Playing the right card

WHO gets to choose the Christmas cards for your office? It sounds a trivial question, but the answer could mean a difference of thousands of pounds to British charities. Christmas is still months off, but the Charities Advisory Trust (CAT) has launched a campaign to alert companies to the fact that many so-called charity card manufacturers donate a paltry amount - sometimes only three per cent of profits - to needy causes.

Hilary Blume, director of CAT, which was established more than 20 years ago and produces millions of cards each year under the title Card Aid, says: "There's been a lot of controversy over whether a charity card is a real charity card. We negotiated a deal with the printers to pool the printing costs, and we now have around 100 charities a year. But obviously, some people have realised that if they put the word `charity' on a card, it will sell. Companies may go to a specialist printer who produces cards for them, and says he will give an amount to charity, but that amount is very low."

One problem, she says, is that in the past, charity cards have been judged as second rate or cliched. "Companies may buy cards direct from charities, but often don't like the design offered." Because the CAT serves a range of charities, it can offer a selection of 40 designs, plus around 3,000 in its archives. The most popular designs, says Ms Blume, are still the traditional ones: an English snow scene, or a madonna and child. Religious cards are in vogue but there's also been a move towards more minimalistic designs.

Companies can also choose specifically where their Christmas card money is spent, according to Ms Blume, whose organisation is developing a programme called Charity Direct, which will funnel money to specifically targeted individuals at the request of those who donate. "People can come to us and say `I want to help a young, homeless person, and we will literally find them a young, homeless person to support."

It's not just British charities who will benefit; over the years, it has built links with countries such as India, where it recently bought an entire tea plantation to enable a tribal people to build their own economy. Mostly, though, grants are made into "hardship funds", accessed by individuals who need help.

"The challenge for charities is to get away from saying `This is a job, this is business'," said Ms Blume. "It is a goodness thing, and we want to say to companies `Make sure your cards make a difference this Christmas'."

Card Aid tel: 0171-433 3636