter the information and do not proceed with that screen or page.

Use of your Personal Information
If you do provide us with personal information, we will only use it for the purposes described where it is collected or elsewhere on the website. Specifically, we may use your personal information in the following ways: (1) to make the website easier for you to use by not making you enter your personal information more than once; (2) to help you quickly find information on Jack and Jill software, services and customer support; (3) to help us create and deliver content most relevant to you; and (4) to alert you to product upgrades, special offers, updated information, events and other new services from Jack and Jill.

We will not sell, license, transmit or disclose your personal information outside of Jack and Jill or its affiliates without notice to you unless (1) you expressly authorise us to do so, (2) it is necessary to allow our service providers, representatives, or agents to provide services for or to us, (3) it is necessary to provide our products or services to you, (4) it is necessary to protect and defend the rights or property of Jack and Jill, (5) it is necessary to act in urgent circumstances to protect the personal safety of Jack and Jill customers, visitors to Jack and Jill’s website or the public, or (6) otherwise as we are required or permitted by law.

Information Collected from Children
www.JackandJill.ie is a general audience site, and we do not knowingly collect information about children or sell products to children under the age of 16. If you are under the age of 16, you must ask your parent or guardian to assist you in using our website. Furthermore, we may restrict entries to any contests, sweepstakes or promotions to entrants who are at least 18 years of age.

Promotional Emails
We may send you e-mails with special event information, newsletters, promotional offers or other messages. If you would no longer like to receive such e-mails from us, please follow the “Unsubscribe” instructions at the end of each email or send a request at info@jackandjill.ie. Your e-mail address and all your personal details will be removed from our marketing list. Please allow us a reasonable period of time in order to satisfy your request, as some promotions may already be in process. We commit to removing all personal data within 30 days (GDPR 2018 regulation).

Email
We appreciate your questions and comments about our website and services and welcome your email messages to mailboxes listed on our website. We will share your messages with those within our organisation who may be able to address the issues contained in your message. We will keep a copy of your message until we have had an opportunity to address your concerns. We may archive your message for a certain period of time or discard it, but your email message will not be used for any other purpose.

Access to your Personal Information
All users can subscribe or unsubscribe to Jack & Jill email newsletters and blogs.
If you change your email address, we send an email confirming same to both your old and new email addresses.

Security of your Personal Information
We restrict access to personal information collected about you on our website to our employees, our affiliates’ employees, those who are otherwise specified in this Policy, or others who need to know that information to provide services to you or in the course of conducting our business operations or activities. While no website can guarantee security, we maintain appropriate physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect your personal information collected via the website. We protect our databases with various physical, technical and procedural measures and we restrict access to your information by unauthorized persons. We also advise all Jack & Jill employees about their responsibility to protect customer data and we provide them with appropriate guidelines for adhering to our company’s business ethics standards and confidentiality policies. Inside Jack & Jill, data is stored in password-controlled secure servers with limited access. We do not save/store any Credit/Debit Card details used when making an online donation or any other online purchase of products or services.

Links to Other Websites
For your convenience, we may provide links to other public websites and web pages that we do not control. We cannot be responsible for the privacy practices of any websites or pages not under our control and we do not endorse any of these websites or pages, the services or products described or offered on such sites or pages, or any of the content contained on those sites or pages.

Use of Cookies
A cookie is a piece of information that a web server may place on your computer when you visit a website. Cookies are commonly used by websites to improve the user experience and have not been known to transmit computer viruses or otherwise harm your computer. Many cookies last only through a single website session, or visit. Others may have an expiration date, or may remain on your computer until you delete them.

We may use cookies for a number of purposes – for example, to maintain continuity during a user session, to gather data about the usage of our website for research and other purposes, to store your preferences for certain kinds of information and marketing offers, or to store a user name or encrypted identification number so that you do not have to provide this information every time you return to our website. When someone visits the site, a cookie is placed on the customer’s machine (if the customer accepts cookies) or is read if the customer has visited the website previously.
Our cookies will track only your activity relating to your online activity on this website, and will not track your other Internet activity. Our cookies do not gather personally identifiable information.
You can decide if and how your computer will accept a cookie by configuring your preferences or options in your browser. However, if you choose to reject cookies, you may not be able to use certain of our online products and services or website features. For example, if you choose to not have your browser accept cookies from Jack & Jill’s website, you may need to re-enter your personal information each time that you attempt to access certain information.

