NICVA responds to Public Benefit Consultation

Editor
25 November 2009 - 4:47pm
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Tagged as:

• Advice services
• Charity Commission for Northern Ireland; Public benefit; consultation
• Governance

NICVA's response to this consultation is informed by it's extensive work in the last decade in charity law reform from the early days Strategy Unit consultation on Private Action; Public Benefit and the initial involvement in the Advisory Panel; the consultation seminars held in conjunction with the Department for Social Development's (DSD) Charity Branch on the draft primary legislation in 2005 and 2006; to the most recent written and oral evidence presented to The Committee for Social Development on the Charities Bill and the ongoing work of its Governance and Charity Advice unit.

The Charities Act (NI) 2008 provides that to be a 'charity' an organisation must be established for charitable purposes. It further provides that these purposes are charitable only if they satisfy the test that they are for the public benefit.

The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland is required to issue guidance on how it will apply the 'public benefit' test and has published a consultation document entitled Meeting the Charity Test - Demonstrating Public Benefit. This document sets out the Commission's views on what it needs to take into consideration when deciding whether an organisation can become, or continue to be, a charity under the law of Northern Ireland.

Whether you are a charity employee, trustee, volunteer or member of the public the Charity Commission would like to hear your views on this draft guidance. Copies of the document and summary guide are available for download at www.charitycommissionni.org.uk

The closing date for the consultation is Friday 27 November.

For more information on NICVA's consultation response, please contact the Governance Team on 028 9087 7777 or email cas@nicva.org