(Immediate Release 9 September 2010)

The Charity Commission, the regulator of charities in England and Wales, is consulting on plans to make a range of its services accessible online or by email only. It follows the announcement in July that the Commission aims to provide all of its services online by 2012.

The Commission is now encouraging charity trustees to share their views about the first stage of that process, which will see the withdrawal of paper forms for Annual Returns and Annual Updates for the financial year ending 1 January 2011 onwards.

Many charities are already choosing to access the Commission’s services online, thus ensuring they receive a quicker service. Last year there was a 24% increase in take-up of the Commission’s online services, with over 80% of annual return or update submissions by charities made via the website.

The Commission also plans to withdraw paper-based forms for registering as a charity from April 2011. That will also apply to those registering their charities as new Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs), an option which is expected to be available from the first quarter of 2011. In August, 83% of charity registration applications were submitted online.

The consultation on the first stage of these plans is open until 2 December 2010.  While it is aimed principally at charity trustees, their employees and professional advisers who use the Commission’s services, suggestions from anyone with an interest in its work are very welcome. The Commission is especially interested to hear suggestions for ways in which it can improve its online provision of services.

The regulator hopes that the online strategy will help ensure it remains able to provide a wide range services to charities, despite the likelihood of further cuts in its funding. The Commission has already lost nearly 200 members of staff in 6 years, a reduction of 30%.

Sam Younger, Chief Executive of the Charity Commission, said:

“I hope as many charities as possible will find time to comment on our online plans. We are convinced that going online will ensure we can continue to provide excellent, speedy services to charities despite increasing pressures on our finances. But we’re keen to hear about your experiences of our online services and how you think we can improve the way we do things. So please do get in touch.”

The Commission continues to provide a range of alternative arrangements for those with particular accessibility needs. Consultation documents and further information can be found here.

Ends.

PR 64/10

For further information, please contact the press office.

Notes to Editors

1. The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. See www.charitycommission.gov.uk for further information or contact us.
2. Our mission is to ensure charities’ legal compliance, enhance charities’ accountability, encourage charities’ effectiveness and impact and to promote the public interest in charity. 
3. Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) is a new corporate structure designed specifically for charities. There are a number of benefits in choosing a corporate structure for charities. These include protection for trustees from the financial liabilities the charity incurs and a legal personality for the charity which allows it to conduct business in its own name, rather than the name of trustees.
4. Currently charities opting for a corporate structure set up as a company limited by guarantee under company law. This means they are subject to dual regulation by the Charity Commission and Companies House. The new CIOs will remove this need for dual registration. The new structure is likely to be available for charities from 2011.
5. There are over 4 million visitors a year to the Charity Commission’s website.