These terms of service, together with the terms of our Privacy Policy, (collectively, the Terms) govern your use (whether as a registered user or guest) of the Localgiving.org website at https://localgiving.org and your relationship with Localgiving Ltd (company registration number 07111208). Please read them carefully as they affect your rights and liabilities under the law.

If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not register for or use Localgiving.org. By using our site, you confirm that you accept these Terms and that you agree to comply with them. If you have any questions on these Terms, please contact help@localgiving.org.

These terms of service were last amended on the 14th of October 2024. We may revise these terms of service from time-to-time, so please check back to review any updates.

Introduction

1. Definitions and interpretation
2. What is Localgiving.org

Charities and community organisations

3. Eligibility criteria, registration and charity validation process
4. Creating your Localgiving pages
5. Annual membership fees
6. Foundations
7. Donations - requirements
8. Processing donations
9. Donations - Gift Aid
10. Use of donations made through Localgiving.org
11. Transaction information
12. Campaigns

Fundraisers

13. Eligibility criteria
14. Creating your fundraising pages
15. Donations

Supporters
16. Making a donation
17. Refunds on donations

General terms and conditions
18. Information, security and privacy
19. Use of Localgiving.org
20. Limitation of Liability
21. Third party websites
22. Availability of Localgiving.org
23. Suspension or termination
24. Advertising and sponsorship
25. Intellectual property
26. Applicable law
27. International use
28. Notices
29. Miscellaneous

1. Definitions and interpretation

1.1 ‘Foundation’ means a ‘Community Foundation’, ‘UK Community Foundations’ or the ‘Localgiving Foundation’.

1.2 ‘Charity’ or ‘Charities’ means charities and community groups and includes, but is not limited to, social enterprises, not-for-profits, companies, CICs, partnerships and any unincorporated organisations that undertake charitable activities (under the laws of all or part of the United Kingdom).

1.3 ‘Supporter’ means a donor who comes to Localgiving.org to find and donate funds to a Charity.

1.4 ‘Fundraiser’ means an individual who sets up a fundraising webpage in order to raise money for a particular Charity.

1.5 ‘Localgiving page’ means the webpage or webpages a Charity may create on Localgiving.org.

1.6 ‘Localgiving.org’ means the service, website and webpages hosted under the parent domain www.localgiving.org.

1.7 ‘Localgiving’ refers to Localgiving Ltd (company registration number 07111208), a wholly owned trading company of Localgiving Foundation, whose details are given below at clause 6.3.

2. What is Localgiving.org

2.1 Localgiving.org is a resource to promote, increase awareness of and facilitate the raising of funds for Charities and their charitable activities. Localgiving.org also allows the public to find, donate to, and raise funds for, any of the Charities that are registered with Localgiving.org.

2.2 The services provided by Localgiving include validation of Charities wishing to register on Localgiving.org, processing donations from Supporters, managing the collection of Gift Aid from HMRC and transferring funds to Charities, suggesting relevant grant funding opportunities, and helping to draft responses to grant application questions based on information provided to Localgiving by a charity or using publicly available information.

2.3 Localgiving.org is owned and operated by

LOCALGIVING LTD

Shurland Castle,

High Street,

Eastchurch, Sheerness,

Kent, England,

ME12 4BN

Charities and community organisations

3. Eligibility criteria, registration and charity validation process

3.1 Localgiving welcomes a wide range of charities and community groups, both registered and unregistered, including registered charities, community interest companies (CICs), companies, partnerships and any unincorporated organisations that undertake charitable activities in the United Kingdom and that meet our eligibility criteria (each of these groups are referred to in these terms of service as Charities).

 3.2 If you wish to register your organisation with Localgiving you should consult our basic charity eligibility criteria; groups must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for an application for Localgiving membership:

3.1 Localgiving welcomes a wide range of charities and community groups, both registered and unregistered, including registered charities, community interest companies (CICs), companies, partnerships and any unincorporated organisations that undertake charitable activities in the United Kingdom and that meet our eligibility criteria (each of these groups are referred to in these terms of service as Charities).

3.2 If you wish to register your organisation with Localgiving you should consult our basic charity eligibility criteria found here; groups must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for an application for Localgiving membership:

• operate local / regional community initiatives and not be a national or international charity;
• have a local / regional management committee and a UK bank account;
• undertake charitable activities that are charitable under the laws of all or part of the United Kingdom, compatible with the relevant Foundation’s charitable objects and requirements as a registered charity. 

3.3 If your organisation meets these eligibility criteria then you can register with Localgiving. Once you have registered you will be asked to provide information and supporting documentation in order to complete your application.

3.4 You are responsible for ensuring that all of the details provided to Localgiving by or on behalf of your organisation (including, but not limited to, information in respect of your charitable activities and legal status) is kept accurate and up-to-date.

