We are a registered charity and are hiring out our facilities to another charity to stage a pop concert. We would like to get some publicity by making a donation to the charity organising the event. This would come out of the fee we are charging them.

My question is. Can a charity make a donation to another charity, is it legal ? What do you consider the pitfalls are if we do make a donation?

The local villagers where i live are trying to start a village shop, they want to know what would be best. 1/ to form a ltd company, 2/ register as a charity, 3/ form a cooperative.

If the shop is run by a paid manager, is that person self-employed, or an employee?

Thanks

We need charitable status to apply for grants from trusts and other sources who will only give money to charities.

Our organisation meets the criteria for charitable status, but our annual income is less than £5,000 so we have been told we cannot register with the Charity Commission but must instead get our charitable status from the Tax Office. How do we go about that exactly?

I am looking to set up a playgroup as a social enterprise. I know a lot of childcare groups register as charities, but I wonder if a CIC would be a better option. I am aware of the issue with charities whereby a trustee or management committee member cannot be employed by the charity. This could be a problem as I am very much the one driving this forward and I would want to work at the playgroup which would mean relinquishing control to trustees. However I am not really clear on just what the pros and cons are of registering as a CIC instead.

Our charity is developing a range of trading activities that can’t be justified as furthering our primary purpose – we’re getting involved in room hire, conference organisation, catering, producing display materials etc for other organisations, not all of which are charities.

We’ve been advised to establish a trading subsidiary to take over these activities, to avoid any problems with the Charity Commission or the Tax Office.

Question: what is the best legal structure for a charity’s trading subsidiary? What sort of constitution should we use?

An incorporated charity with no endowments and negligible assets (other than small cash reserves) has discovered that it’s going to lose its main contract, worth about £100,000, to provide a particular service within the community. This loss of core funding (which it has enjoyed for many years) will make it impossible for the charity to continue in its present form. The trustees are talking about winding the charity up.

Is it appropriate to dissolve the charity just because funding has been withdrawn, or should efforts be made to restructure or merge? And how much effort are the trustees expected to put into a major change of direction? Does this just depend on the enthusiasm of the trustees or are there any prescribed responsibilities?

If the charity does decide to dissolve, can you explain what the order of events would be, approximately how long they should take, and what might be involved.

We are an Infrastructure Organisation, a Company limited by guarantee, and a registered Charity. We have a system of membership to our organisation; - It works by organisations filling out a membership form which is signed by a representative of the organisation. The board approve or reject the application at their next meeting.

The form does not include any guarantee by the applicant that they will contribute in any way to the liabilities of the company if it were to fold up. Every year we have an annual meeting and we allow representatives of those organisations those who we consider to be members to vote at this meeting.

My question is about the legal status of this "membership". Please could you explain the difference between being a "member_of_our__organisation" (for operational purposes) and being a "member_of_the_company" for legal purposes? Which type of member would have the right to vote at the AGM, and if we have got it wrong, how could we arrange things so that member organisations can vote at the AGM?

Empowering Members to Elect their Board

An incorporated charity with members:

a) Each year a third of the board retires, two thirds continue and because there are vacancies, and no one opposes, those who retired are reappointed. The board does not change. This might discourage new trustees.

Is there a better way? Is there a way that would only appoint trustees who were elected by a majority ballot of members and make sure that you always had at least 3 trustees? If so what might the wording be?

b) Article 33(2), below. What might the particulars comprise in “stating the Particulars”

c) Article 38, below. Could this mean that a director (unpopular with the members) could retire at an AGM, avoiding not being elected by the members, only to be reappointed by the board the next day?

===== Extract from Mems and Arts===========

30. At the first annual general meeting all the trustees shall retire from office, and at every subsequent annual general meeting one third of the trustees who are subject to retirement by rotation or, if their number is not a three or a multiple of three, the number nearest to one third shall retire from office: but, if there is only one trustee who is subject to retirement by rotation he shall retire.

31. Subject to the provisions of the Act, the trustees to retire by rotation shall be those who have been longest in office since their last appointment or reappointment, but as between persons who became or were last reappointed trustees on the same day those to retire shall ( unless they otherwise agree among themselves ) be determined by lot.

32. If the Charity at the meeting at which a trustee retires by rotation, does not fill the vacancy the retiring trustee shall, if willing to act, be deemed to have been reappointed unless at the meeting it is resolved not to fill the vacancy or unless a resolution for the reappointment of the trustee is put to the meeting and lost.

33. No person other than a trustee retiring by rotation shall be appointed or reappointed a trustee at any general meeting unless: (1) he is recommended by the trustees; or (2) not less than fourteen nor more than thirty-five clear days before the date appointed for the meeting, notice executed by a member qualified to vote at the meeting has been given to the Charity of the intention to propose that person for appointment or reappointment stating the particulars which would, if he were so appointed or reappointed, be required to be included in the Charity’s register of trustees together with a notice executed by that person of his willingness to be appointed or reappointed.

34. No person may be appointed as a trustee (1) unless he has attained the age of 18 years; or (2) in circumstances such that, had he already been a trustee, he would have been disqualified from acting under the provisions of Article 38.

35. Not less than seven or more than twenty-eight clear days before the date appointed for holding a general meeting notice shall be given to all persons who are entitled to receive notice of the meeting of any person ( other than a trustee retiring by rotation at the meeting ) who is recommended by the trustees for appointment or reappointment as a trustee at the meeting or in respect of whom notice has been duly given to the Charity of the intention to propose him at the meeting for appointment or reappointment as a trustee. The notice shall give the particulars of that person which would, if he were so appointed or reappointed, be required to be included in the Charity’s register of trustees.

36. Subject as aforesaid, the Charity may by ordinary resolution appoint a person who is willing to act to be a trustee either to fill a vacancy or as an additional trustee and may also determine the rotation in which any additional trustees are to retire.

37. The trustees may appoint a person who is willing to act to be a trustee either to fill a vacancy or as an additional trustee provided that the appointment does not cause the number of trustees to exceed any number fixed by or in accordance with the Articles as the maximum number of any trustees. A trustee so appointed shall hold office only until the next following annual general meeting and shall not be taken into account in determining the trustees who are to retire by rotation at the meeting. If not reappointed at such annual general meeting, he shall vacate office at the conclusion thereof.

38. Subject as aforesaid, a trustee who retires at an annual general meeting may, if willing to act, be reappointed.

Hello Charlie

I have a question concerning a small charitable pre-school (unincorporated) who have run into difficulties. They have a new board of trustees replacing the last one which was found to be involved in a series of 'incidents' of mismanagement of funds e.g. the current board have to pay out £300 per quarter for a photocopier that they do not have (and cannot find) and are liable to the lease company for the whole cost of the machine - £3000. The manager of the setting left because had been taking money from the group and HMRC are demanding payment for unpaid tax of £8000. This is just a sample of their current difficulties. Their current level of debt is around £20k.

Their local CVS has come in to bail them out and they have come to an agreement to pay back £10 per month which is all they can afford at the moment.

They would like to know about becoming an incorporated charity . The new board are keen to turn this group around and put in place all the necessary processes to ensure that the above doesn’t happen again. In view of their current liabilities would they be able to incorporate as a CLG - they understand that they may have to take on the liabilities of the previous board but am not sure how this would be viewed by either Charity Commission or Companies House?