Charity

One out of every 10 Scottish charities is currently defaulting on its accounts, according to new data from the OSCR. In its latest sector overview report, the regulator says there were 25,427 charities on the Scottish register on 31 March 2023 – with a combined income of £14.8bn. The number of organisations is slightly up

A giant social care charity says it cannot guarantee jobs will not be lost after it decided to withdraw from more than a dozen care homes and retirement communities. MHA, which raised £250m last year and employs more than 6,000 people, said it hoped staff would be able to continue work under new providers but

The Foundation for Social Improvement has closed and formally transferred its assets to the National Council for Voluntary Organisations. NCVO said in a statement today that it would take on responsibility for Small Charities Week as well as other “key assets” previously controlled by the FSI. Existing FSI members will be able to join the

Pressure is mounting on Girlguiding UK to reverse its shock decision to end operations for girls living abroad. More than 14,000 people have signed a petition calling for a rethink after the youth charity announced on Twitter yesterday that it would change its relationship with British Girlguiding Overseas and cease all overseas guiding from 1

Dogs Trust has acquired two smaller animal charities as it bids to expand its international work. Worldwide Veterinary Service and Mission Rabies have merged into a single organisation which will operate as a subsidiary of Dogs Trust. The trust has long-term relationships with both charities, including helping to fund their work over several years. The

The regulator is looking into “concerns” about a charity that works with military veterans. The Charity Commission confirmed today that it had opened a compliance case into Forgotten Veterans UK, a Portsmouth-based organisation that supports former military personnel and their families. Three of the charity’s four trustees have quit the board, according to reports today

Charity bosses have warned that Covid-19 had a “profound” impact on volunteering after polling found a sharp fall in the number of people giving their time for free. The proportion of the public taking part in sponsored events, organising charity activities and campaigning for good causes have all halved since 2018, according to polling by

An authoritative survey is today suggesting the UK is in the midst of a “worrying and permanent” decline in people’s engagement with charities, with the fall-off “locked in since lockdown”. Charities Aid Foundation’s long-running UK Giving Report, published today, has found a significant drop compared to before the Covid-19 pandemic – in donation levels, volunteering

Charity finance experts say that government reforms to Gift Aid rules could “future proof” the system and safeguard donations worth billions of pounds a year. The Charity Tax Group welcomed a government announcement to engage with charities as part of its ongoing review of the current Gift Aid system.  CTG said that the Treasury would

The chief executive of the Charity Commission has launched a fierce attack on warring trustees, telling them not to “weaponise” the regulator as a “tactic to win their quarrel”. Helen Stephenson also warned that the approach could backfire, leading to the commission taking action after uncovering other governance shortcomings caused by the dispute. And she

A keynote fund for black and ethnic minority-led charities has been “swamped” in applications, one of its organisers has said. High demand means that fewer than one in 10 of the small charities applying to the £1m fund will be successful, according to Yvonne Field, chief executive of the Ubele Initiative. The Ubele Initiative is

Charities using cryptocurrencies to fundraise should expect those assets to lose value, the regulator has warned. Trustees should be wary of relying on cryptocurrency markets which are “largely unregulated” and where the value of assets is highly volatile, according to new guidance from the Charity Commission. Cryptocurrencies are digital currencies underpinned by blockchain, a technology

The battle for a share of the increasingly competitive charity shops market has taken a new turn, with the appointment of a soap star as British Heart Foundation’s first retail ambassador. The unveiling of Coronation Street actor and entrepreneur Kimberly Hart-Simpson comes as Charity.SuperMkt has extended its stay at the Oracle in Reading by three

Trustees at a £30m charity were able to “hijack” the organisation under the noses of the regulator, former board members have claimed. The previous trustees of the Actors’ Benevolent Fund, who say they were illegitimately ousted from the charity last year, accused the Charity Commission of “sit[ting] on its hands” since the bitter dispute arose

The early-bird deadline for reduced-rate entry to the Third Sector Awards is rapidly approaching.  The Third Sector Awards celebrate the work of voluntary sector organisations and the difference they make to society.  There are 32 categories this year, covering sector excellence, partnerships and talent, including an award for Best Service Delivery Innovation that will recognise