3.5 After you make an application, we will undertake a charity validation process to confirm whether or not you meet our/the Foundation’s eligibility criteria. Our charity validation is designed to reassure the public, prospective donors and existing donors that all of the organisations registered with Localgiving have charitable activities and that when Supporters donate through Localgiving.org to a Foundation, their donations will be spent locally by a Charity for the benefit of local people in the United Kingdom. Find out more.

3.6 To join Localgiving, all groups must be successfully validated by Localgiving/the Foundation. There are distinct validation criteria for groups who are registered with the Charity Commission, the Charity Commission Northern Ireland, or OSCR, and for groups who are not registered with one of these bodies.

3.7 A statutory body is eligible for Localgiving membership only if it is also a registered charity. However, ‘Friends of’ groups, or PTAs do not have to be registered charities to join Localgiving (although they still need to pass the eligibility criteria and validation process above).

3.8 If a group is a local branch of a national charity, Localgiving may waive the requirement for a group having its own UK bank account if there is sufficient evidence that funds are ring-fenced.

3.9 Charities that are registered with the Charity Commission, OSCR, The Charity Commission Northern Ireland will need to submit:

• a completed validation form for registered charities and
• a bank statement for an account in the name of the Charity that is dated within the past three months. This can be an online statement, a scanned copy of an original bank statement, or an original bank statement. The statement must contain the account number, sort code, and account name, and must not be a personal account and must be no older than 3 months.

3.10 Groups that are not registered with the Charity Commission (England and Wales), The Charity Commission Northern Ireland, or OSCR (Scotland) will need to submit:

• a completed validation form for unregistered charities;
• a bank statement for an account in the name of your group, dated within past three months. This can be an online statement, a scanned copy of an original bank statement, or an original bank statement. The statement must be dated within the last three months, and contain the name of the account, sort code, and account number, and must not be a personal account;
• a signed copy of your group's constitution, governing document, or articles of association. This must include provision for at least three trustees or directors, two of whom are unrelated, and a dissolution clause that states that assets will be passed to another similar organisation in the event of the group winding up; and
• a copy of your most recent annual accounts, or a budget/forecast in the case of a newly formed group.

3.10.1 groups may choose not to provide a bank statement if they are able to log into their bank account online, thereby allowing Localgiving to confirm bank ownership through Open Banking. 

3.11 Please note that the validation form requires the names of two bank account signatories, trustees, or directors  for your organisation. In order to be successfully validated, Localgiving must be satisfied with the results of an identity check that is carried out on relevant key individuals of your organisation, which will include a search for AML, Sanctions, and PEPs lists, as well as an adverse media check. For unregistered groups, we will always check signatories of the account.

3.12 You acknowledge and agree that, upon successful completion of our charity validation service, Localgiving shall process all donations, including where applicable Gift Aid, made to a Foundation through your Localgiving page in accordance with these terms of service.

3.13 Localgiving and/or the relevant Foundation reserves the right to decline any registration application without any explanation, and to subsequently revoke registration: if the Charity is no longer undertaking its specified charitable activities; if the Charity's status has changed such that it no longer meets our eligibility criteria; or for any other reason in Localgiving's/the Foundation’s reasonable discretion.

3.14 If your organisation’s charitable status changes, (e.g. you become liable for registration with a legislative or regulatory body or authority) it is your responsibility to update Localgiving and the relevant legislative or regulatory body or authority for the part of the United Kingdom where you are located. Localgiving will revoke memberships for groups that should have registered with an appropriate body.

3.15 You may be asked to send additional documentation from time to time to confirm your charitable activities, use of donations, legal status and financial details, to the relevant Foundation and/or Localgiving. You agree to comply with all reasonable requests in this respect.

3.16 Localgiving provides a platform to raise voluntary income (freely given donations), not income from trading activities or investment (e.g. not a forum for selling goods and services). It is considered misuse of the website to promote your webpage for anything other than raising voluntary income.

3.17 The Charities agree that funds received as donations via Localgiving must strictly only be used to further the charitable activities that comply with clause 3.2 above and have been agreed as part of the application and validation process. If Charities are unable to use the funds to further these charitable activities, they must immediately notify Localgiving.  If funds already received are not in accordance with this clause 3.17, the Charities will repay them, and the relevant Gift Aid, to the Foundations via Localgiving. The Foundation may contact any Charity separately from Localgiving in respect of donations made to that Charity/information required about how the donations are used.

4. Creating your Localgiving pages

4.1 You must ensure that the details provided by you on behalf of your organisation (on registration or at any time subsequently) are correct and complete. We are not liable to you or any third party under any circumstances for data entered incorrectly by you.

4.2 You must inform us immediately of any changes to the information that you provided when registering. In particular you must keep your contact details up-to-date.

4.3 You must ensure the content of your Localgiving pages, including on any fundraising pages you create, reflects the charitable activities that your organisation undertakes. Information you provide must not be misleading, and must be complete and accurate in all material respects. You must also ensure that it remains up-to-date. Content on your Localgiving page is entirely your responsibility and you must ensure it is truthful, honest and legal.

