Civil society

The Charities Act has largely proved to be a good piece of legislation, and the Charity Commission is doing a respectable job of supporting the sector despite its limited resources, according to an independent review being published today.

The endorsement forms part of an advisory group review of the Charities Act 2006, which considers key areas of charity law and regulation including rules affecting trustees, public benefit, fundraising and the role of the Charity Commission. It suggests that the current charity law system in the UK is fit for purpose despite the difficult operating environment.

Sir Stuart Etherington, our Chief Executive, said:

"It is encouraging to see this measure nearing fruition after being announced in the 2011 Budget. The scheme should help to lighten the administrative load, particularly for smaller local charities.  Obviously this is a very technical area, and we look forward to working with Government to ensure it delivers on its potential.

"While the scheme is welcome, it sits uneasily against the backdrop of the tax relief cap on donations, which is projected to cost the voluntary sector £500 million. Rather than giving with one hand and taking with the other, the Government should take heed of the widespread opposition towards the cap and drop it as quickly as possible."

A significant minority of charities fear closure over the coming year, while others implement bracing measures in the face of a £405 million statutory funding loss, reveals a National Children’s Bureau (NCB) report today.

'Beyond the Cuts' estimates that the 34,000 charities in England which work primarily with children and young people will lose £405 million in statutory funding in the five years from 2011/12 to 2015/16.

Thanks to the backing and support of over 3,000 organisations and individuals, the Give it Back George campaign has continued to hog the headlines this week.

The campaign, led by NCVO, the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and the Philanthropy Review, calls on the Chancellor to reverse his decision to cap personal tax relief for charitable giving.

Charities have expressed concern after Treasury officials released fresh details of their cap on tax relief for major donations.

A policy briefing, added to the Treasury website on Tuesday afternoon, confirms charities' worst fears about the £50,000 cap on tax relief on charitable donations announced in the Budget.

The document confirms that the cap on tax relief imposed on donors will include Gift Aid claimed by charities, in addition to the personal tax relief available to higher rate taxpayers. It also raises fears that charities will face months of uncertainty while Ministers consult on the changes.

Applications are now open for both voluntary sector staff and civil servants to step into each other’s shoes for the day as part of our free work shadowing scheme 'A Day in the Life'.

Now in its fourth year our 'A Day in the Life' gives staff in government and voluntary sector the chance to trade places and learn about how the 'other side' operates. 

We have been "instrumental" in helping a charity providing services for disabled people in Lewisham to remain sustainable, supporting the organisation to successfully overturned a decision by their local authority which would have cost them almost £4,000 a year.

We have written a joint letter, with ACEVO, Charities Aid Foundation, Charity Finance Group, Charity Tax Group and the Institute of Fundraising, to the Chancellor George Osborne MP regarding the cap on income tax reliefs announced in this week’s budget to highlight the negative impact upon donations to charity.

We believe the unintended consequences of this measure could affect donations to charity by disincentivising the donation of large gifts to charity. 

With concerns mounting that charities got a raw deal from this week’s Budget, our new Charity Forecast survey suggests that the vast majority of voluntary sector leaders are pessimistic about the year ahead.
 
Our latest Charity Forecast Survey, published on Thursday 23 March, shows that 90% of respondents think economic conditions in the voluntary sector will be get worse over the next 12 months.  Over half (52%) expect their own charity’s financial situation to get worse over the next year and 47% plan to decrease their expenditure. 

We have responded to the Budget today. Sir Stuart Etherington, Chief Executive of NCVO, said:

'This is certainly not "George’s Marvellous Medicine" for the charity sector, and only goes a little way towards sweetening the bitter pill of the multiple financial pressures currently hitting the sector.

'The cap on income tax reliefs for donations really sets alarm bells ringing, as it could impact negatively on income from donations.  Eight per cent of donors give almost half of the amount that is given to charities every year, so this measure could have very serious consequences. It is positive though that the Government has pledged to work with philanthropists to explore ways of reducing this impact.