The Regulator for Charities in England and Wales

Mergers and Collaborative Working

(Version November 2007)

How do we apply to register our merger?

  • You will need to complete and send us a notification form. You can download the form from the Apply for it page. Alternatively you can ask Charity Commission Direct for a copy by phone or post.
  • Before completing the form please read the notes that accompany it and also Operational Guidance OG60 The Register of Mergers.
  • The official Register of Mergers is held and maintained by Charity Commission Direct. You can see a web version of the Register which is updated weekly.

What does the Register of Mergers mean for charities?

Following proposals in the Charities Bill, subsequent specific provision in the Charities Act 2006 provides that we must set up a Register of Mergers. This is good news for charities. For charities that have merged, any future legacies in their name will be able to be applied to the successor charity direct once the merger has been registered with the Commission. This means that failed legacies will no longer require a scheme to apply the funds to the successor charity nor will it be necessary to leave ‘shell’ charities on the Central Register of Charities to receive legacies.

For some charity mergers inclusion on the register will be compulsory and for some voluntary; this will depend on the way the constituent charity(s) have chosen to transfer property to the successor charity. Simply, if they have used a ‘Vesting Declaration’ (a deed which transfers the title to property including land and buildings) then registration is compulsory, if they have not used a Vesting Declaration then registration is voluntary.

How did this come about?

Much of this stemmed from the Cabinet Office’s Strategy Unit report Private Action, Public Benefit which recommended that the Charity Commission should:

  • provide specific advice to facilitate mergers;
  • produce regulatory guidelines, based on a light touch approach, to help charities identify and assess any risks and liabilities - sometimes known as a due diligence exercise - when considering potential mergers.

The SU report also recommended that:

  • a package of legal measures should be introduced which could facilitate mergers and, more generally, enhance the administrative running of a charity.

You can view our Policy Statement on Mergers, Collaborative Working and Due Diligence that was written to take up these recommendations.

What other information about mergers and collaborative working can I see?

For general information on the opportunities and challenges of collaborative working and mergers, the following booklets might be useful:

There have been some notable examples of mergers and/or collaborative working and learning continues on both the positive and negative aspects of merger. We undertook an evaluation of Volunteering England, a charity which came about as a result of the merger of three charities. This evaluation identified a number of factors affecting the success of the merger and some lessons learned that may be of benefit to other charities considering merging.

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