The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland has welcomed a Department for Social Development statement that will finally allow it to register the estimated 7,000 – 10,000 Northern Ireland charities.

The statement concerns a proposed amendment to the Charities Act (NI) 2008, which has found favour with the Department.

The next step will be a public consultation expected to happen as soon as the legislation is passed by the NI Assembly, probably in late summer.
 
Chief Charity Commissioner Tom McGrath is satisfied with the recent development, and said: “I am pleased that the Charity Commission can now get on with the registration of Northern Ireland charities. This process will not happen overnight, but after almost two years of enforced delay, the Commission can finally get the registration ball rolling.   
 
“The Commission has always had a steady workload despite the registration complexities. Our recent report on the first 100 concerns about charities investigated by the Commission demonstrates this. The report, published last week, provides useful lessons for charities, helping them to avoid common mistakes.
 
“On the registration front, however, we are satisfied that a decision on the amendment has finally been made, and is in keeping with our preferred solution since we referred the problem with the legislation back to DSD in June 2010.”
 
The registration of charities will begin with a consultation process on the Commission’s public benefit guidance and a pilot registration phase involving 20 local organisations. Charities need not do anything at the moment in terms of registration. The Commission will make further statements when that time comes.

It was originally planned that charity registration would begin at the end of June 2010.  However, as a result of the public consultation and legal advice on the robustness of the definition of a charity, the Commission referred the legislation back to the Department for Social Development in June 2010. The Department’s review concerned the technical aspects of the legislation governing the public benefit requirement.

When the agreed amendment is passed by the Assembly the Commission will publish its Public Benefit Guidance and registration can begin.