4.4 Any video content you upload must be suitable for children below the age of 18.

4.5 You must have the consent of copyright owners to use their copyright material. If you use someone else’s personal information, material or image you must have their permission to do so. If your materials include children or vulnerable adults, you must ensure you have the appropriate written permissions for such material to be used.

4.6 You should follow the guidance set out on Localgiving.org when creating your Localgiving pages.

4.7 Your submission of content to your Localgiving page is accepted on the basis that you have complied with the provisions of this clause, that any applicable legal compliance issues pertaining to your Localgiving page have been satisfied (such as ensuring the appropriate permissions have been given by people who appear in images you want to use). You further agree that by your submission, you are authorising us to post such material on Localgiving.org without infringing third party rights or relevant law or regulations.

4.8 Each time you update your main Localgiving page any changes you have made may be reviewed by Localgiving prior to publication on Localgiving.org. We may correct typographical and grammatical errors and make minor adjustments to the content you submit. We reserve the right to reject any content at our sole discretion if we feel such content is inappropriate.

5. Annual membership fees

5.1 The annual membership fee to join Localgiving is £180 (£150+VAT), payable on the following basis:

We accept payment by Direct Debit and full details of how to pay will be outlined during the registration process.

Your annual membership will automatically renew on the anniversary of your start date provided your membership Direct Debit details are still valid.

We will give you at least 10 days’ notice of collection of your membership renewal payment via Direct Debit.

5.2 Localgiving retains the right to suspend a Charity’s use of the Localgiving.org and associated services at any time should collection of this amount not be successful for any reason. In this situation, the Charity may only be granted minimal access to the Localgiving.org or associated services until receipt of any outstanding membership fees.

6. Foundations

6.1 As part of the charity validation service, all Charities registered with Localgiving are automatically allocated to a foundation, which will be either (i) Localgiving Foundation or (ii) their local Community Foundation. 

6.2 Any donation made through Localgiving.org is to a Foundation and Localgiving will pass the donation on to the chosen Charity (in accordance with the relevant donor’s wishes), except in rare circumstances as set out in these terms of service. Each of the Foundations is a registered charity and party to an agreement with Localgiving regarding its relationship with and donations to certain Charities. Each Foundation has appointed Localgiving as its agent for dealing with donations, including where applicable Gift Aid, made through Localgiving.org. 

6.3 Localgiving Foundation is dedicated to providing funding opportunities and advocacy for local charities and community groups in the UK. It is a registered charity (registered charity number in England and Wales: 1132411, registered charity number in Scotland: SC047395) with its address at Localgiving, Shurland Castle, High Street, Eastchurch, Sheerness, ME12 4BN and is the sole shareholder of Localgiving. 

6.4 Community Foundations are independent grant-making charities in the United Kingdom, committed to supporting projects that engage local people in making communities and regions better places to live. 

7. Donations - requirements

7.1 You acknowledge and agree that Localgiving will process all donations, including where applicable Gift Aid, made through Localgiving.org in accordance with these terms of service. Please see clauses 15 and 16 for more information about requirements for donations and how we process them.

7.2 Localgiving may refuse to process any transactions made through Localgiving.org if it is not reasonably satisfied that:

such transactions are lawful and not related to fraudulent activities;

such transactions have been properly authorised by the relevant persons;

the information provided to us in respect of such transaction is true and correct; and

7.3 Localgiving will report unlawful or fraudulent activity to the appropriate authorities.

7.4 Localgiving directs all donation payment transfers to the latest bank account details you provide. You are responsible for keeping Localgiving informed of your correct and up-to-date bank account details. If you provide incorrect or out-of-date bank account details, we will not be responsible if a payment is delayed or made incorrectly.

7.5 Foundations and Charities are responsible at all times to ensure that no benefit is transferred to a Supporter who claims Gift Aid as a result of their donation in accordance with HMRC guidelines. For advice on what could constitute a benefit please refer directly to HMRC's website.

7.6 If the Gift Aid scheme is not being communicated or represented properly by a Foundation or Charity it counts as misuse of the platform. Wherever possible Localgiving will communicate with the Charity before taking an action, but repeated or serious misuse will lead to suspension or termination of the Charity's account, including but not limited to, the removal of their Localgiving webpage and donation functionality.

8. Processing donations

8.1 Donations are accepted only in pounds sterling. Payments to Charities will only be made to and received from UK bank accounts and will only be made in pounds sterling. All fees and charges set out in these terms of service are based on donations and payments being made only in pounds sterling in the UK.

8.2 Donations are currently processed and fees charged as below. We reserve the right to change these processes and fees at our discretion.

8.3 There is a payment processing fee on all donations, which is charged by the payment provider as follows:

1. i) One-time donations can be made using UK credit or debit cards, international cards or American Express. Different fees apply depending on payment method. Payment processing charges per donation are shown below:

• 1.0% + 16p for UK debit cards
• 1.4% + 16p for UK credit cards
• 2.4% + 26p for International cards
• 2.9% + 26p for American Express

1. ii) Monthly donations are processed by GoCardless who charge 210p per transaction.

