Q. How and when was Plan set up?

Plan was founded in 1937 to provide food, accommodation and education to boys and girls whose lives had been torn apart by the atrocity of the Spanish Civil War. After World War II, we expanded our work to help children throughout war-torn Europe. From the 1950s, as Europe recovered, we began to work with the poorest of children throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Today we raise funds in nearly 20 countries and run programmes in over 40, benefiting more than 11.8 million children worldwide. Plan International is recognised by and works with the British government, the European Union and ICFO.

Q. How do you raise and spend your funds?

Over 72% of our funds come from our 1.1 million child sponsors worldwide, individuals who support community projects through a monthly gift and follow the progress of their sponsored child overseas.

7% comes from official bodies, including government departments and international governmental organisations, 26% from donations and 2% from other sources. The funds enable children, families and communities to help themselves – there are no cash handouts. If you decide to support an individual project, 100% of your donation will go directly to it. If you are a UK taxpayer, with your permission, we can also claim Gift Aid on your donation, which could be worth up to an extra 40%.

Q. What benefits can you offer me as a supporter?

If you choose to support one of our projects, we will keep you involved every step of the way. We will send you honest, factual and in-depth reports letting you know how the project is progressing – the problems and the successes. You will have a dedicated personal contact and be invited to special events where you can meet field workers and other donors. Once the project has been completed you will have the opportunity of visiting and seeing for yourself what it’s like to be a crucial part of a community’s progress from subsistence living to sustainable development.

Q. How do you ensure Plan projects are sustainable?

Before we begin any project, we work together with local authorities and all members of the community to ensure we have identified the biggest problems and the best solutions to put in place. We don’t run one-off projects, as we are committed for the long-term and work with communities for between 12 and 15 years on average. In that time we ensure that children, families and communities learn the skills needed to manage and maintain projects. When they have the expertise to develop independently, we withdraw from the area.

Q. How do you know if your projects have been successful?

Before starting work in any community we assess the standard of living. For example, we record the child mortality rate, the number of children going to school and the number of families with access to safe, clean water. This data is used as a baseline against which to measure progress.

Q. How do you know the money is spent as intended?

The following measures are in place:

• There is a Plan office in each country we work in to support communities.
• A yearly external audit is carried out by PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
• There is a programme audit to ensure that projects are effective in meeting the needs of communities.
• Zero tolerance on fraud. Anyone found to have committed fraud is dismissed.

Q. How do you ensure that your projects are cost effective?

There are many ways we ensure that communities get the highest return on what we invest:

• A wealth of local knowledge and contacts ensures we pay the right price for materials.
• We use local materials where we can, saving money to put back into the community.
• In most of our projects, local people contribute a large percentage of labour costs.
• We have over 90,000 volunteers worldwide who, in return for their time and effort, receive training in project management, child participation and administration.

Q. How many staff work in the UK and for Plan overall?

In Plan UK, we have approximately 90 employees and 40 volunteers. Plan has a staff of over 6,000 worldwide, most of whom work at community level, and a network of volunteers who keep us constantly in touch with the communities.