Scottish Ballet DCC case study

Organisation: Scottish Ballet 

Name: Donor Guiding Principles 

Type of code: Values statement 

Introduced: April 2025 

How communicated: Displayed on website, and sent to new supporters and renewing supporters. 

Action asked of supporters: Acknowledge that they have read the principles. 

Times the code has had to be put into action (as of November 2025): 0 

See the Principles online here. 

In March 2023, Antonia Brownlee, Director of Philanthropy at Scottish Ballet, and other members of her team, tuned into a webinar hosted by the Chartered Institute to launch Rogare’s Blueprint for Dismantling Patriarchal Structures in Fundraising. It was at this event that she first came across the concept of a donor code of conduct, when Rogare presented their template code as part of the mix of solutions to protect fundraisers from inappropriate behaviour by donors.  

“It really resonated because all of us then started talking about experiences we had with donors behaving inappropriately,” Antonia says, though she stresses they were from a very small number of patrons.  

So, the Philanthropy team at Scottish Ballet decided some form of donor code of conduct was what they needed. 

When Antonia took the idea of developing a code to the Board, she says they were “very surprised” she and her team felt it was needed: “The men on the Board were all very surprised and disappointed that we were experiencing things like I was outlining. And the women on the board were all nodding their heads as if to say, ‘oh, yes, we've experienced things like this at work’.” 

The Board expressed immediate support for ensuring our fundraisers felt protected. There was never any concern that creating a Code of Conduct could have financial repercussions, for instance, if it required us to end a relationship with a donor. 

However, they felt the wording used in the Rogare template code was too forthright and prescriptive. And so Scottish Ballet embarked on a two-year process to, as Antonia says, “finesse it into the language that Scottish Ballet would use, but most importantly, to tie into our values of excellence, inclusion, and innovation”. 

She continues: “We felt it was really important that it reflected those values, and therefore would feel very appropriate for Scottish Ballet's donors to be involved with and get behind.” 

Following internal consultation with members of the Board who led HR teams, consultations with fundraisers, and input from dancers – whom the code is also designed to protect – Scottish Ballet’s Donor Guiding Principles came into effect in April 2025. 

Rather than assert specific behaviours donors ought not do, the Donor Guiding Principles (displayed on the website as “Scottish Ballet’s Values”) restate the values that Scottish Ballet adheres to – such as anti-racism, and a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination and improper conduct – and then invites supporters to join the organisation in living those values, stating: 

“We feel confident you will support Scottish Ballet in promoting its value of inclusion and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our teams and dancers at work including events, hospitality and performances.” 

The principles are displayed on Scottish Ballet’s website on the ‘support us’ and legacy pages, among others. They are also sent to patrons when they first join, asking them to confirm that they have read and acknowledge the principles; and resent when patrons renew their annual support. 

Although Rogare has encountered concern from some quarters that introducing some form of code of principles at the start of a donor relationship would damage the future of the relationship, Antonia says there have been no complaints or negative feedback from donors. 

She’s not surprised: “If you’re not doing anything wrong, then it’s not going to bother you at all to be asked to support our initiative. But if you are behaving inappropriately, then maybe it'll make you consider your behaviour the next time you’re in our spaces.” 

Six months after is introduction, there has not been an incident for which the principles have needed to be invoked.  

But just having them in place has made Scottish Ballet’s fundraisers feel more confident in dealing with any problems that might arise. 

“In the past we have had situations with prospective donors where we had warning bells at the very first meeting, and we went ahead with the relationship anyway,” Antonia says. 

“Now we would have the confidence to say that that warning bell is enough to just not taking the relationship any further. 

“Having this donor code of conduct has really empowered us to feel confident in starting values-led conversations at the very beginning in discovery meetings with prospects. 

“And for that I want to thank Rogare and the Chartered Institute for getting this conversation going.”