Experts have urged the government to tighten safeguarding laws designed to block potential abusers from joining global aid charities. Charities should be able to request detailed background checks on all aid staff recruited to work with beneficiaries overseas, according to an independent review of government policy. The change would expand rules that currently limit checks

The charity of the year for the 2024 TCS London Marathon has been revealed – sooner than intended. Samaritans was set to be officially unveiled at noon on Wednesday 26 April, in an announcement coordinated with the marathon’s organisers. But the charity appears to have jumped the starting gun by revealing the news on its

A four-week strike at the homelessness charity St Mungo’s has been suspended while staff consider a new pay offer. More than 500 workers allied to the union Unite were scheduled to walk out today but will now vote on a new deal with the charity. The union has recommended its members reject the offer, which

An actors’ charity appears to be in the bad books of the regulator over the amount of time and money spent to resolve a “bitter dispute” between trustees. The Charity Commission has ordered the Actors’ Benevolent Fund to hold fresh elections for trustees before the end of the year, following a year-long investigation. It also

The “one-off” founder and chief executive of a high-profile charity has announced her retirement after being diagnosed with cancer.  Sue Farrington Smith MBE led the coming-together of a number of brain tumour charities to found Brain Tumour Research in 2009. Now, having undergone major surgery to treat low-grade abdominal cancer, she has announced that she

The police in Northern Ireland are investigating after hackers stole data on more than a hundred charities and their beneficiaries. Evide, a data management firm based in Derry, was targeted by cyber criminals last month, according to BBC reports. The firm did not respond to requests for comment by Third Sector but told the BBC

The shortlist for the Purpose Awards EMEA 2023 from PRWeek, Campaign and Third Sector has been announced. The awards recognise campaigns that use creative ideas successfully to further positive causes and acknowledge the organisations behind them. They are open to agencies, brands, public sector bodies, charities and NGOs in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

A £1.2m donation from Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, helped his global development charity grow by more than 50 per cent last year. Sentebale, which supports children in Lesotho and Botswana living with the impact of HIV, raised £4.5m in 2021/22, up from £3.1m the year before. This includes a donation of $1.5m – about

The total amount of legacy income to charities hit an all-time high of an estimated £3.7bn last year, according to research. The Legacy Trends report by legacy information provider Smee & Ford found that 37,053 wills included donations to one or more charities in England and Wales. The figure was out of a total 269,699

One of the country’s largest charities says that the “vast majority” of new staff will be able to work completely remotely under post-Covid-19 arrangements. PDSA, the animal welfare charity, told Third Sector it was advertising some jobs with “zero expectation” that employees would work from its offices unless they wished, as part of a more

A support worker with a warning for sleeping on duty was dismissed after a vulnerable woman wandered barefoot out of her care facility at night, a tribunal heard. Ms R Gbortsui was meant to be monitoring the gate CCTV, according to the official report of the hearing, but left her post to investigate when some

Income pressure and a volunteer shortage has left a “significant question mark” over the future of many charities running community buildings, researchers say. Analysis found that the number of paid bookings had dropped at more than one-quarter of community buildings since Covid-19, hitting a vital source of income. The research also identified “a stark lack”

Yesterday’s Budget was full of announcements that affect charities. Here are the key changes: Third Sector understands that this is new funding for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with just over £100m pledged to charities in England and decisions about the remaining spending falling to devolved powers elsewhere in the UK. There

Charity shops have received a belated Christmas present, as new figures show that they have bounced back to beat pre-pandemic festive sales figures. Meanwhile, almost half of charities are planning to open new shops in the coming six months. The news comes in figures from the Charity Retail Association, which show a 9.1 per cent

Small charities today suffered another blow as support organisation the Foundation for Social Change announced its closure. The shock decision, revealed in a press release this morning, comes 12 months after the Small Charities Coalition closed down – and two weeks after the 360 Giving report revealed more than 1,000 infrastructure charities had closed since