NHS charities offered independence

In a review document the Department of Health has stated that NHS charities will be offered much greater independence from the department.

The Department of Health consulted on changes to the rules governing NHS charities in late 2012, and has now published plans for new rules in its response to the consultation, entitled Review of the regulation and governance of NHS charities.

To download the review visit www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/291848/Response_to_the_review_of_the_regulation_and_governance_of_NHS_Charities.pdf.

Around 260 charities currently exist to receive and manage charitable funds on behalf of NHS trusts, with a total annual income of around £320million and total assets of £2.2billion.

Under current rules, these organisations are bound by both charity law and NHS legislation, and the Health Secretary has the power to appoint and dismiss trustees. In all but 21 cases, the hospital trust is the sole corporate trustee of the charity. All charities are currently unincorporated and trustees have unlimited liability.

The planned new rules will allow charities to set up an independent incorporated charity and transfer assets into it, but do not require them to do so. In all cases, the process will be subject to agreement from the Department of Health.

NHS charities have previously faced controversy because changes in accounting rules, together with the level of authority held by the Health Secretary and their associated trusts, made it likely that some NHS trusts would be required to include the charities’ resources on their own balance sheets. Under the new proposals, charities are unlikely to face these issues.