More information about charitable status
Friends of Kett’s Heights meets the HMRC criteria for charitable status (details here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/charities-detailed-guidance-notes/chapter-2-applications-for-recognition-as-a-charity-for-tax-purposes#chapter-23-organisations-not-required-to-register-with-a-charity-regulator )
We can claim Gift Aid on subscriptions and donations, but we don’t have a charity number, because we’re not registered with the Charity Commission.
We can’t currently apply to be registered because our organisation is too small (our annual income is below £5000.) If a charity is based in England and Wales and isn’t incorporated, it doesn’t have to apply to register if its annual income is less than £5,000. But it can still apply to HM Revenue and Customs for recognition as a charity to get charity tax breaks and claim gift aid – which is what we’ve done.
(You can apply to the commission to register this sort of charity voluntarily but the commission will only consider applications in exceptional circumstances. For example, if you can prove that your charity has been offered significant funds but has to provide a registered charity number before it can receive the funds.)
But watch this space – if our annual income (including grants) exceeds £5000 in future, then we might need to register.
Friends of Kett’s Heights meets the HMRC criteria for charitable status (details here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/charities-detailed-guidance-notes/chapter-2-applications-for-recognition-as-a-charity-for-tax-purposes#chapter-23-organisations-not-required-to-register-with-a-charity-regulator )
We can claim Gift Aid on subscriptions and donations, but we don’t have a charity number, because we’re not registered with the Charity Commission.
We can’t currently apply to be registered because our organisation is too small (our annual income is below £5000.) If a charity is based in England and Wales and isn’t incorporated, it doesn’t have to apply to register if its annual income is less than £5,000. But it can still apply to HM Revenue and Customs for recognition as a charity to get charity tax breaks and claim gift aid – which is what we’ve done.
(You can apply to the commission to register this sort of charity voluntarily but the commission will only consider applications in exceptional circumstances. For example, if you can prove that your charity has been offered significant funds but has to provide a registered charity number before it can receive the funds.)
But watch this space – if our annual income (including grants) exceeds £5000 in future, then we might need to register.