8.4 Donors will be asked whether they would like to pay an additional voluntary fee when making a donation to help cover the the cost of maintaining a secure online donations service. See our fees page for more information.

8.4.1 Donors making donations of £200 and under will be asked whether they would like to add a voluntary tip

8.4.2 Donors making donations over £200 will be asked whether they would like to cover 5% fee associated with handling large donations

8.5 £200 figure used in 8.4.1 and 8.4.2 is subject to change and may be different from charity to charity depending on their settings

8.6 During match fund campaigns we will charge a 15% fee on donations to cover the additional costs we incur with the management of the campaign

8.7 Gift Aid will be subject to 5% processing fee when claimed via Localgiving Foundation on charity's behalf

8.8 Donations made via credit card, debit card or Direct Debit will typically take 2-3 weeks to reach your bank account from the date of donation.

8.9 Gift Aid claimed by Localgiving on behalf of the Foundations is typically received from HMRC within 4-6 weeks from the date of donation. Gift Aid payments will typically take 7 weeks to reach your bank account from the date of donation.

8.10 We are not responsible for any delayed or incorrect payments made as a result of acts or omission of the relevant financial institution or HMRC.

8.11 Interest will not accrue or be payable on any donation, including where applicable Gift Aid, made through Localgiving.org.

9. Donations - Gift Aid

9.1 Supporters are responsible at all times for making an accurate Gift Aid declaration when they make a donation through Localgiving.org. We are not responsible for any false or inaccurate Gift Aid declarations made by Supporters.

9.2 When Supporters make a donation on Localgiving.org they are asked to answer 3 questions and make a Gift Aid declaration in order to claim Gift Aid on their donations:

Is this donation your own money? i.e. it has not come from anyone else e.g. a business, friends, family or a collection.

Is this money the proceeds from the sale of goods or provision of a service e.g. a cake sale, auction or car wash?

Are you receiving a benefit from this donation e.g. entry to an event, raffle or sweepstake?

The following types of donations would not be eligible for Gift Aid:

Cash collections donated through Localgiving.org;

Money donated on behalf of someone else, or a group of people;

Money donated by a company or other organisation; or

Funds raised from the sale of goods or services.

Examples where you would be receiving a benefit include, but are not limited to:

Some types of membership subscriptions;

Ticket sales;

Lotteries or raffles;

Any other trading, e.g. buying sports equipment;

Where a person connected with the Supporter is receiving the benefit e.g. their child; or

Where you are donating to the fundraising page of a relative who is taking part in an adventure fundraising activity paid for by the Charity for whom they are raising funds. 

9.3 Supporters must provide their full names and home addresses under HMRC rules; without this information Gift Aid cannot be claimed.

9.4 If HMRC rejects a Gift Aid declaration made by a Supporter, no payments in respect of such Gift Aid will be made. If HMRC requests the Foundation to refund a previously paid Gift Aid claim, Localgiving will contact the recipient Charity concerned (on behalf of the Foundation, provided the donation of the Gift Aid has been made to the Charity), and may either request repayment for the Gift Aid refund amount and/or deduct the Gift Aid refund amount from future donations made to it.

9.5 If a Gift Aid claim is rejected immediately and the Gift Aid claimed is not transferred from HMRC to the Foundation, neither Localgiving nor the Foundation will receive any fees or charges in respect of such rejected Gift Aid claim. However, if HMRC requests the Foundation to refund a previously paid Gift Aid claim to HMRC, Localgiving will contact the Charity, and may charge them any applicable fees and charges (as described below) in respect of such Gift Aid claim either by request for repayment or by deduction from future donations made to them by Supporters through Localgiving.org.

9.6 There is no online facility via Localgiving.org for donations to be made by one individual on behalf of others with Gift Aid reclaimed. For reference to HMRC regulations click here.

9.7 The Gift Aid tax reclaim rate is 25p for every £1 donated. This is subject to change as per HMRC's guidelines.

10. Use of donations made through Localgiving.org

10.1 As a Charity, you undertake that donations, including where applicable Gift Aid, received through Localgiving.org from a Foundation will only be used in accordance with your charitable activities that comply with clause 3.2 of these terms of service, and any other requirements of the Foundation/Localgiving.

10.2 Localgiving and the relevant Foundation may ask you to substantiate the statements made on your webpages (and their compliance with relevant laws) as to your use of donations.

10.3 Localgiving accepts no responsibility for the manner in which Charities use their donations.

10.4 In the rare event that Localgiving/the relevant Foundation is unable to pass funds raised by you onto your Charity, the Foundation may forward the funds to an alternative Charity or the Foundation may retain the funds, Either way, the Foundation will use the funds in a manner that furthers its charitable objects.

11. Transaction information

11.1 All information on the transactions that we process for you through Localgiving.org, and any deductions we have made in respect of such transactions, will be available through your Localgiving account. We do not issue paper statements.

