People set up a charity for many reasons. In fact there are already over 179,000 charities established within the UK.
There are a few different legal structures which can be used when carrying out a charity formation. However, the most common is forming a Company Limited By Guarantee. Due to the nature of charities, companies limited by shares are excluded from use in charity formation as their objects will not be purely charitable.
In order to register, the Charity Commission requires that a “Non-Profit” clause is drafted into the company’s constitution. This allows a newly formed charity to be able to demonstrate that the company’s aims are for the public benefit.
Charity Formation Service
Our Charity Formation service provides everything you need (and more) to set– up a charity company. We will do the following:
- Form the charity company for you
- Draft all the necessary documents on your behalf
- Produce the legally appropriate memorandum and articles of association including “charitable objects”
- Provide you with FREE advice and support
Charitable Company Formation from £149(+Vat)
‘For The Public Benefit’
Another requirement of starting charity is the need for the charity to be set up for the ‘public benefit’. Once again, the aims of the charity must be exclusively for the public benefit, in the same way as being exclusively charitable. Aims will not be seen as for the public benefit if they are for a specific person or persons. The test is broken down into two parts:
- The charity’s aim must have an identifiable benefit,
- The benefit must be to the public or a section of the public.
This is an open and flexible test, because what is judged as for the public benefit is subject to change over time, depending on society and changes in the economy. More guidance can be found on the charities commissions website.
Other Relevant Charity Formation
For more information on forming a charity, please take a look at the following pages: