Strategic planning and resilience

In the current economic climate, charities need to be able to have a strategic plan which helps them deliver their mission, but also need to be anticipate future changes and challenges more than ever. Income generation, predictability and security, reserve levels and availability of resources all feed into the equation to drive their strategy but so does an awareness of the landscape in which they operate from a local, national, economic and political perspective. This session will explore some of the challenges in strategic planning, its interaction with reserves and risk and looking at building resilience into the organisation.

Helena Wilkinson, Partner, Head of Charities and NFP, Price Bailey LLP

Accounting Update

• Sorp update for revisions to FRS 102 and latest information sheet
• Implications of revised charity commission guidance – in particular, reserves presentation and accounts quality
• Relevant developments from other UK charity regulators and the FRC

Don Bawtree, National Head of Charities, BDO

Mergers

Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now merged in April this year to create the UK’s first comprehensive breast cancer charity. Jill Thompson, Chair of the merged charity gives some key insights and learnings from the recent merger, at both a board and staff level.

Jill Thompson, Chair, Breast Cancer Care and Breast Cancer Now

Tackling charity fraud – a shared responsibility

It is estimated that fraud against UK charities could be as much as £2.3bn. This means that it is important for charities of all shapes and sizes to protect their income and assets by building strong fraud defences. This session will provide an overview of the problem and the importance to taking a holistic approach to tackling it.

• Why charities should be concerned about fraud
• Overview of current and emerging threats
• Fighting fraud – whose responsibility is it?
• Why good practice in fraud risk management matters

Brendan Weekes, Trustee, Fraud Advisory Panel

Latest developments in charity VAT and direct tax including government announcements and cases

The talk will cover:
• Updated gift aid rules
• Latest HMRC policy on key charity VAT issues
• The key court decisions on the charity-specific tax and VAT issues

Graham Elliott, Director, City and Cambridge Consulting

Employee Engagement

Session details coming soon

Paul Seath, Partner, Bates Wells Braithwaite       

New World Disorder? The world is changing fast - might history reveal the future?

The peace and prosperity of the post-Cold War era has been kind to investors. The multi-trillion dollar question is: ‘what happens next?’ Big shifts in the global political economy suggest major change is afoot, and not necessarily to investors’ advantage. This seminar will be a high-level overview of the trends which have shaped the world as we know it, and the changes that we think could be significant.

Christopher Querée, Investment Director – Head of Charities, Ruffer
Alexander Chartres, Investment Director, Ruffer

Accounting Update

• Sorp update for revisions to FRS 102 and latest information sheet
• Implications of revised charity commission guidance – in particular, reserves presentation and accounts quality
• Relevant developments from other UK charity regulators and the FRC

Don Bawtree, National Head of Charities, BDO

Managing Risk

Getting to grips with risk management first hand is not always as easy as it sounds. From a Trustee’s perspective you may struggle with adequately discharging your duties as you are one step removed from the day-to-day operations and so may not always feel you have a grasp of all aspect of the charity’s operations. From the Executive view point, it can be challenging to provide sufficient information to the Trustees such that they can add value and engage in the process. Having been faced with the daunting task of being Chair of a Finance, Audit and Risk Committee and from being an internal and external auditor Stuart will share his insight and provide some useful tips in order to help navigate these issues in an informative seminar.

Stuart McKay, MHA MacIntyre Hudson

Managing Volunteers – case studies

Session details coming soon

Shaun Delaney, Volunteering Development Manager, NCVO

Latest developments in charity VAT and direct tax including government announcements and cases

The talk will cover:
• Updated gift aid rules
• Latest HMRC policy on key charity VAT issues
• The key court decisions on the charity-specific tax and VAT issues

Graham Elliott, Director, City and Cambridge Consulting

Good governance, ethics and the law

This session will examine how the Charity Ethical Principles, issued by NCVO in January 2019, sit alongside the recommended practices in the Charities Governance Code and requirements set by the Charity Commission. The challenges for charities (and the advisors who work with them) in aiming to meet standards that are higher than those required by law will be examined. The session will also include practical tips for how charities may demonstrate the value they place on high ethical standards in furthering their charitable mission.

Elizabeth Jones, Partner, Farrer & Co