Competitions and Other Promotions
On our website, you may wish to participate in competitions and other promotions that we may offer from time to time. Through these promotions, you may choose to participate in activities such as sharing information found on our websites with others and sending email invitations. If you choose to participate in these promotions, and are eligible to do so, we may ask you for information such as your name, email address, date of birth and telephone number.

We may use the information to communicate with you, or the other people you select, about our products and services. As mentioned above, if you create a profile and submit an entry in connection with a contest or promotion, your name, profile and entry, but not your email address, phone number and age, will be visible to other website users. We will not use information you provide about other people for any purpose except the purpose you direct without first getting their consent.

Changes to this Policy
Jack & Jill may update this Policy at any time and from time to time and we will post any changes to this page. The most recent version of the Policy is reflected by the version date located at the bottom of this Policy.

Contacting Us
If you have any questions about this Policy or would like to learn more about how we protect privacy, please write to us at Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation, Johnstown, Naas, Co. Kildare or at info@jackandjill.ie

Last updated April 26th 2018

Public Compliance

• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation is committed to complying with the Statement of Guiding Principles of Fundraising and has formally adopted the statement at a meeting of the governing body.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation confirms its commitment to the principles set out in the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising by a statement to that effect in its annual report.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation has a Donor Charter which is consistent with the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation regularly monitors compliance with the Statement of Guiding Principles of Fundraising and compliance reports are received regularly by the governing body.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation considers the Statement of Guiding Principles for fundraising when planning all fundraising activities.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation provides honest, open and transparent disclosure when fundraising from the public.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation has appointed a member of the Management Committee and the Financial Administrator to be responsible for compliance with the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation ensures that staff are provided with the relevant information on the Statement of Guiding Principles of Fundraising and its implementation.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation has a feedback and complaints procedure consistent with the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising.  Feedback is recorded for review by the Fundraising Department and is responded to effectively and efficiently.
• The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation prepares financial reports consistent with the requirements of the Charities Act 2009 which include a statement concerning the extent to which the organisation is independent of its funding sources.
•  The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation ensures that all donations are tracked and recorded and complies with data protection requirements.
•  The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation is accessible to the public through a number of readily available contact options.

Donor Charter

As a charity seeking donations from the public we the Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation aim to comply with the Statement of Guiding Principles for Fundraising.

Our pledge is to treat all our donors with respect, honesty and openness.

We commit to being accountable and transparent so that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in Jack & Jill.

We promise to effectively apply your donations for their intended purpose at all times.

We commit that you, our donors and prospective donors will:

1. Be informed of the organisation’s mission and of the way that we intend to use donated resources.
2. Be informed of the identity of those serving on our governing board and that the board will exercise prudent judgement in its governing responsibilities at all times.
3. Have access to the organisations most recent financial statements.
4. Be assured that your gifts will be used for the purpose for which they were given.
5. Receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition.
6. Be assured that information about your donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.
7. Expect that all relationships with individuals representing the organisation will be dealt with professionally.
8. Be informed whether those seeking donations are employees, volunteers or third party agencies.
9. Have easily available the agreed procedures for making and responding to complaints.
10. Have the opportunity for any names to be removed from mailing lists and to be informed if the organisation intends to share its mailing list with third parties.
11. Receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers to questions you might have of the organisation.

 Complaints Procedure

The Jack & Jill children’s Foundation is committed to ensuring that all our communications and dealings with the general public and our supporters are of the highest possible standard. We listen and respond to the views of the general public and our supporters so that we can continue to improve.
The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation welcome both positive and negative feedback.

Therefore we aim to ensure that:

• It is as easy as possible to make a complaint;
• We treat as a complaint any clear expression of dissatisfaction with our operations which calls for a response;
• We treat it seriously whether it is made by telephone, letter, fax, email or in person;
  We deal with it quickly and politely;
• We respond accordingly – for example, with an explanation, or an apology where we have got things wrong and information on any action taken etc;
• We learn from complaints, use them to improve, and monitor them at our Board.

If you have Feedback or a Complaint

If you do have a complaint about any aspect of our work, you can contact Carmel Doyle (Interim CEO) in writing or by telephone.

In the first instance, your complaint will be dealt with by our CEO. Please give us as much information as possible and let us know how you would like us to respond to you, providing relevant contact details.

Write to:

Carmel Doyle
Interim CEO
The Jack& Jill Children’s Foundation
Johnstown Manor
Johnstown, Naas
Co. Kildare

Phone:
Tel: (045) 894538

Email:
E:  carmel@jackandjill.ie
W: www.jackandjill.ie

Our office is open 5 days a week from 9.00am to 5.00pm