The Charity Commission and the Fundraising Regulator have jointly published guidance for individuals engaged in public fundraising for charity. The guidance outlines key steps including: (1) identifying a named charity before commencing an appeal; (2) disclosing expenses to donors upfront; (3) using reputable online fundraising platforms; (4) establishing secondary purposes for the usage of funds and (5) setting clear targets and time limits for the appeal. For emergency fundraising, it advises supporting the Disasters Emergency Committee or expert aid charities for overseas emergencies and the National Emergencies Trust along with local Community Foundations for UK emergencies. The guidance distinguishes between fundraising 'in aid of' a charity, which falls outside the Fundraising Regulator’s jurisdiction, is encouraged to follow the Code of Fundraising Practice and fundraising 'on behalf of' a charity, which requires compliance with the Code. Misrepresenting personal cause fundraising as charitable may constitute fraud.

The Charity Commission for England and Wales has confirmed that the next set of changes being introduced by the Charities Act 2022 (CA 2022) are due to come into force on 7 March 2024. These include: a statutory power to permit changes to governing documents; provisions relating to selling, leasing or disposal of charity land; rules that will permit most gifts to charities that merge to take effect as gifts to the charity they have merged with; provisions allowing the Charity Commission to authorise trustees to receive or retain payment for work completed for the charity, and provisions permitting the Charity Commission to confirm defective or potentially defective trustee appointments.

The regulatory body for Charities in England and Wales, provided for by Section 13 Charities Act 2011.

The Charity Commission has issued guidance for charities in England and Wales on campaigning and political activity during Senedd and local elections. The guidance outlines the legal requirements for charities engaging in political activities that support their charitable purposes. However, it emphasises that trustees must comply with the rules on political activity and campaigning, with extra caution advised when a Senedd election has been called. The guidance also addresses the use of social media for campaigning, noting that although it can be used legitimately, it entails inherent risks. Additionally, the guidance confirms that electoral law may apply and directs charities to the Electoral Commission’s non-party campaigner guidance for Senedd elections.

The Charity Commission for England and Wales has launched its strategy for 2024-2029 including its core purpose and five strategic priorities of fairness, balance, independence, digital and data, and people. The priorities were informed and guided by challenges such as the cost-of-living crisis and the disruption that resulted from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Financial resilience was said to be a central issue in the upcoming five years. The strategy further anticipates the opportunities, risks and challenges associated with rapidly changing technology and shifting social norms.

The Charity Commission has launched a statutory inquiry into Queen Alexandra Cottage Homes, a charity which provides a range of accommodation and support to local older people in East Sussex. The Commission has said that the charity has failed to file its accounts for the past four years, and has not submitted outstanding annual accounting information despite being subject to a separate ‘double defaulter class’ inquiry and issued a formal Order. The Commission has said that the statutory inquiry was opened on 26 July 2023 and is set to examine a range of issues including the extent to which trustees are complying with their legal duties in respect of administration, governance and management and the financial management of the charity.

When considering the creation of a charity a structure now available is that of the Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). The Charity Commission recommends that their model form of constitution should be used to avoid delays in processing any application. There are a number of alternatives available for the completion of the document that should be considered. Details/chosen option Clause 1: Name of the CIO Clause 2: National location of principal office Clause 3: Objects Clause

The Charity Commission for England and Wales has launched an open consultation seeking information from the UK's voluntary sector and wider civil society to identify and understand potential vulnerabilities, trends and threats related to terrorist financing abuse. This review, conducted in accordance with the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF) Recommendation 8, aims to assess the non-profit organisation (NPO) sector's vulnerability to terrorist financing. The Commission, leading this work with support from other UK regulators, invites responses from all NPOs, regardless of their charitable status or location within the UK, to inform future engagement, outreach and potential regulatory reforms in combating the abuse of NPOs for terrorist financing purposes. The consultation closes on 31 January 2025.

The Charity Commission has published its 2026 annual research on public trust in charities and trustee governance, prepared by BMG Research. Public trust remains stable, with 57% recording high trust, though low trust rose from 9% to 11% since 2024. Money reaching the end cause remains the top driver of trust, though expectations that charities make a real difference and act as a voice have grown in importance. The proportion using charity services has fallen for the first time in five years, and affordability is the primary reason for not donating, with local charities more likely to retain support. Around half of the public are more likely to support charities after learning about the Commission's role, though understanding of its remit remains limited. Trustee confidence stands at 99%, though confidence in managing finances declined to 87% from 89% in 2025. Knowledge gaps persist in conflict of interest identification—only 33% correctly identified employing a trustee in a paid role as a conflict—and in financial controls. Fewer than half of trustees access Commission guidance annually, despite high satisfaction among users. Banking issues were reported by 36% of trustees. Commission fairness perceptions rose to 51% from 46% in 2025.

The Charity Commission has published its casework and registrations data for April–June 2026. At the end of June 2026, 171,539 charities were on the register, with total annual income of £108.5 billion and expenditure of £108.2 billion. During the quarter, 2,912 registration applications were received, with 1,223 charities registered and 790 removed from the register. In regulatory authority casework, 1,731 cases were opened, 1,044 closed and 556 permissions granted. The Commission also opened 1,552 regulatory concern cases and closed 934, with 2,415 cases active. The Commission opened 5 statutory inquiries and closed 19, with 171 ongoing. Serious incident reports comprised 933 opened and 350 closed, while 68 matters of material significance reports were opened and 71 closed. The ‘Revitalising Trusts’ programme closed 15 cases, with £2,515,832 in assets transferred to other charities.

The Charity Commission has published its Charity Sector Risk Assessment 2026, identifying financial resilience, private benefit abuse and structural regulatory gaps as three key risks facing the sector. Sector income reached £102 billion in 2024 against expenditure of £100 billion, with 41% of charities reporting expenditure exceeding income. Insolvency and financial difficulties casework rose by 27.7% to 235 cases, while voluntary charity removals increased by 36% to 938. Cases involving abuse of charitable status for private benefit rose by 38% in 2024–25 to 291, followed by a further 29% increase to 374 in 2025–26. The Commission also highlights governance, safeguarding, social tensions, geopolitical and emerging technology risks. Its specialist terrorism, extremism and state-threat team made 656 disclosures to police and other agencies in 2025–26, while 30% of charities reported experiencing a cyber attack in the past year. The Commission further warns that the use of artificial intelligence may increase the risk of bad actors exploiting charity registration processes and create risks for charity beneficiaries and employees.

The Charity Commission for England and Wales has published a blog post discussing how charities are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) as well as the risks and opportunities. The Charity Commission stresses to remain mindful of trustee duties and to manage AI risks including copyright issues, data security and reputational damage from the misuse of AI. At present, the Charity Commission does not anticipate producing specific new guidance on the use of AI, preferring to encourage trustees to apply existing guidance to new technologies as they emerge. Guidance will be updated where appropriate to reference examples of new technology.