Charity Update - 25 May 2021
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Welcome to the latest issue of Fieldfisher's Charity Update. There is a broad mixture of newsworthy stories this week, as we slowly move out of lockdown and start planning for the future. Of particular note is the proposed Charities Bill which will introduce some changes to charity law.
Neil Palmer
21 May 2021
Charities can apply for final round of tampon tax funding
Charities can now apply for the last round of funding designed to support projects helping disadvantaged women and girls across the UK. A pot of £11.25 million has been made available for charities to bid for, with priority given to those working to end violence towards women and girls, as well as organisations that support a network of charities.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
20 May 2021
Charity Commission finds poverty charity was 'intentionally abused for criminal purposes' by two of its trustees
Two former trustees of a charity set up to help people living in poverty in Afghanistan intentionally mismanaged the charity and stole hundreds of thousands of pounds. Read the decision here.
Charity Commission
20 May 2021
Charity Finance Group calls on Charity Commission to go further on responsible investment
CFG is urging the Commission to review its updated guidance so that charities feel empowered to go beyond "responsible" investment. They want charities to instead consider a "sustainable" approach.
Charity Finance Group
17 May 2021
Updates to "Enabling safe and effective volunteering" guidance
Updates to the guidance reflect the change to Step 3 of the roadmap for easing lockdown restrictions. Check out the guidance here.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
14 May2021
Charities Bill: 5 key changes you need to know
The Charity Commission have written an informational piece detailing the 5 key proposed changes to Charity Law following on from the Queen's Speech on the 11th May 2021.
The Charity Commission
7 May 2021
HMRC agrees to concessions to Retail Gift Aid scheme
A new online training course has been created to help charities and small organisations get to grips with cybersecurity. Despite smaller organisations feeling they are less at risk, 38% of micro and small organisations experienced a cyber-security breach in the last 12 months.
National Cyber Security Centre