Corporate report

Charity Commission Business Plan 2024 to 2025

Published 24 May 2024

Applies to England and Wales

Introduction

April 2024 marked the start of a new five-year strategic period for the Charity Commission. This business plan sets out what we will do in the first year of that strategy towards achieving our aim to be an expert Charity Commission that is fair, balanced and independent.

Our business plan for 2024-25 is shaped around our five strategic priorities, through which we will:

• be fair and proportionate in our work and clear about our role
• support charities to get it right but take robust action where we see wrongdoing and harm
• speak with authority and credibility, free from the influence of others
• embrace technological innovation and strengthen how we use our data
• be the expert Commission - where our people are empowered and enabled to deliver excellence in regulation

Our Priorities

Priority 1 – We will be clear about our role and fair and proportionate in our work

We will continue to refine our processes so that we focus on those issues that pose the greatest risk to the sector, ensuring these are handled consistently and that we reach the right outcomes. In parallel, we will pursue opportunities to increase the efficiency, quality and effectiveness of our casework processes and systems.

We will update our Regulatory and Risk Framework to provide clarity to the public on the Commission’s role and remit. We will ensure external understanding of our regulatory process is clear, particularly how we identify and assess risks and how we make fair and accurate decisions on the regulatory action we take.

We will take further steps to improve our communications with customers, ensuring we strike the right balance between being friendly and firm, reflecting the circumstances, while ongoing training and a focus on quality will lead to better customer experiences.

Priority 2 – We will support charities to get it right but take robust action where we see wrongdoing and harm

We will continue to publish improved trustee guidance that is easier to navigate and understand, further encouraging trustees to come to the Charity Commission as a valued source of support. This new guidance will help to improve governance and ultimately reduce problems.

Our programme of improvements to My Charity Commission Account (MCCA) will focus on delivering a better customer journey, as we work to onboard remaining charities onto the system.

We will run a pilot engagement exercise with a sample of new trustees to support them in taking on their responsibilities when joining or establishing a charity. A sample of trustees will receive a series of supportive emails throughout their first 12 months, pointing to our online guidance and support and providing insight to guide planning for future phases of MCCA.

Working closely with relevant stakeholders, we will continue to highlight the benefits a culture of philanthropic giving can deliver for charities, and the role of effective regulation in enabling philanthropists to give with confidence.

We will track and report our use of powers to address serious wrongdoing and harm, providing assurance that the Commission is deploying these effectively in those cases where robust action is required to protect people, assets and the charity. Service delivery will be measured against agreed operational performance standards.

Priority 3 – We will speak with authority and credibility, free from the influence of others

A new Communications Strategy will help bring our work to life and improve the way we engage with trustees, the public and stakeholders. Over time, we will achieve greater awareness and impact amongst our key audiences.

As part of this, our ongoing campaigns will support trustees and the public. Through our campaigns the public will be supported to give with confidence, making safer and more informed choices about the charities they support. This will contribute towards increased trust and confidence both in the wider Charity sector and the Commission Across the sector, trustees’ understanding of their responsiblities will improve, contributing to a longer-term reduction in unintentional harms caused by poor governance.

We will further improve how we measure public and trustee perspectives of charity as well as how we measure the Commission’s impact. This will allow us to better evaluate the effectiveness of our interventions.

The Commission will ensure it is ready for a General Election, to ensure consistent handling of casework and communications and ensure our staff have the information they need. We will also provide guidance to charities as they prepare for and navigate the general election period.

The Commission will share more of the data that it collects routinely, to provide commentary on key regulatory actions and trends, as well as making information about charities more accessible, building on the programme of quarterly releases commenced last year.

Priority 4 - We will embrace technological innovation and strengthen how we use our data

We will develop a five-year Information Strategy that sets out our data, information, technology and digital ambitions, with an underpinning aim of supporting the Commission to deliver its 2024-2029 Strategy.

Supporting this, we will deliver agreed priorities in an IT Roadmap, with the primary focus being on consolidating and driving continuous improvements to our services. This will ensure that our people have the tools they need and that our systems are accessible and reliable for those who engage with us.

We will aim to standardise how we capture information across the organisation, so that we are optimising the operational and strategic value of our data and further strengthening the Commission’s compliance with data protection requirements.   

Following significant changes to the question set for 2023, we will consolidate these in the service for 2024 Annual Returns, , and meanwhile work on improvements to the user experience for the 2025 Return.

We will engage with other parts of government to make further progress towards the future digitalisation of accounts. And we will continue to work on upcoming changes to the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP), expected to take effect in January 2026.

Priority 5 – We will be the expert Commission, where our people are empowered and enabled to deliver excellence in regulation

We will complete a review of our performance management approach ensuring that it is effective at supporting our people to deliver our strategic priorities and values.

We will explore how our people can develop their knowledge, skills and experience as part of a professional framework.