New regulations come into force in Scotland on 1 November 2012 that allow charities to apply to the charity regulator to unlock funds that cannot currently be used because of outdated restrictions.
David Robb, chief executive of the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) (pictured left) writes in his latest bulletin:
“From Thursday, charities will have access to a new means of freeing up funds for charitable purposes.
“The new measures could see millions of pounds of assets being made available to the benefit of the sector, and we’ve prepared new guidance and application forms in readiness.
“Restricted funds are assets which someone has given to a charity with certain conditions applying to their use. Examples are:
A charity receiving £2,000 for the purchase of hymn books: the donation is a restricted fund
A charity holding a collection to raise funds to buy a stair lift: all the funds received as part of this collection would be restricted to this purchase
A charity receiving a legacy which states that it must be used for maintaining a building: all income from this legacy would be restricted to this maintenance
A playgroup receiving funding for a ‘healthy eating’ initiative from the local authority: the funding must be used to carry out the initiative
“The Scottish Government has also made some changes to the Regulations governing the reorganisation of charities. In addition to our guidance, we’ve updated the information on our website: find out more here.”
To read the small print and legalese in the new regulations, click HERE.