Example reports and accounts (SORP 2005) - Updated for Public Benefit Reporting

(Version – August 2009)

To assist charities preparing their reports and accounts in line with the recommendations of SORP 2005, we have produced a number of example reports and accounts that may be helpful in designing the layout and format of these documents.

For financial years starting on or after 1 April 2008 a charity’s Annual Report needs to address new requirements for reporting public benefit and take account of our guidance on public benefit. In particular, the Annual Report must contain:

1. a review of the significant or main activities undertaken by the charity to further its charitable purposes for the public benefit;
2. a statement by the charity trustees as to whether they have complied with the duty in section 4 of the Charities Act 2006 to have due regard to public benefit guidance published by the Commission.

To assist charities preparing their reports in line with these new requirements we will be updating certain of our existing example Annual Reports and adding new examples as our sub sector guidance is published. The approach we have taken is based on section G of our General Guidance on Public Benefit which sets out our expectations for reporting of public benefit in charity Annual Reports.

Those who wish to see how the updated Annual Reports address the principles and factors that we shall use when assessing public benefit should refer to our public benefit pages on this website.

The examples are designed to assist preparers and are not a substitute for reference to our public benefit guidance or SORP 2005. Readers should not assume that the examples show the only way of presenting an item or that they include all the disclosures for a particular type of charity.

This guidance consists of a number of separate files in PDF format. To open these you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader. For information on downloading Acrobat Reader, please click on the icon

Examples updated for public benefit reporting

A fee charging school (subject to audit)
The Alltown School Foundation Charity (1.94mb)
An illustrative example annual report of a fee charging school constituted as a trust.

A Parochial Church Council (PCC) (independently examined)
St Emilion’s Parochial Church Council (587kb)
A  PCC preparing accounts on a receipts and payments basis.

A Grant Making Charity (subject to audit)
Rosanna Grant Trust (1mb)
A medium sized trust providing grants to support medical research and education.

A company charity (subject to audit)
Dorsetshire Drugs Advice Centre (reissued) (1.09mb)
A small company charity providing services and operating a café and shop.

An unincorporated association preparing accounts on the receipts and payment basis (independently examined)
Westbeach Youth Club (78kb)
An unincorporated association operating a youth club.

An Islamic charity established as a Charitable Trust
Birchfield Mosque and Community Centre (863kb)
A Mosque and community centre set up as a charitable trust.

A theatre and arts centre
Arts Theatre Trust (1.44mb)
A company charity preparing group accounts.

Aid Overseas
Aid Overseas (2mb) 
A large non-company charity established to relieve poverty producing consolidated accounts