11.2 If you are unable to access your transaction information through your Localgiving account, please contact the Localgiving help desk by emailing help@localgiving.org 

12. Campaigns

12.1 From time to time, Localgiving will run campaigns or promotions such as match funds. We are not obligated to run any promotions, but do so at our own discretion and/or as funding allows.

12.2 The purpose of campaigns and promotions are to incentivise individuals to support local Charities by donating online via Foundations, either by making a one-time donation, setting up a monthly Direct Debit donation, or by setting up a fundraising page and obtaining sponsorship donations.

12.3 Each campaign or promotion will have its own set of terms and conditions and FAQs explaining the rules of that campaign. You are responsible for reading these terms and conditions and FAQs set by Localgiving before taking part in any campaign or promotion.

12.4 During a match fund campaign, all donations must be made through Localgiving.org in order to be eligible for matched funding.

12.5 Localgiving may run more than one match fund campaign at the same time. The FAQs for each campaign will establish whether or not a group is able to participate in other campaigns at the same time.

12.6 Localgiving may apply limits on the total amount of match funding available to Charities, or on the amount of donations raised by individual Fundraisers which is eligible for match funding. This will be further detailed in the terms and conditions and FAQs of each campaign. Supporters may continue to donate on an unmatched basis where limits have been reached.

12.7 Campaigns and promotions are designed to build the sustainability of participating local charities. Only Charities with paid Localgiving membership will be eligible to benefit and continue to benefit from matched funding.

12.8 In the case of a Charity membership becoming overdue, Localgiving reserves the right to release any reserved matched funding back into the match fund.

12.9 Participating Charities are not permitted to make donations on behalf of their Supporters or to make donations to themselves (this includes, but is not limited to, cash collected offline).

12.10 Charities may opt out of participating in a Localgiving promotion by submitting a request in writing. Where Charities are notified of a promotion and included in a promotion by default, but subsequently submit written request to be excluded from a promotion, Localgiving will fulfil this request as soon as is reasonably practicable.

12.11 Localgiving retains absolute discretion to determine and to vary the eligibility criteria for Charities that seek to participate in a campaign or promotion and the match funding available to any participating Charity. We also reserve the right to match or refuse to match donations and to otherwise limit or terminate the campaign or promotion at any time.

12.12 Localgiving has the right at its absolute discretion to block an individual or organisation from participating in any promotion, or match fund.

AI Tools

1. You may use generative AI features to submit inputs from sources such as websites, documents, and other publicly available information to receive generated outputs. 
2. You acknowledge that due to the nature of machine learning and the technology powering generative AI, outputs such as draft grant question responses, draft blogs and articles, and other outputs may be factually inaccurate and may be similar or the same as outputs generated for other Charities. 
3. You are solely responsible for how outputs generated by the Localgiving platform are used.
4. You may not use outputs generated by the Localgiving platform to mislead any third party that the output was solely human generated.
5. You acknowledge that information presented on the platform about 3rd parties, including grant opportunities, may utilise AI functionality to summarise information, and therefore may be factually inaccurate. 
6. You are solely responsible for confirming your eligibility for any grant application you submit by checking information directly from the respective 3rd party. 

 Usage Restrictions. You may not use Grammarly’s generative AI features:

• To develop foundation or large language models that compete with Grammarly; 
• To mislead any third party that any output from Grammarly’s generative AI was solely human generated;
• In a manner that violates these terms, Grammarly documentation, usage guidelines, or our Acceptable Use Policy.

Fundraisers

13. Eligibility criteria

13.1 Fundraising pages on Localgiving.org can only be used to fundraise for local projects run by a Charity. You may not use Localgiving.org to fundraise for a project taking place outside the UK.

13.2 You must be at least 13 years old to register as a Fundraiser. We may consider making exceptions if you have the consent of your parent or guardian; please have your parent or guardian contact us directly in this circumstance.

14. Creating your fundraising pages

14.1 You are responsible for ensuring that any content you display on Localgiving.org, and any other information provided to Localgiving in relation to you and your charitable activities (including details provided in your application for registration and any other information you provide during the charity validation process), is complete and accurate and is kept up-to-date in all material respects.

14.2 Fundraisers using the fundraising page functionality to raise money for a Charity via a Foundation on Localgiving.org must ensure that the details provided on registration or at any time subsequently are correct and complete. We are not liable to you or any third party under any circumstances for data entered incorrectly by you.

14.3 You must inform us immediately of any changes to the information that you provided when registering. In particular you must keep your contact details up-to-date.

14.4 You must ensure the content of your fundraising page is not misleading. Content on your fundraising page is entirely your responsibility and you must ensure it is truthful, honest and legal.

14.5 Any video content which you upload must be suitable for children below the age of 18.

14.6 You must have the consent of copyright owners to use their copyright material. If you use someone else’s personal information, material or image you must have their permission to do so. If your graphics include children or vulnerable adults, you must ensure you have the appropriate written permissions for such material to be used.

