Updates

The Future of Charity Accounting
In January 2012, the Accounting Standards Board issued new exposure drafts of new financial reporting standards. They have significantly revised their approach to financial reporting for companies as well as charities. The consultation period for these standards is until the end of April 2012 with a planned implementation date of 1 January 2015. A helpful summary of the changes is available from the ASB website.  
 
International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) will remain for large global companies but small and medium companies including charities will not have to use them. Instead, they will be able to use the Financial Reporting Standard which will replace all UK GAAP. This is based on the IFRS for SMEs and the new document is called FRED 48 and can be downloaded from the ASB website. The FRSSE is also being retained for entities that qualify as small companies.
 
The charity SORP will be revised to reflect these new standards and the plan is to produce core guidance that applies to all charities (such as fund accounting) and then modules for both FRS and FRSSE categories. An individual charity will choose the appropriate set of modules having made the decision on which set of regulations they wish to follow. The only choice is available to small charities, which may choose to move up to the FRS.
 
The SORPs for housing associations and higher education will also be updated to reflect the new FRS.

It is likely that a revised charity SORP will be issued for consultation in late 2012 for implementation 1 January 2015. We shall provide support, guidance and training for all our clients in plenty of time for this. Sayer Vincent will be updating our clients on developments and will be running a number of seminars and training events once the position is confirmed.
 

So, who needs an IT strategy anyway? Iain Pritchard, Sayer Vincent's IT partner explains why a good IT strategy is important and gives examples of the questions a good IT strategy will help answer.

 Reporting and Financial Management is the text of the talk given by Kate Sayer at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in London on 31 October to mark Trustees' Week. It looks at the financial strategy your charity should consider in times of change and linking it to risk assessment and reserves policies.

Budgeting in uncertain times Text of speech given by Kate Sayer to CFDG London members’ meeting on 11 October 2011

Anti-Bribery Principles and Guidance for NGOs A document created by a working group established by BOND on developing a set of principles and guidance to help NGOs develop anti-bribery measures.

How to correct a VAT return walks you through what to do if you discover you have made a mistake in a past VAT return, and whether you should make a disclosure to HMRC.

Penalties for incorrect VAT returns summarises the penalties that HMRC can charge if you make a mistake in a past VAT return and explains the meaning behind reasonable care, careless, deliberate and concealed.

Charity data 2011/12 - An easy to follow summary of the latest tax and allowances for the financial period 2011-12. This includes important tax return and accounts filing deadlines and audit exemptions.

The Bribery Act 2010 is effective from 1 July 2011. This guide summarises the key ways in which this Act affects charities and the principles on which organisations should decide how to manage their procedures to prevent accusations of bribery being committed on their behalf.

Assessing grant applications: beyond the balance sheet looks at the aspects to bring into your grant assessment that go beyond a simple review of the financial accounts, considering people-based perspectives as well. It also looks at how you might define the extent of the assessment you choose to do

Protecting credit card data - Quick guide to PCI-DSS Does your organisation process or store credit card data? The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) exists to reduce credit card fraud. Make sure that you are, and stay, compliant.

Budget 2011 summary The key points relevant for charities and social enterprises from the 2011 budget are in this guide. These include changes to charitable giving, tax simplification, VAT and personal taxes.

Fresh ways to approach risk management When it was first introduced, the process of assessing risks had real benefits. It helped to prioritise management actions and involved trustees in key strategic thinking. However, several years on, organisations are reporting that they are still finding it difficult to embed risk management. So it may be that your organisation needs to refresh its approach.

Summary financial information If you want to publish a summary of your accounts online or in a review, then find out what the rules are by looking at this guide.

New VAT rules from 1 January 2010 Important changes came into force on 1 January 2010 which mean that you have to apply the reverse charge mechanism (i.e. charge yourself VAT) when you buy in services from the EU or outside the EU.

Fresh ideas on the management of IT Text of speech by Kate Sayer to the Charity IT Conference on 11 November 2009

Getting investment for IT Article published in Civil Society IT June 2009

 

Events and training

Check the latest update seminars

Forums provide the opportunity to discuss the latest topics and have their own website pages which you can access once you are a member of that Forum

Audit and consultancy clients of Sayer Vincent can access the Client Forum for further updates, information