Charities Act 1993 (repealed)

Local charities E+W+S

76 Local authority’s index of local charities. E+W

(1) The council of a county [F1 or county borough] or of a district or London borough and the Common Council of the City of London may maintain an index of local charities or of any class of local charities in the council’s area, and may publish information contained in the index, or summaries or extracts taken from it.

(2) A council proposing to establish or maintaining under this section an index of local charities or of any class of local charities shall, on request, be supplied by the Commissioners free of charge with copies of such entries in the register of charities as are relevant to the index or with particulars of any changes in the entries of which copies have been supplied before; and the Commissioners may arrange that they will without further request supply a council with particulars of any such changes.

(3) An index maintained under this section shall be open to public inspection at all reasonable times.

(4) A council may employ any voluntary organisation as their agent for the purposes of this section, on such terms and within such limits (if any) or in such cases as they may agree; and for this purpose “voluntary organisation” means any body of which the activities are carried on otherwise than for profit, not being a public or local authority.

(5) A joint board discharging any of a council’s functions shall have the same powers under this section as the council as respects local charities in the council’s area which are established for purposes similar or complementary to any services provided by the board.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 76(1) inserted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(1) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 para. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Ss. 76-78 extended (with modifications) (19.9.1995) by 1995 c. 25, ss. 70, 125(2), Sch. 9 para. 15 (with ss. 7(6), 115, 117, Sch. 8 para. 7)

77 Reviews of local charities by local authority. E+W

(1) The council of a county [F2 or county borough]or of a district or London borough and the Common Council of the City of London may, subject to the following provisions of this section, initiate, and carry out in co-operation with the charity trustees, a review of the working of any group of local charities with the same or similar purposes in the council’s area, and may make to the Commissioners such report on the review and such recommendations arising from it as the council after consultation with the trustees think fit.

(2) A council having power to initiate reviews under this section may co-operate with other persons in any review by them of the working of local charities in the council’s area (with or without other charities), or may join with other persons in initiating and carrying out such a review.

(3) No review initiated by a council under this section shall extend to any charity without the consent of the charity trustees, nor to any ecclesiastical charity.

(4) No review initiated under this section by the council of a district shall extend to the working in any county of a local charity established for purposes similar or complementary to any services provided by county councils unless the review so extends with the consent of the council of that county.

[F3 (4A) Subsection (4) above does not apply in relation to Wales.]

(5) Subsections (4) and (5) of section 76 above shall apply for the purposes of this section as they apply for the purposes of that section.

Textual Amendments

F2 Words in s. 77(1) inserted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(2) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

F3 S. 77(4A) inserted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(2) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C2 Ss. 76-78 extended (with modifications) (19.9.1995) by 1995 c. 48, ss. 70, 125(2), Sch. 9 para. 15 (with ss. 7(6), 115, 117, Sch. 8 para. 7)

78 Co-operation between charities, and between charities and local authorities. E+W

(1) Any local council and any joint board discharging any functions of such a council—

(a) may make, with any charity established for purposes similar or complementary to services provided by the council or board, arrangements for co-ordinating the activities of the council or board and those of the charity in the interests of persons who may benefit from those services or from the charity; and

(b) shall be at liberty to disclose to any such charity in the interests of those persons any information obtained in connection with the services provided by the council or board, whether or not arrangements have been made with the charity under this subsection.

In this subsection “local council” means [F4 , in relation to England,] the council of a county, or of a district, London borough, [F5 or parish], and includes also the Common Council of the City of London and the Council of the Isles of Scilly [F6 and, in relation to Wales, the council of a county, county borough or community].

(2) Charity trustees shall, notwithstanding anything in the trusts of the charity, have power by virtue of this subsection to do all or any of the following things, where it appears to them likely to promote or make more effective the work of the charity, and may defray the expense of so doing out of any income or money applicable as income of the charity, that is to say—

(a) they may co-operate in any review undertaken under section 77 above or otherwise of the working of charities or any class of charities;

(b) they may make arrangements with an authority acting under subsection (1) above or with another charity for co-ordinating their activities and those of the authority or of the other charity;

(c) they may publish information of other charities with a view to bringing them to the notice of those for whose benefit they are intended.

