Charity Commission publishes updated guidance on the external scrutiny of charity accounts
05 Sep, 2017
The Charity Commission ("CC") has today published updated guidance setting out how to carry out an independent examination of charity accounts. The updated guidance is mandatory for independent examiner reports signed and dated on or after 1 December 2017.
The guidance has been published following feedback to a June 2016 consultation and updates the CC’s previous publication that was published in June 2015.
Among other things, the updated guidance includes:
- Three new Directions that must be followed by independent examiners about:
- examiner independence (Direction 2);
- conflicts of interest and disclosure of related party transactions (Direction 7); and
- financial sustainability and going concern (Direction 9).
- A framework for the independent examination of small charity group accounts.
- An expanded range of example examiner’s reports.
- Advice on fund accounting.
- Guidance for examiners about helping charities with accounts preparation and book keeping.
Alongside the guidance the CC have also published a new checklist to help independent examiners meet all of the requirements when undertaking an examination. The updated guidance also reflects guidance published in April 2017 by the UK charity regulators for auditors and examiners about reporting matters of material significance.
The press release and updated guidance are available on the Charity Commission website.
