Charities update course - what's new?

Member price for sessions booked individually: £50 + VAT
Non-member price for sessions booked individually: £60 + VAT

Course format

This online course will consist of three one hour webinars hosted by Scott Jeffrey, a member of the ICAS Charities Panel, with a variety of guest speakers. Each will cover different topics and will be held at different times to ensure maximum flexibility for those wanting to attend. The webinars will be a mixture of live presentations and videos, as well as a Q&A session to maximise participation.

You can choose to book all three sessions together, or book individual sessions.

Dates and timings

2021 dates to be announced

Overview

The course is designed to be both informative and practical, and is an excellent opportunity to keep your knowledge up-to-date with the latest developments in charity reporting and the wider regulatory environment.

Charities operate in a fast-moving and changing environment, and this course is designed to assist participants prepare for the challenges ahead.

Who should attend

This annual update is designed to equip charity trustees, finance staff and advisers with what they need to know about developments impacting on charities.

What you will learn

Session 1: Legal and Governance & risk management updates

The topic of good governance and risk management has never been as important as it is today, from revisiting risk assessments to ensuring policies and procedures remain fit for purpose in the Covid-19 era. This webinar will also provide a legal update on charity-related matters and a reminder of trustees’ responsibilities in this ever-changing world. Changes to the ways we operate will also mean potential changes to how annual general meetings and board meetings are conducted.

• Legal update
  • Trustees responsibilities re insolvency rules/duties
  • Holding AGM’s and other Board meetings in a virtual World (as above)
  • Employment law matters
  • Meeting safeguarding duties in changed times
• Governance / risk management

Session 2: Technical updates - accounting, audit, independent examination, ICAS monitoring findings and anti-money laundering

As you would expect from the course, there will be a technical update on accounting, audit and taxation matters. This will include discussing the challenges of undertaking an audit or independent examination in the current environment. The going concern basis has risen to the top of many charities’ agendas, and we will discuss what trustees should be doing, and also what challenge they should expect from their auditor or independent examiner. In addition, there will be a session on the findings from the ICAS monitoring reviews and a look at setting a robust and realistic reserves policy.

• ICAS monitoring findings/ ICAS Update
• Audit / IE challenges
• Technical Update
  • Going concern
  • Reserves policy
  • Consistency with the trustees’ annual report
  • Financial management / cashflow projections / budgets

Session 3: Charity taxation and an update from the Regulator

We will be hearing from OSCR on what they are seeing in the charity sector during these unprecedented times. There will also be discussion around the sector hot topics, and an update on the formation of the new SORP Committee.

• Message from the Regulator – OSCR / CC
  • SORP making body update
  • Hot topics for the sector
• Tax update / Government support packages