The problem
Gift Aid adds 25p to every $1£1€1A$2C$2 an eligible taxpayer gives, but only if the claim is made. In many small charities a volunteer treasurer matches donations to declarations in a spreadsheet before each claim. At 120 donations a month and 3 minutes each, that is 360 minutes, 6 hours a month, and gifts with a declaration that never got matched are simply not claimed: 10 missed $27£20€24A$38C$38 gifts a month is $67£50€60A$96C$94 of Gift Aid lost.
What the AI does
Beacon is a UK charity CRM. Its Gift Aid page says donations saved in Beacon are checked for Gift Aid eligibility against HMRC's guidelines, eligible payments are added to a new claim automatically, and claims are submitted directly to HMRC through its Charities Online integration. Payments, declarations and claims are audited so you can see what was claimed and when. The automated Gift Aid sits in the Fundraising element, which also has donation forms and recurring payments. Beacon charges no fee for Gift Aid processing. The treasurer still reviews each claim before it goes, and the charity's claim timetable stays in the trustees' own diary.
A worked example
A youth charity in Stockport with about 450 supporters and a volunteer treasurer claims Gift Aid twice a year from a spreadsheet. It moves supporters, declarations and donations into Beacon Starter with the Fundraising element.
Before
6 hours a month matching 120 donations to declarations, and about $67£50€60A$96C$94 a month of Gift Aid never claimed
After
About 1.5 hours a month checking flagged donations and approving each claim, with matched declarations claimed every time
What it's worth
About $90£68€81A$131C$128 to $157£118€140A$227C$222 a month in volunteer time and recovered Gift Aid, against about $56£42€50A$81C$79 to $63£47€56A$90C$88 for Beacon. The time saved is 4.5 hours a month (6 minus 1.5), valued at an assumed $20£15€18A$29C$28 an hour: volunteers aren't paid, so this is time freed for other work rather than cash. The upper figure adds the $67£50€60A$96C$94 of Gift Aid that was being missed, which is extra income with no cost against it. Beacon's Starter plan is $49£37€44A$71C$70 a month for up to 500 contacts plus $12.64£9.50€11.31A$18.24C$17.86 for Fundraising ($61.85£46.50€55.34A$89.28C$87.42), or $44.56£33.50€39.86A$64.32C$62.98 plus $11.31£8.50€10.12A$16.32C$15.98 ($56£42€50A$81C$79) a month billed annually, excluding VAT.
How to set it up
- Check the charity is registered with HMRC for Gift Aid and that the treasurer has the Charities Online login before the first claim.
- Record the claim timetable in the trustees' diary or minutes first, with a named trustee responsible and a second trustee who checks it.
- Sign up for Beacon Starter, add the Fundraising element and import supporters, past donations and every Gift Aid declaration with its date.
- Spot-check 20 imported donations: is each one linked to the right person and declaration, and has Beacon marked it eligible or not correctly?
- Before each claim, read the list of included donations, query anything odd and only then submit it to HMRC from Beacon.
- After each claim, check the payment from HMRC arrives and record it against the claim.
What goes wrong
- A declaration that was never recorded can't be claimed. Old paper declarations need typing in with their dates before the first claim.
- Beacon's price rises with contacts: Starter covers 500 at the headline price, so check the price for your real number of contact records.
- HMRC sets time limits and rules on claims, and the trustees remain responsible for each claim being right. Software follows the data it is given, so a wrong declaration produces a wrong claim.
- Automatic steps can fail without anyone noticing, such as a payment saved without its donor. Compare each claim's total with your donations report.