Transparency Awards Celebrate Honesty in NFP Reporting

The Cancer Council NSW and Opportunity International were named as the major winners of the fifth annual PwC Transparency Awards last night.

A collaboration among PwC Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and the Centre for Social Impact (CSI), the Awards recognise and encourage improvement in the quality of reporting in the Australian Not for Profit sector.

The category of most improved charity was awarded to Lifeline Australia, and a newly introduced award for best first year entrant went to Bridge Housing Limited.

David Crosbie CEO at the Community Council for Australia, and spokesperson for the Jury, said: “The winning organisations are those who clearly defined the function of their organisation, the impact they have had throughout the year, provided honest and balanced reporting and a clear business strategy.”

“The philosophy of hope at Cancer Council NSW was apparent through their well structured report. The purpose, vision and strategic direction of the organisation were reported clearly with stakeholders gaining a real sense of what had been achieved and where the organisation was headed. The report was honest and informative making them the deserving winner of this year’s PwC Transparency Award in the >$30 million revenue category.”

“Opportunity International is to be commended for addressing the effectiveness of microfinance openly in their report and for clearly discussing their challenges and achievements throughout the year. The details of complex programs undertaken in microfinance was well documented,” Crosbie said.

Accepting the award, Robert Dunn, CEO of Opportunity International Australia, said: “We are delighted to receive this award and to celebrate the achievement with our peers. As a steward of donated funds, we take transparency and public accountability very seriously. This is part of the DNA of Opportunity and we are encouraged by the fact that the industry is supportive of our honest and open communication with donors.”

PwC Corporate Responsibility Partner, Mark Reading said: “The Transparency Awards play an important role in increasing public confidence in the not-for-profit (NFP) sector. These awards encourage NFPs to clearly articulate their impact on the community.”

Lee White, CEO of the ICAA said: “As the sector embarks on a new era with the start of a dedicated regulator later this year, the Institute will continue to be a voice of advocacy and a source of advice.”

An organisations’ level of disclosure is assessed according to criteria including strategy, financial and operational performance, stakeholder reporting, governance, risk policies and sources of funding.

Of the 45 NFPs that participated in this year’s Awards:

• 35 per cent were new participants
• 9 per cent entered for the second time
• 18 per cent entered for the third time
• 20 per cent entered for the fourth time
• 18 per cent entered for the fifth time.

All submissions to the Awards are assessed against six key areas of reporting. 

The winning organisations receive funding towards the training and development of their people (winners $20,000 and runners-up $10,000) and all participating organisations receive detailed individual feedback on their reporting practices.

The runners up were Oxfam Australia and Youth Off The Streets.

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