14.7 Your submission of content to your fundraising page is accepted on the basis that you have complied with the provisions of this clause, that any applicable legal compliance issues pertaining to your fundraising page have been satisfied (such as ensuring the appropriate permissions have been given by people who appear in images you want to use). You further agree that by your submission, you are authorising us to post such material on Localgiving.org without infringing third party rights or relevant law or regulations.

14.8 Once your fundraising campaign has ended your fundraising page will still be visible on Localgiving.org at your direct URL, although Supporters will no longer be able to make donations to your page or find it through the site search. If you would like to remove your page you may de-activate it from within your Localgiving account.

14.9 Your creation of a fundraising page does not imply our endorsement of your fundraising activity. You should consult with your chosen Charity to confirm they deem your fundraising activity to be acceptable (many Charities do not wish to support dangerous or unusual sports or challenges). We reserve the right to cancel your fundraising page either at the request of the relevant Charity or at our discretion.

14.10 Localgiving reserves the right to remove any fundraising page at any time, at our sole discretion and without explanation, if we deem it inappropriate, or if we are requested to do so by the Charity you are fundraising for, or if we believe you have breached any of the rules in these terms of service.

15. Donations

15.1 Please see clauses 7 and 16 for information about requirements for donations and how we process them.

15.2 In the rare event that Localgiving/the relevant Foundation is unable to pass funds raised by you onto your chosen Charity, the Foundation may forward the funds to an alternative Charity or the Foundation may retain the funds. Either way, the Foundation will use the funds in a manner that furthers its charitable objects. If the Foundation passes the funds to an alternative Charity, the Foundation will make reasonable efforts to ensure that the charitable activities and location of such alternative Charity closely match the Charity you originally raised funds for.

15.3 Localgiving will inform you (and the Supporter who donated) in the rare event that the funds are sent to an alternative Charity.

15.4 If you are unable to complete your fundraising event Localgiving is unable to refund any donations to your Supporters. You are able to de-activate your fundraising page to prevent future donations.

15.5 If you are taking part in an adventure / challenge activity (for example a parachute jump) paid for by the charity or community group you are raising funds for or receiving any other benefit as a result of the fundraising event, relatives donating to your fundraising page may not claim Gift Aid on their donations. (See clause 9 above for more information on Gift Aid.)

15.6 If you have collected money offline that you would like to process through your fundraising page you may not claim Gift Aid. For more information about Gift Aid requirements please see clause 9 above.

15.7 From time to time, Localgiving will run campaigns or promotions such as match funds. We are not obligated to run any promotions, but do so at our own discretion and/or as funding allows. For more information about our campaigns/promotions please see clause 12 above.

Supporters

16. Making a donation

16.1 As a Supporter, when you may make a donation through Localgiving.org, the donation is made to the Foundation that your chosen Charity has been allocated to, and any Gift Aid you declare is claimed automatically by Localgiving on behalf of that Foundation. For more information about Gift Aid requirements please see clause 9 above.

16.2 After making deductions for applicable fees and charges (as described below) Localgiving will transfer remaining funds, including where applicable Gift Aid, to your chosen Charity as a grant from the allocated Foundation to use in furtherance of the specified charitable activities that have been agreed through the validation process. Please see clauses 7 and 15 above for more information about requirements for donations and how we process them.

16.3 The Foundations will have absolute discretion over the onward transmission of donations, including where applicable Gift Aid, made through Localgiving.org so as to ensure appropriate donation handling and legal compliance.

16.4 They may decide not to forward payment if in the Foundation and/or Localgiving's reasonable opinion: the Charity is no longer operating or undertaking its specified charitable activities; the Charity no longer meets our/the Foundation’s eligibility criteria; or for any other reason at our/the Foundation’s reasonable discretion. 

16.5 In the rare event that Localgiving/the relevant Foundation is unable to pass funds donated by Supporters onto their chosen Charity, the Foundation may forward the funds to an alternative Charity or the Foundation may retain the funds. Either way, the Foundation will use the funds in a manner that furthers its charitable objects. If Supporters’ donations are passed to another Charity, the Foundation will make reasonable efforts to ensure that the charitable activities and location of such alternative Charity closely match the Charity you originally donated to.

16.6 Localgiving/the Foundation will make every effort to inform you in the rare event that funds have been sent to an alternative Charity.

16.7 Monthly donations set up through Localgiving.org will continue until you cancel the Direct Debit. You can cancel by logging into your Supporter account via Localgiving.org or by contacting your bank directly. If you require further assistance please contact our help desk team at help@localgiving.org.

16.8 For more information on how we will process your donation, please see clause 8 above, and to find out about what fees will apply to your donation, please see clause 8.3 above. 

16.9 From time-to-time, Localgiving will run campaigns or promotions such as match funds. We are not obligated to run any promotions, but do so at our own discretion and/or as funding allows. For more information about our campaigns/promotions please see clause 12 above.

