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  • Pension Contribution Rate Changes

    Related imageMinimum Contribution Rates for Workplace Pensions are changing

    This table shows the minimum contributions you must pay and the date when they must increase

    Date Employer minimum contribution Staff contribution Total minimum contribution
    Until 5 April 2018 1% 1% 2%
    6 April 2018 to 5 April 2019 2% 3% 5%
    6 April 2019 onwards 3% 5% 8%

    More information can be found here, including a letter template to send to staff

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  • Time Off for Family and Dependants

    Related imageYour rights – As an employee you’re allowed time off to deal with an emergency involving a dependant.  A dependant could be a spouse, partner, child, grandchild, parent, or someone who depends on you for care.

    How much you get – You’re allowed a reasonable amount of time off to deal with the emergency, but there’s no set amount of time as it depends on the situation.  Example – If your child falls ill you could take time off to go to the doctor and make care arrangements.  Your employer may then ask you to take annual leave or parental leave if you want to look after your child for longer.  Tell your employer as soon as possible how much time you’ll need so it can be agreed.

    Limits on time off – There are no limits on how many times you can take time off for dependants.  Your employer may want to talk to you if they think time off is affecting your work.

    Pay – Your employer may pay you for time off to look after dependants but they don’t have to.  Check your contract, company handbook or intranet site to see if there are rules about this.

    Exceptions – You can’t have time off if you knew about a situation beforehand.  For example you wouldn’t be covered if you wanted to take your child to hospital for an appointment. You might get parental leave instead.  Check your employment status to see if you’re classed as an ‘employee’.

    Compassionate leave – If you aren’t given time off for dependants, your employer may allow you ‘compassionate leave’ – this can be paid or unpaid leave for emergency situations.  Check your employment contract, company handbook or intranet for details about compassionate leave.

    You can find more details here

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  • Company Tax Returns

    Image result for charity company tax returnCompany Tax Returns

    You must complete a Company Tax Return if your charity is a limited company or unincorporated association when this is required by HM Revenue and Customs. You need to include the supplementary pages for charities and community amateur sports clubs (CASCs).

    A charity is a limited company if it was set up by a:

    • constitution
    • memorandum and articles of association
    • royal charter or Act of Parliament

    Limited companies must also send annual accounts to Companies House. You must complete a tax return when HMRC asks you to, even if no tax is due. You may have to pay a penalty if your tax return is late or you don’t complete one when you should.

    You can find more information about charities and tax here

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  • Pay Rates for Apprentices

    guilds3If you become an apprentice, you will be paid during your during your apprenticeship.  You’re entitled to the National Minimum Wage.

    The current minimum wage rate for an apprentice is £3.50 per hour (rising to £3.70 in April 2018)

    This rate applies to apprentices under 19 and those aged 19 or over who are in their first year.

    You must be paid at least the minimum wage rate for your age if you’re an apprentice aged 19 or over and have completed your first year.

    Year 21 to 24 18 to 20 Under 18 Apprentice
    April 2017 (current) £7.05 £5.60 £4.05 £3.50
     From April 2018 £7.38 £5.90 £4.20 £3.70

    You can find more about apprentice pay and conditions here

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  • How to remove a trustee from the board

    IntegrityCheck your charity’s governing document to see if it has a procedure for removing trustees.

    You usually need a good reason to remove a trustee, such as if they have done something that damages your charity’s reputation.

    If your charity is a company, you have the right to remove a director, providing you follow the correct procedures. You have this right under the Companies Act 2006, regardless of what else is written in your articles of association.

    You can hold a vote of no confidence to encourage someone to resign as a trustee. This could be part of your charity’s rules for removing a trustee, or written into its governing document. If it isn’t part of your charity’s rules, the vote has no legal power and the trustee won’t have to resign.

    More details can be found here

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  • Why is a reserves policy important?

    A Reserves Policy explains to existing and potential funders, donors, beneficiaries and other stakeholders why a charity is holding a particular amount of reserves.

    A good reserves policy gives confidence to stakeholders that the charity’s finances are being properly managed and will also provide an indicator of future funding needs and its overall resilience.

    The Charities SORP requires a statement of a charity’s reserves policy within its annual report. In addition, if a charity operates without a reserves policy, the regulations require this fact to be stated in the annual report.

    You can find out much more here

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  • Changing Your Charity’s Governing Document

    Change your charity’s governing document

    You can apply to change your charity’s governing document. 

    Before you start

    You must:

    You’ll need:

    • details of the changes you want to make
    • reasons for the changes
    • the date the changes were accepted by Companies House, if your charity is a company and you already have consent from the Charity Commission

    You may be asked to upload your governing document as a PDF as part of the online application.

    More detailed information can be found here

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  • National Minimum Wage Changes

    The hourly rate for the minimum wage depends on your age and whether you’re an apprentice.

    You must be at least:

    • school leaving age to get the National Minimum Wage
    • aged 25 to get the National Living Wage – the minimum wage will still apply for workers aged 24 and under

    These rates are for the National Living Wage and the National Minimum Wage. The rates change every April.

    Year 25 and over 21 to 24 18 to 20 Under 18 Apprentice
    April 2017 (current) £7.50 £7.05 £5.60 £4.05 £3.50
    April 2018 £7.83 £7.38 £5.90 £4.20 £3.70

    More detailed information can be found here

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  • Updating Your Tax Code

    You may be put on an emergency tax code if you change jobs. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will correct it automatically after you’ve given your employer details of your previous income or pension.

    Your employer will get these details from your P45 – if you don’t have one, they should ask you for further information.

    HMRC will also update your tax code when:

    After your tax code changes

    HMRC will adjust your tax code so you pay the right amount of tax across the year. They’ll write to you or email you when your tax code has been updated.

    They will also tell your employer or pension provider that your tax code has changed. Your next payslip should show:

    • your new tax code
    • adjustments to your pay if you were paying the wrong amount of tax

    Find out more here

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  • Charity Registration

    When to apply to register your charity

    Usually, you must register with the Charity Commission if your charity is based in England or Wales and has over £5,000 income per year.  The commission will take action to secure compliance if it identifies a charity which isn’t registered but should be.

    If your charity is a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) it must register whatever its income.

    Charities that don’t have to register

    Small unincorporated charities

    If your charity is based in England and Wales and isn’t a CIO, you don’t have to apply to register it if its annual income is less than £5,000.  But you can still apply to HM Revenue and Customs for recognition as a charity to get charity tax breaks and claim gift aid.

    You can apply to the commission to register this sort of charity voluntarily, but the commission will only consider applications in exceptional circumstances.  For example, if you can prove that your charity has been offered significant funds but has to provide a registered charity number before it can receive the funds.

    More details can be found here

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