03: New roles for the Charity Commission

The Charity Commission is also given new roles under the new Act. One of these is to promote understanding and awareness of the new public benefit requirement.

Additionally, one of the main obstacles to recruiting trustees has traditionally been the concern that they may be held personally liable for mistakes made, thus putting a charity’s assets at risk. So the new Act helps to mitigate these concerns by increasing the availability of appeal in cases where mistakes are made honestly. In such situations, trustees are allowed to appeal to the Charity Commission, as opposed to just the courts, for relief from personal liability.

The new Act also aims to reduce bureaucratic processes, especially for smaller unincorporated charities. It gives them greater freedom to take decisions without first having to make referral to the Charity Commission for approval. It also allows charities to change their purpose in order to modernise their approach and ensure that they remain relevant to new needs in society.