Understanding the Public Benefit Requirement
This module is based on the Charity Commission guidance and is designed to provide trustees with an understanding of the requirements as they affect your charity.
Understanding the Public Benefit Requirement
Do your trustees:
- Know what the public benefit requirement is?
- Understand how the public benefit requirement affects your charity?
- Understand their obligations and duties in respect of the public benefit requirement?
- Know what they need to include on public benefit in the charity’s annual report?
Aim
This module provides charity trustees with an understanding of the public benefit requirement and is tailored to ensure that they are aware of how the requirement specifically affects your charity. It also covers the trustees’ obligations and reporting requirements.
The Charity Commission says that “understanding public benefit helps those setting up or running charities to know what it means to be a charity, and to function as a charity should. It also helps charity trustees to describe and report on their charity’s work.”
All charity trustees have a duty to have regard to the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance. This means that your trustees must be able to show that they are aware of the guidance, that they understand how it affects your charity and that they have taken it into account where appropriate.
This module is based on the Charity Commission guidance and is designed to provide trustees with an understanding of the requirements as they affect your charity to enable them to fulfil their duties and ensure that your charity operates in accordance with best practice in relation to operating for the public benefit.
Learning outcomes
The objective of this module is to ensure that delegates:
- Understand the legal requirement that charities must operate for the public benefit
- Understand how the public benefit requirement applies in relation to your charity’s objects and activities
- Are aware of their legal duties and obligations as charity trustees in relation to the public benefit requirement as it affects your charity
- Have the knowledge and understanding to ensure that your charity operates for the public benefit and reports on its activities in accordance with best practice.
Course outline
- The public benefit requirement
- The Charities Act 2011
- The scope of the Commission’s public benefit objective
- The two aspects of public benefit: the ‘benefit’ aspect and the ‘public’ aspect
- Detriment or harm
- Personal benefit
- Public benefit and running a charity
- The duties and powers of trustees
- Providing benefit whilst managing risk of harm and personal benefits
- Charging for services
- How the requirements affect your charity
- Public benefit reporting
- The requirement to report
- Reporting on your charity’s activities
To discuss your specific requirements and get a quote, please contact Liz Brownsell on 01473 406383 or [email protected].
