Accounting and reporting
Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) 2026
- Hub page
- 17 Jun 2025
The new Charities SORP (FRS 102) will come into effect for financial periods starting on or after 1 January 2026. Find out more about the changes and how charities might be affected.
Charities SORP
- Listing
- 04 Nov 2025
The charities SORP gives guidance on financial accounting and reporting for charitable entities. On this page you can access a range of articles, books and online resources providing quick links to the regulations, guidance and other key documentation.
Exclusive
Charities - financial reporting and scrutiny (England and Wales)
- Helpsheets and support
- 07 Jan 2025
Technical helpsheet issued to help ICAEW members to understand key requirements relating to the financial reporting and scrutiny of charities registered in England and Wales.
Exclusive
Charities - financial reporting and scrutiny (Scotland)
- Helpsheets and support
- 19 Feb 2020
Technical helpsheet issued to help ICAEW members to understand key requirements relating to the financial reporting and scrutiny of charities registered in Scotland.
Audit and independent examination
Independent examination of charity accounts: examiners (CC32)
- Website
- 14 Jul 2021
The Charity Commission’s directions and guidance that examiners must follow, and the role and responsibility of independent examiners when examining the accounts of a charity.
Independent examination of charity accounts: guidance for trustees (CC31)
- Website
- 14 Jun 2021
The Charity Commission’s guidance on independent examinations for trustees.
ICAEW pushes for charity audit threshold consultation
- Article
- 28 Mar 2024
Call for review of charity audit thresholds as inflation drags many smaller charities into scope against a backdrop of harsh financial challenges across the third sector.
Letter of Support: charities need to put their own interests before those of their trading subsidiary
- Article
- 03 Aug 2023
In this challenging economic environment, charities with commercial trading operations might face increasing calls to issue letters of support to their trading subsidiaries. Trustees will need to protect the charity’s interests and follow charity law and regulation if they consider issuing a letter of support.
Financial management
Managing a charity’s finances (CC12)
- Website
- 14 Jun 2023
The Charity Commission’s advice for charities that are facing financial difficulties and how charities can reduce the risk of insolvency.
Balancing finance, culture and impact: the leadership challenge for charities
- Article
- 02 Dec 2025
Leading a charity today means juggling competing priorities: financial sustainability, organisational culture and delivering meaningful impact. For small charities in particular, this balancing act can feel relentless. How do leaders keep the mission alive while ensuring the numbers add up? This article explores practical ways to navigate these tensions and build strong foundations for the future.
Courage, control, and clarity: redefining risk mitigation strategies
- Article
- 09 Oct 2025
The Charity Commission’s Charity Sector Risk Assessment 2025 paints a challenging picture: squeezed finances, increasing fraud and cyber threats, governance weaknesses, safeguarding concerns, and a shifting reputational landscape. For finance leaders and finance trustees, it’s a clear signal that your financial and analytical skills are more vital than ever.
Academy finances plummet as removal of funding limits growth
- Article
- 24 Feb 2025
The state of Academy Trust finances continues to be squeezed, with nearly three times as many Trusts now making an in-year deficit compared to just three years ago. The larger Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs) are the most financially efficient Trusts, but the government has removed funding that supports their growth.
Fraud and cybercrime
Exclusive
Duty to report to the charity regulator(s)
- Helpsheets and support
- 15 Aug 2025
Helpsheet highlighting the circumstances in which charity independent examiners, auditors and trustees have a duty to report serious issues, including fraud, governance failures, or legal breaches, to the charity regulators.
Build resilience against fraud and cybercrime
- Article
- 30 Apr 2025
Charities play a vital role in society, often operating on tight budgets while delivering essential services to communities. Yet this very trust can make them attractive targets for fraudsters and cybercriminals. In an increasingly digital world, improving resilience to fraud and cybercrime is not just a technical necessity — it’s fundamental to protecting beneficiaries, safeguarding donations, and preserving public trust.
Warning for charities with land across the South East of England
- Article
- 02 Dec 2024
The Charity Commission has sent this alert on behalf of the Environment Agency: criminals are currently targeting charities that own land across the South East of England.
Fraud Alert! Watch out for the latest scam!
- Article
- 27 Sep 2024
Fraudsters are always finding new ways to target charities. As a Community, we can support each other by sharing examples of fraud attempts to help us be vigilant and improve our internal controls. Would your charity have fallen for this latest scam?
Regulation and legislation
Charities legal and regulatory framework
- Helpsheets and support
- 17 Feb 2020
Technical helpsheet issued to help ICAEW members to understand key aspects of the legal and regulatory framework for charities registered in England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
Charities Act 2022: implementation plan
- Website
- 05 Mar 2024
This plan explains how the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has been implementing the Charities Act 2022.
Charities and social media
- Website
- 18 Sep 2023
The Charity Commission’s guide to help trustees understand their legal duties regarding their charity’s use of social media.
Code of Fundraising Practice
- Website
- 01 Oct 2019
The Code of Fundraising Practice sets the standards that apply to fundraising carried out by all charitable institutions and third party fundraisers in the UK.
Reserves and investments
Charity Investment Governance Principles (CIGP)
- Website
- 16 Jan 2025
CIGP guides charities in how to improve their governance practice for investment decisions.