17. Refunds on donations

17.1 Supporters are responsible for ensuring they donate the amount they intended.

17.2 Localgiving can only provide refunds where required by law, or where there has been a technical error caused by Localgiving.org.

17.3 If you become aware of any payment error, please contact the Localgiving help desk team as soon as possible at help@localgiving.org as well as your credit or debit card provider, or PayPal, where applicable.

General terms and conditions

18. Information, security and privacy

18.1 If you register for an account with us, then you are responsible for protecting your login information, including your password, and for all use of your Localgiving account. If you lose your login details or you know or suspect that someone else knows your login details, you must notify Localgiving as soon as possible by contacting help@localgiving.org.

18.2 If Localgiving has reason to believe that there is likely to be a breach of security or misuse of Localgiving.org, Localgiving may require you to change your login details. In extreme circumstances, your Localgiving account may also be suspended.

18.3 Localgiving will capture, process, protect and secure personal data provided by you for the purposes set out on Localgiving.org, in accordance with the Privacy Policy and in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

18.4 You will at all times comply with all applicable data protection legislation and guidelines (including, but not limited to, the Data Protection Act 1998).

18.5 We will not share any personal details with any third party other than as set out in our Privacy Policy. For more information about how we use data we collect from you please refer to our Privacy Policy.

19. Use of Localgiving.org

19.1 You must not use Localgiving.org for any of the following purposes:

dissemination of anything unlawful, harassing, libellous, abusive, threatening, harmful, vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable or use of any material that could result in any of these;

transmission of any material that encourages conduct constituting a criminal offence, or otherwise breaches any applicable laws, regulations or code of practice;

interfering with any other's use or enjoyment of Localgiving.org;

making, transmitting or storing electronic copies of materials protected by another's intellectual property rights without the permission of the owner;

misrepresenting your identity or affiliation with a Charity or any other person or organisation;

conduct, display or distribute surveys, raffles (except as expressly permitted by Localgiving), lotteries, contests, pyramid schemes or chain letters; or

any other purpose which is unlawful or likely to harm or bring Localgiving.org into disrepute.

19.2 You warrant that any content you supply to Localgiving for display on Localgiving.org shall:

comply with any applicable law or regulation;

not be technically harmful;

not be threatening, defamatory, offensive, pornographic or discriminatory;

not breach any third party intellectual property rights, or any right or duty owed to a third party; and

not be materially misleading, incomplete or inaccurate.

19.3 You must not misuse Localgiving.org by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other materials which are malicious or technologically harmful. You must not attempt to gain unauthorised access to our site, the server on which our site is stored or any server, computer or database connected to our site.

19.4 If you notice any content that breaks these content rules, please notify us. Localgiving will report unlawful or fraudulent activity to the appropriate authority.

20. Limitation of liability

20.1 You agree that your use of Localgiving.org is on an as is and as available basis and that your use of Localgiving.org is at your sole risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, and except as expressly provided under these terms of service, Localgiving excludes all representations, conditions, warranties and other terms in relation to Localgiving.org.

20.2 Localgiving excludes all liability and responsibility for any loss or damage that may result to you or any third party (including, but not limited to, any direct, indirect, or consequential loss or damage whether in tort, contract or otherwise), in connection with any content displayed on Localgiving.org or the use, or inability to use, Localgiving.org or any websites linked to Localgiving.org.

20.3 We will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a virus, distributed denial-of-service attack, or other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer equipment, computer programs or data due to your use of our site or to your downloading of any content on it, or any website linked to it.

20.4 Localgiving does not exclude or limit its liability for death or personal injury resulting from its negligence, fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation or any other liability that may not be excluded or limited.

20.5 Localgiving is under no obligation to accept any content supplied by you for display on Localgiving.org; or check or exercise editorial control over the content you supply but may, in its sole discretion, decide to remove, or refuse to upload, any of your content from Localgiving.org.

20.6 Localgiving does not accept any liability in respect of any content generated by you or information provided by you (including, but not limited to, information relating to a charity’s charitable status) displayed on Localgiving.org.

20.7 Localgiving will not be liable for any losses which are not reasonably foreseeable.

21. Third party websites

21.1 Localgiving.org includes links to other pages on the world wide web. Inclusion of a link to another website does not imply endorsement of its content or opinions. Localgiving.org does not make any warranty or guarantee in relation to the content on other such websites. We will not be liable for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them.

22. Disclaimer 

22.1 Localgiving will take reasonable efforts to ensure a continuous service on Localgiving.org for its users, but reserves the right to suspend or cease operation of all or any part of Localgiving.org at any time without any prior notice. Access to Localgiving.org may be occasionally restricted to allow for repairs, maintenance or the introduction of new facilities or services.

22.2 Localgiving does not warrant that (i) the service will meet your specific requirements, (ii) the service will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free, (iii) the results that may be obtained from the use of the service will be accurate or reliable, (iv) the quality of any products, services, information, or other material purchased or obtained by you through the service will meet your expectations, and (v) any errors in the Service will be corrected.

