Use this page to learn about the updated conditions in the Charities Act 2016 related to trustee disqualification.
The Charities (Protection and Social Investment) Act 2016 includes a wider range of offences, and some other circumstances, which trigger disqualification – these reflect the changes in the updated Act from 2016. These are:
Some cases apart from criminal offences are also covered under the 2016 rules.
Charities are required to have a set of systems in place to monitor disqualification in their organisation and must understand what action to take if a trustee or member of staff becomes disqualified.
The Charity Commission has developed a declaration form that trustees and senior managers can sign to declare that they are not disqualified.
As well as receiving signed declarations, charities should also check any relevant official registers which record the names of people disqualified from acting as charity trustees:
A charity with a senior manager should review relevant job or consultancy contracts to decide whether it’s protected if the post holder is disqualified. You may need legal advice about this. For most charities, this is likely to be all that’s required.
If you do have a trustee or member of staff who will become disqualified, they must either:
You may need legal advice if a senior manager becomes disqualified and either doesn’t seek a waiver or is refused one – especially when it’s to do with employment rights.
Last reviewed: 28 June 2022
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