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Consultation into Charity Commission powers

5th December 2013

On the same day that the National Audit Office published its highly critical report into the way in which the Charity Commission is run, Nick Hurd, the Minister for Civil Society, announced a government consultation on strengthening the regulatory powers of the Charity Commission.  The conclusion of the NAO report was that the Commission is not using its statutory powers as often as it should, it is too slow to act and it is too reliant on assurances from trustees of charities and their advisors.

The proposed changes include extending the list of offences that will automatically disqualify a person from acting as a charity trustee and increased powers for the Commission to take action against individual trustees and to close down charities.

The consultation will run until 12 February 2014.  Responses can be provided via the government website – www.gov.uk/government/consultations/extending-charity-commissions-powers-to-tackle-abuse-in-charities.

  • Charity registration
  • Restructuring
  • Governance and constitutional issues
  • Trustees' duties and responsibilities
  • Mergers and joint working
  • Commercial contracts
  • Company law and company secretarial
  • Regulations and compliance
  • Strategy and sustainability
  • Funding