23. Suspension or termination

23.1 You may discontinue your use of Localgiving.org at any time and request that all of your details be deleted from Localgiving’s databases. If you have chosen to register an account with us, you may also request that content you supplied for display on Localgiving.org is taken offline. Such requests should be made in writing to help@localgiving.org. 

23.2 Any such request will be actioned by Localgiving within seven days following the request. However, some removed and deleted information may persist in backup copies for as long as is required to comply with laws and regulations and to facilitate, in rare instances, the refunding of donations.

23.3 Localgiving will not refund membership fees if you decide to terminate your agreement with us under these terms of service before the end of your current subscription period.

23.4 These terms of service will continue to apply to your past use of Localgiving.org.

23.5 Localgiving reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to immediately and without notice, suspend or permanently deny your access to all or part of Localgiving.org and its associated services (including, but not limited to, by restricting the ability to receive donations or removing particular webpages displaying content you supplied) where you breach these terms of service. This is including, but not limited to, where there is any actual or suspected fraudulent, criminal or improper use of Localgiving.org or associated services.

23.6 Localgiving reserves the right to temporarily disable your account if your usage of AI resources significantly exceeds the average usage of other Charity customers. We will contact the account owner before taking any action except in rare cases where the level of use may negatively impact the performance of Localgiving for other Charities.

23.7 Verbal, physical, written or other abuse (including threats of abuse or retribution) of any Charity, Fundraiser, Supporter, or Localgiving employee or officer may result in immediate account termination.

24. Advertising and sponsorship

 24.1 Part of Localgiving.org may contain advertising and sponsorship. Advertisers and sponsors are responsible for ensuring that material submitted for inclusion on Localgiving.org complies with relevant laws and codes. We will not be responsible to you for any error or inaccuracy in advertising and sponsorship material.

25. Intellectual property

25.1 All content on Localgiving.org is owned by Localgiving or its content providers and is protected by copyright, trade marks, database and other intellectual property rights. No information or material on Localgiving.org can be copied, reproduced or downloaded without our express written permission.

25.2 You may print off one copy, and may download extracts, of any pages at Localgiving.org (that you have the right to access) for your personal use but you must not alter them or remove any copyright or trade mark notice. 

25.3 Localgiving will provide certain promotional materials to Fundraisers and Charities for use in promoting their fundraising events. These materials may be printed multiple times, provided their usage remains non-commercial and copyright and proprietary notices are abided by. 

25.4 Please contact marketing@localgiving.org if you would like to seek permission to use or display any Localgiving.org intellectual property. You may not otherwise reproduce, modify, copy or distribute any of the other materials or content on Localgiving.org without written permission from Localgiving and, where applicable, the copyright holder.

25.5 Any content you upload to post to the pages you create on Localgiving shall be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. You retain all of your ownership rights in your content, but you are required to grant us a non-exclusive licence to use those rights as described below.

25.6 Certain content that you post on Localgiving (e.g. text, photos, videos) may be protected by intellectual property rights such as copyright and trade marks. You grant Localgiving a non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide licence in and to your intellectual property rights in any and all content you supply to Localgiving. This licence shall allow us, in connection with the activities of Localgiving.org, to use, store and copy such content and distribute and make it available to third parties. These activities include, without limitation, operating and publicising Localgiving.org (for example, through social media outlets). You can terminate this licence by contacting us in writing when you deactivate your Localgiving account. 

26. Applicable law

26.1 The agreement between us, including these terms of service, and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection to them, will be governed by the laws of England and Wales and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

27. International use

27.1 Localgiving makes no promise that materials on Localgiving.org are appropriate or available for use in locations outside the United Kingdom, and accessing Localgiving.org from territories where its contents are illegal or unlawful is prohibited. If you choose to access this website from locations outside the United Kingdom, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with local laws.

28. Notices

28.1 Notices must be in writing and, in the case of notices from you to Localgiving, may be sent to Localgiving, Shurland Castle, High Street, Eastchurch, Sheerness, ME12 4BN or help@localgiving.org. In the case of notices given by Localgiving to you, they may be sent by post or email using the most recent contact details provided to Localgiving.

29. Miscellaneous

29.1 Localgiving may amend these terms of service from time to time. We may terminate the membership of any Charity that fails to comply with the letter and spirit of these terms of service at any time. You are responsible for reviewing the latest version of these terms of service when you access Localgiving.org. The latest version of these terms of service will govern any future usage by you of Localgiving.org. Copies of these terms of service will be available upon request.

29.2 You may not transfer your rights or obligations under these terms of service to any other person or organisation. Localgiving may transfer its rights and obligations to another person or organisation without prior notice to, or consent from, you.

29.3 A person who is not a party to these Terms does not have any rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Party) Act 1999 to enforce any of them.

29.4 If you have any queries regarding our Terms please contact help@localgiving.org.