Charities advised to learn from new report

The report entitled One hundred lessons to be learned highlights common mistakes and problems within charities and advises them on ways to get the basics right.

Since the Commission gained the power to investigate Northern Ireland charities in February 2011 it has received "a steady number of concerns about charities. The vast majority of these concerns have come from members of the public" (CCNI, p1). January 2012 marked the one hundredth concern reported to the Commission, an average rate of one concern every other working day.

Given that a charity's reputation is so important in ensuring public confidence it is vital that charities continue to strive towards best practice and improving standards. The Charity Commission's report found that many of the concerns raised to date by the public follow four main themes. These themes are:

• Poor governance in charities
• Poor financial controls
• Lack of transparency
• The damage of disputes.

In addition to the lessons for charities contained in CCNI's report NICVA offers a range of resources, advice and training to enable charities to better meet their obligations. The Governance and charity advice service offers assistance through specialist advice and resources. These resources include Advice Notes on everything from charitable status to charity trustees duties' to conflicts of interest. 

A copy of the Charity Commission's report One hundred lessons to be learned can be accessed here

1. Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. 2012. One hundred lessons to be learned...themes and trends from the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland’s first one hundred concerns received about charities.