Swansea University has become the second largest registered charity in Wales. Established in 1920, the university is part of a new wave of Welsh educational institutions to be registered by the Charity Commission following the implementation of the Charities Act 2006.

With an income of £150m in 2009, the university is second only to Cardiff University which was registered in July with an income of over £400m.

The income of the charity sector in Wales is being hugely affected by the registration of the universities. At present, the income for the 9,000 plus registered charities in Wales is approximately £1bn. Once all the Welsh universities are registered with the Commission, this figure will rise to £2.2bn – more than double the current income.

Universities have always been charities but previously did not have to register with the Commission as they were accountable to their funder HEFCW (Higher Education Funding Council for Wales). However, the Charities Act 2006 changed the way in which these charities are regulated in order to improve accountability across the whole sector.

As well as the universities in Wales, all the student unions with an income over £100,000 are now required to register with the Commission and, shortly, work will begin to register the Further Education Institutions.

Harry Iles, head of the Charity Commission’s Wales office explained: "We have been working closely with HEFCW and representatives of all the Universities to ensure that the registration process runs smoothly.

"It has been a great benefit to discuss our role as the regulator and outline the new reporting requirements. Following registration, the public will be able to access to information about the Universities’ governance and accounts on our website in the same way as for all other registered charities and this is invaluable for promoting a better understanding of the work they do."