Accounting for charities

We have a separate page on the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP)

We also maintain a page on Accounting for friendly, mutual, co-operative and community benefit societies which includes information on charitable community benefit societies.

Charity Community
The community focuses on supporting finance professionals in their paid or voluntary roles in the charity and voluntary sectors. It offers regular e-newsletters containing the latest news and updates, as well as technical helpsheets, webinars and discounts on ICAEW events.

Register of award holders (DChA)
A directory of finance professionals who have been awarded the Diploma in Charity Accounting. The directory is searchable by name, location and organisation.

Charity Commission

The Charity Commission is the regulator for charities in England and Wales and responsible for setting the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice, along with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.

Charity accounts, financial reporting and tax
Essential information on preparing charity annual returns, accounts and trustees' annual reports collected in one place. The listed resources include introductory guides, example accounts, document templates and technical guidance for auditors, independent examiners, trustees and those managing charity finances.

Example trustees annual reports
Example trustee reports and accounts prepared using FRS 102 and following the Charities SORP. The examples cover a company limited by guarantee and an unincorporated trust. 

Register of charities
Search for charities by keyword, classification, income range or other criteria. The register also provides access to downloadable annual reports or annual accounts for many charities, historical data and a top 50 ranking of charities by income, spending, growth and other criteria.

Charity Commission of Northern Ireland

The Charity Commission of Northern Ireland is an independent regulator responsible for setting the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice, alongside the Charity Commission and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.

It provides a suite of guidance on annual reporting providing an introduction to, and overview of, the requirements for charities. Areas covered include receipts and payments accounts, accruals accounts, annual monitoring returns, guidance for independent examiners, template examiners reports and trustees annual reports.

Financial Reporting Council (FRC)

The FRC sets the principles and procedures that external auditors in the UK and the Republic of Ireland are required to follow. The FRC has published guidance relating to charities, including:

• The Audit of Charities in the United Kingdom
  Latest version of Practice Note 11 (Revised) published in November 2017.
• Audit of Financial Statements of Public Sector Bodies in the United Kingdom (Revised)
  Practice Note 10 (Revised) published in 2022. Now issued by the Public Audit Forum, which has been designated by the FRC to issue a Statement of Recommended Practice.

HMRC

HMRC produces many resources on charities and tax, including a set of detailed guidance notes and information on Gift Aid and the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme.

Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator

The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) is an independent body responsible for setting the Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice, alongside the Charity Commission.

The regulator maintains guidance on charity accounting in Scotland, including example accounts and an online version of Scottish Charity Accounts: An updated guide to the 2006 Regulations:

• Part 1: The Overview
• Part 2: Receipts and Payments accounts
• Part 3: Fully Accrued Accounts

Other guidance 

Retention of Accounting Records
The firm Buzzacott has compiled a table showing suggested retention periods for the most commonly held documents alongside explanatory notes. Published in 2020.

Other organisations

Association of Charity Independent Examiners
Body representing independent examiners with information about the role of the organisation, membership and independent examination.

Charity Finance Group
Specialist organisation (previously the Charity Finance Directors' Group), which assists charities to manage their finance functions. The website contains details of membership and abstracts of information sheets for the charities sector.

Charity Tax Group (CTG)
A non-profit membership organisation previously known as the Charities' Tax Reform Group, which makes representations to government on issues relating to the taxation of charities. The site includes details of its campaign priorities and information on membership.

Charities Internal Audit Network (CIAN)
Supported by the Charity Commission and the Institute of Internal Auditors UK and Ireland, the aim of CIAN is to assist its members in the voluntary sector. CIAN offers a forum, latest news, training opportunities and a special interest groups section.

Croner-i Audit and Accounting Sector Guides

Croner-i publishes a Charity Sector guide that provides specialist guidance on the legal, auditing and accounting aspects of dealing with charities.

To find out more, please contact the Library enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com. Access to this resource is for ICAEW members and students only.

Further titles

• View a list of articles and books in our collection on accounting for charities
• View a list of articles and books in our collection on charity taxation

To find out how you can borrow books from the Library please see our guide to borrowing books.

You can obtain copies of articles or extracts of books and reports through our document supply service.