The Charity Commission has removed 28 charities from the register as part of its investigation into organisations which have not filed accounts for two or more years.
Between April 2018 and March 2019, the regulator engaged with 125 charities. Some 69 submitted outstanding documents during the “pre-inquiry” stage of the process where charities were issued with a final warning, meaning that an additional £37m is now accounted for on the register.
Of those that became part of the inquiry, 28 submitted outstanding documents and continue to operate, meaning a further £14.5m has been accounted for on the register. Twenty-eight charities were found to have ceased operating and have been removed.
Over £50m has been accounted for in total after 97 charities addressed their failure to file. This is double the amount of last year, when £25m was accounted for after 56 charities complied with filing requirements after regulatory intervention.
However the number of charities being removed from the register rose only slightly, from 24 last year to 28 this year.
Since 2013, the regulator has had a rolling project investigating charities which have not filed their annual accounts. Charities that have failed to file accounts two or more times in the last five years find themselves subject to regulatory scrutiny.
Amy Spiller, head of investigations team at the Charity Commission, said: “Generous donors have a right to be able to see clearly how their money is being spent, and be assured that they are going to their intended causes. This inquiry should serve as a reminder to all charities of the need to comply with their important legal duties, or inform us if they are no longer operating.
“We are committed to informing public choice about charities. Charities must lead the way here and evidence how they are delivering on their charitable mission and purpose through financial information that they make available. This is vital if charities are to meet legitimate public expectations around transparency and accountability.”
Further action
The Commission has taken further action against two charities this year after identifying separate issues.
It opened an inquiry into Future Vision Consortium August 2018 because it submitted information for a different company. The regulator determined that the charity did not operate and removed it from the register.
It has also opened a statutory inquiry in to the Jalalabad Association over governance concerns and will publish a report shortly.
Last year it took further action against five charities.
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