Charitable donations according to the Charities Aid Foundation’s annual UK Giving report found that charitable donations held steady at £9.7bn last year. Apparently the EU referendum had no influence on people’s reported giving. CAF’s survey of 8,000 found 89 per cent did something charitable last year, up from 79 per cent in 2015. Sixty-one per […]

The Charity Commission has updated its guidance on charity finances Charity finances: trustee essentials (CC25) to make sure that trustees understand their financial responsibilities when managing a charity. The new guide includes sections on making the most of a charity’s finances, identifying and managing risk, appropriate internal financial controls, reserves, managing financial difficulties, and income […]

Charities have been helped to process over £70m of donations since the launch of CAF Donate. Figures released by CAF show that: £71.8m has now been raised through CAF Donate since it launched in June 2014 2,856 charities now use the platform More than 2,800 charities are now using the online fundraising platform which was […]

Blenheim Palace has been registered with the Charity Commission  as the “Blenheim Heritage Foundation” with objects including restoring and preserving the site for the public benefit and promoting the study and appreciation of Blenheim as a place of historical and architectural interest. A statement from the palace, which is situated in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, said being […]

In accordance with the Charities Act, an individual is currently prevented from acting as a charity trustee if they have an unspent conviction for an offence of dishonesty or deception. However, the Charity Commission have sought to extend the scope of automatic disqualification to include convictions for theft, fraud, terrorist offences, perjury, money laundering and […]

Only 1% of  charities received 75% of  charitable income last year.Charities in England and Wales had a combined income of £72 billion in 2015 according to the Charity Commission. About £51.8 billion went to 2182 of the largest charities each of which received at least £5 million a year. Charities with less than  £10000 pa […]

Charities regularly enter into contracts with third parties, and the charity trustees must take the time to ensure they are acting in the best interests of the charity before entering into the contract and take professional advice when necessary. A recent inquiry published by the Charity Commission into Hospice Aid UK shows that this doesn’t […]

This week, 2 charities have been found to be in breach of the Data Protection Act and have been issued with monetary penalties by the Information Commissioner. Further charities are also under investigation. To avoid this fate read on…. The Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales, and the Fundraising Regulator, […]

A survey by the Ethical Property Foundation and the Charity Commission finds that nearly 60 per cent now struggle with this, compared with 41 per cent in the last survey two years ago. Many Charities have no property strategy even at a  basic level and property should be reinforced as a key trustee responsibility.   […]

# Charities like other organisations regularly fall victim to frauds. A new website at http://charitiesagainstfraud.org.uk/ gives useful guidance to help prevent this Some tips to help reduce your charity’s vulnerability to fraud include: Develop a strong counter fraud culture where staff are encouraged to play their part in the fight against fraud. Have in place […]