What's the point of Community Interest Companies?
Julian Lomas
With around 30,000 Community Interest Companies now on the register, and continued growth in registrations , this short article asks, “what is the point of a CIC?”.
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Stay up to date with developments in the sector and our latest thinking on issues affecting charities and social enterprises.
Charity Commission Annual Return: What is the regulator really interested in?
Julian Lomas
The Charity Commission has published the new set of questions it will be asking charities in their annual return from 1 January 2023 but what does this tell us about what the regulator is concerned about?
Read MoreTop fundraising tips for tough times
Julian Lomas
What can charities do to maximise fundraising in difficult times. We offer a few ideas in this short article.
Read MoreWishing you a peaceful Christmas and New Year
Julian Lomas
We wish all our clients, and everyone working to sustain vital charity services, a restful and peaceful Christmas and New Year and look forward to working with you in 2023
Read MoreWhat tax reliefs do charities get?
Julian Lomas
The subject of charities and tax can be hard to navigate. While we cannot offer formal tax advice, we hope this article provides some useful pointers on charity tax matters.
Read MoreCharity Trustees's safeguarding responsibilities
Julian Lomas
The Charity Commission is getting more and more involved in making sure that safeguarding in charities is led by Trustees. This short article explores what this means in practice for small charities.
Read MoreBuilding effective partnerships between charities and businesses
Julian Lomas
Effective partnerships between charities and business can and should be about so much more than money or in kind donations. This article explore a range of options for enriching and sustaining these partnerships.
Read MoreHow safe is your charity from fraud?
Julian Lomas
Every charity and not-for-profit is susceptible to fraud and cybercrime by criminals exploiting the current global crisis. Is your charity doing enough to protect itself from these risks?
Read MoreTrustees week: 7-11 November 2022
Julian Lomas
Trustees Week is an annual celebration of trustees and everything they contribute to charities. This year the theme is making a difference in changing times. Ongoing learning and development for Trustees is essential and Trustees week provides a good way for Trustees to do just that.
How many directors should a CIC or other company have?
Julian Lomas
Many small companies, including small Community Interest Companies (CICs) have a small number of Directors, but what is the “legal minimum”?
Read MoreCost of living squeeze on charity giving
Julian Lomas
This short article explores in a little more depth the impacts of the cost of living crisis on charity giving and what charities might be able to do to respond.
Read MoreWhy delegated authorities and financial controls matter for charities
Julian Lomas
Robust (and proportionate) financial controls and delegated authorities policies are essential for protecting your charity, its Trustees, staff and volunteers but many small and even medium sized charities don’t have them in place. This short article explain why these policies are so important.
Read MoreCovid-19 mission drift amongst small and medium sized charities
Julian Lomas
While the pandemic has been a tough time for many charities, others have been hugely successful in winning new funding and work over the last two years. Has this resulted in mission drift for those charities and is a course correction now needed for some?
Read MoreTrends in charity fundraising
Julian Lomas
This short article explores some emerging trends in charity fundraising following the volatility of the last two years during the pandemic, particularly in individual giving and grants from trusts and foundations.
Read MoreDo your charity Trustees understand their duties?
Julian Lomas
Do your Trustees understand their legal duties? Our experience is that in small charities they often don’t and this can lead to problems. This article provides a simple synopsis of charity Trustee duties..
Read MoreData protection changes that will make charity fundraising easier
Julian Lomas
4 years on from GDPR and new Data Protection legislation is in the offing. What will this mean for charities and fundraising in particular?
Read MoreWhy governance health checks are important for all charities.
Julian Lomas
With continued concern about the governance of charities clear to see in the press and Charity Commission publications, this short articles explores why all charities should regularly review the health of their governance arrangements.
Read MoreOur Corporate Social Responsibility accreditation
Julian Lomas
We are delighted that Almond Tree Strategic Consulting’s long-standing commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has recently been recognised through renewal of our CSR Accreditation, this time at the Gold award level.
Read MoreCharities Act 2022: what does it mean for small charities?
Julian Lomas
The Charities Act 2022 became law in February 2022 and the Government has recently published its implementation plan for the new Act. But what will it mean for small charities?
Read MoreSupporting small charities and social enterprises: a perspective from Clarion Futures
Julian Lomas
In the third blog in our series we reflects from Emma Hale, Grants Manager at Clarion Futures on the work we have been doing with their partners since late 2020 and the impacts of their Recovery and Resilience Programme on both the foundation and their partners.
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