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Accounts submission threshold to rise to £25,000 1

Finance | Vibeka Mair | 28 May 2008

The Charity Commission plans to raise the threshold for submitting annual accounts to the regulator from £10,000 to £25,000, though all charities will still be expected to prepare accounts.

And random checks will be introduced for charities below the new threshold to ensure that they have produced such accounts.

Initially, the raising of the threshold had split the Commission board at its meeting last week, with opponents warning that the move would affect public confidence.

Board member Theo Sowa said: “There is a discipline for small charities in thinking about the work they are doing and reporting. And it makes a difference to public perceptions. If no one is asking for something, it is easy not to do it.”

Tess Woodcraft said that the Association of Charitable Foundations was opposed to the change: “They want audit trails as they fund smaller organisations and are concerned at local level to see how they are functioning.”

However, Commission chief executive Andrew Hind argued that groups could find relevant information via annual returns. He also said that since the Commission did not publish accounts of charities with incomes below £25,000 on its website, public perception would not be affected.

Hind added that the increase was in line with inflation: “There has not been an increase in the £10,000 threshold since 1993. If we don’t adjust the threshold we will have more and more small charities which will make more admin for us. What is £10,000 today will be £15,000 in ten years time,” he said.

Eventually, the board agreed to go ahead after John Wood suggested including random checks on the accounts of small charities below the new threshold. He said it would be like self-certified tax returns. Chair Dame Suzi Leather said the Commission would check the feasibility of the move.

As expected, the board rejected a proposal to raise the threshold for preparing an annual report to £25,000. All other changes to thresholds put out to consultation were approved.

The Commission will now present its views to the Office of the Third Sector for final approval.

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