In a recent post dated 27th June 2024, a question was posed on Jayne’s Baby Bank’s Facebook profile page: “Are you registered as a charity now?” The following is a response from Miss Ridsdale herself.
Our Response:
There are a few notable factors we want to clarify. The Baby Bank makes it clear that they are exclusively a baby bank and/or food bank, and intentionally omit the other operational status of being a “Charity Shop”. Their job description listed on their personal profile includes “Works at Jayne’s Mother and Baby Bank, Food Bank, and Charity Shop”.
We can also provide the following examples to demonstrate that the “Baby Bank” indeed operates as a Charity Shop; they even describe themselves as such publicly on various business listings.
Examples:
This raises the question: is charity registration required?
According to the Charity Retail Association, “Only registered charities can set up charity shops.” In fact, this is the first step outlined in their guide on setting up a charity shop, and you must register as a charity with the Charity Commission first and foremost.
What if we set up an Unincorporated Association?
The Charity Excellence Framework Group states on their website that if you have an income under £5,000 a year, this is suitable. Given the ability to cover the cost of numerous shops and receiving over £9,000 in grants from local councils alone, we know the £5,000 limit has been exceeded. Thus, charity registration is legally required when operating a charity shop.
The Cover-Up?
There does seem to be an attempt to obfuscate on the part of Jayne’s Baby Bank. Certain pages have been renamed to hide “Charity Shop” from their listings, but by searching historical data, we can see a clear effort by Miss Ridsdale to play a game of word soup and misdirect the public. So where does your money go? you will never know.
Update: 01/07/2024
On Jayne’s Baby Bank TikTok page (Backup Link), dated 03/09/2022, Miss Ridsdale writes:
when my Dad says I need to get a real job! I’m retired. director of one of the largest children’s charity’s in Wales and an influencer! 🤣
Did Ceri-Anne, the director of one of the largest charities in Wales, forget to delete this video?
Sherlock.