Charity reserves: building resilience (CC19)
- Website
- 14 Jun 2023
The Charity Commission’s guide to what charity reserves are and how to develop and report on a charity's reserves policy.
Investing charity money: guidance for trustees (CC14)
- Website
- 01 Aug 2023
The Charity Commission’s guide helps trustees make the right decisions about investing charity funds.
Is your charity missing out on withholding tax reclaims?
- Article
- 29 Aug 2025
Charities face increasing pressure to make the most of limited resources. Maximising investment returns is crucial to furthering charitable causes, yet a significant source of lost income often goes unnoticed: foreign withholding tax (WHT) on investment income. Year on year, charities investing internationally may be losing thousands, even millions, of pounds to withholding tax that could potentially be fully reclaimed. Here’s what you need to know.
Sustainability
Link your charity’s impact and sustainability reporting to the UN SDGs
- Article
- 03 Sep 2025
Increasingly, charities are being expected to demonstrate not only the positive change they create but also the wider impact of their operations. With the Exposure Draft of the new Charities SORP (Statement of Recommended Practice) placing greater emphasis on impact and sustainability reporting in annual reports, this offers an opportunity for charities to align their strategic aims and reporting with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Climate charity’s disclosure scheme for plastics
- Article
- 05 Jun 2023
The initiative emerges amid growing calls for mandatory environmental disclosure and UN talks towards a legally binding treaty to end plastics pollution.
Why charities must embrace ESG reporting
- Article
- 07 Jun 2022
Higher levels of ESG reporting in the charity sector will help to support accountability, best practices and access to finance, explain Nick Sladden and Carys Tetlaw of RSM UK.
What will this new decade bring for ESG investors?
- Article
- 29 Jul 2021
The end of the last decade brought with it one of the most difficult years for investors of all hues, but ESG moved firmly from the periphery to centre stage. The E (environmental) has been prominent for several years, but it was the S (social) which had the standout year.
ESG, what can corporates learn from the charities’ reporting framework?
- Article
- 25 May 2021
We are in the middle of a boom for ESG reporting, driven by the growing realisation of the risks arising from climate change and inequality, a realisation that has now permeated into capital markets. Every day sees a new tool for ESG or SDG or Sustainability Reporting.
Taxation and VAT
ICAEW urges government to reconsider tax changes for charities
- Article
- 01 Sep 2025
ICAEW believes that some of the changes proposed by the government could cause uncertainty and may even discourage potential donors from leaving gifts to charities in their will.
ICAEW supports new VAT relief for donated goods
- Article
- 28 Jul 2025
Responding to the government’s consultation, ICAEW has made a number of recommendations to ensure that the new relief achieves its objectives without undermining VAT simplicity or placing undue burdens on donors, charities, or HMRC.
Charity reliefs under the spotlight
- Article
- 28 Aug 2024
Is removing the VAT exemption from private school fees and slashing business rates relief for charitable independent schools the thin end of the wedge for the Third Sector?
Letter of Support: charities need to put their own interests before those of their trading subsidiary
- Article
- 03 Aug 2023
In this challenging economic environment, charities with commercial trading operations might face increasing calls to issue letters of support to their trading subsidiaries. Trustees will need to protect the charity’s interests and follow charity law and regulation if they consider issuing a letter of support.
Technology and data
Courage, control, and clarity: redefining risk mitigation strategies
- Article
- 09 Oct 2025
The Charity Commission’s Charity Sector Risk Assessment 2025 paints a challenging picture: squeezed finances, increasing fraud and cyber threats, governance weaknesses, safeguarding concerns, and a shifting reputational landscape. For finance leaders and finance trustees, it’s a clear signal that your financial and analytical skills are more vital than ever.
Specialised Learning courses
- Helpsheets and support
- 09 Oct 2025
Courses will be split into four key categories covering technical and professional skills, sector specific content and emerging issues and updates.
The Charity Commission’s evolving approach to increasing registrations – a shift to modern solutions?
- Article
- 04 Sep 2025
In its recent blog post, the Charity Commission shared that, in July 2025, it received over 1,000 registration applications in a single month for the first time. This milestone reveals that the sector continues to grow despite financial pressures. However, we also learned why AI-generated content in applications can result in application rejections.
Surprising insights from the Charity Digital Skills Report 2025
- Article
- 18 Aug 2025
The Charity Digital Skills Report 2025 is out. Now in its ninth year, the report remains a helpful pulse check on how UK charities are balancing financial pressures with the opportunities of technological acceleration, and this year’s report paints a surprising picture of digital transformation in the sector.
Volunteering and governance
The Essential Trustee (CC3)
- Website
- 15 Aug 2024
The Charity Commission’s essential guide for trustees outlines what’s required of a charity trustee, including your responsibilities to your charity.
5-minute guides for charity trustees
- Website
- 15 Aug 2024
Refresh your knowledge with the Charity Commission's 5-minute guides.
Charity Governance Code
- Website
- 15 Aug 2024
The Charity Governance Code represents a standard of good governance practice to which all charities should aspire.
How to report a serious incident in your charity
- Website
- 15 Aug 2024
The Charity Commission’s guidance for charity trustees about serious incidents: how to spot them and how to report.