Not-for-profit News - March 2017

A new Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Bill which is designed to help smaller charities to raise more money has received royal assent and will come into force on 6 April 2017 at the start of the 2017/18 tax year.

Following on from a consultation on HMRC's Making Tax Digital plan, the government have decided that charities will now be exempt from filing digital tax returns every quarter - but trading subsidiaries must follow the new rules.

The anti-advocacy clause which was put forward by the government in 2016 has been replaced by new standards for grant agreements following wide spread criticism from charities on the original proposal.

'Less than half of charities see themselves surviving over the next five years' is just one of the eye opening key findings from a report published by Localgiving.

The Charity Commission has issued an alert to highlight two additional rules which will affect both the trustees' annual report and the contents of agreements which are put in place when professional fundraisers raise money for a charity.

All the information you need to know relating to fundraising including data protection breach alerts, updated guidance for trustees and donors plus a six question fraud avoidance guide.

A successful trial of contactless donation boxes has raised over £20,000 in a four month period leading to some charities continuing to use the boxes.

A 10 point statement has been issued by the Commission to emphasise the importance of "supporting trustees and enabling them to comply with their duties; and ensuring that only bodies that properly qualify as charities under the law are registered."