Textual Amendments

F4 Words in s. 78(1) inserted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(3)(a) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

F5 Words in s. 78(1) substituted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(3)(b) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

F6 Words in s. 78(1) added (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(3)(c) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C3 S. 78 extended (with modifications) (19.9.1995) by 1995 c. 48, ss. 70, 125(2), Sch. 9 para. 15 (with Sch. 8 para. 7)

79 Parochial charities. E+W

(1) Where trustees hold any property for the purposes of a public recreation ground, or of allotments (whether under inclosure Acts or otherwise), for the benefit of inhabitants of a parish having a parish council, or for other charitable purposes connected with such a parish, except for an ecclesiastical charity, they may with the approval of the Commissioners and with the consent of the parish council transfer the property to the parish council or to persons appointed by the parish council; and the council or their appointees shall hold the property on the same trusts and subject to the same conditions as the trustees did.

This subsection shall apply to property held for any public purposes as it applies to property held for charitable purposes.

(2) Where the charity trustees of a parochial charity in a parish, not being an ecclesiastical charity nor a charity founded within the preceding forty years, do not include persons elected by the local government electors, ratepayers or inhabitants of the parish or appointed by the parish council or parish meeting, the parish council or parish meeting may appoint additional charity trustees, to such number as the Commissioners may allow; and if there is a sole charity trustee not elected or appointed as aforesaid of any such charity, the number of the charity trustees may, with the approval of the Commissioners, be increased to three of whom one may be nominated by the person holding the office of the sole trustee and one by the parish council or parish meeting.

(3) Where, under the trusts of a charity other than an ecclesiastical charity, the inhabitants of a rural parish (whether in vestry or not) or a select vestry were formerly (in 1894) entitled to appoint charity trustees for, or trustees or beneficiaries of, the charity, then—

(a) in a parish having a parish council, the appointment shall be made by the parish council or, in the case of beneficiaries, by persons appointed by the parish council; and

(b) in a parish not having a parish council, the appointment shall be made by the parish meeting.

(4) Where overseers as such or, except in the case of an ecclesiastical charity, churchwardens as such were formerly (in 1894) charity trustees of or trustees for a parochial charity in a rural parish, either alone or jointly with other persons, then instead of the former overseer or church warden trustees there shall be trustees (to a number not greater than that of the former overseer or churchwarden trustees) appointed by the parish council or, if there is no parish council, by the parish meeting.

(5) Where, outside Greater London (other than the outer London boroughs), overseers of a parish as such were formerly (in 1927) charity trustees of or trustees for any charity, either alone or jointly with other persons, then instead of the former overseer trustees there shall be trustees (to a number not greater than that of the former overseer trustees) appointed by the parish council or, if there is no parish council, by the parish meeting.

(6) In the case of an urban parish existing immediately before the passing of the M1 Local Government Act 1972 which after 1st April 1974 is not comprised in a parish, the power of appointment under subsection (5) above shall be exercisable by the district council.

(7) In the application of the foregoing provisions of this section to Wales—

(a) for references in subsections (1) and (2) to a parish or a parish council there shall be substituted respectively references to a community or a community council;

(b) for references in subsections (3)(a) and (b) to a parish, a parish council or a parish meeting there shall be substituted respectively references to a community, a community council or the [F7 council of the county or (as the case may be) county borough];

(c) for references in subsections (4) and (5) to a parish council or a parish meeting there shall be substituted respectively references to a community council or the [F7 council of the county or (as the case may be) county borough].

(8) Any appointment of a charity trustee or trustee for a charity which is made by virtue of this section shall be for a term of four years, and a retiring trustee shall be eligible for re-appointment but—

(a) on an appointment under subsection (2) above, where no previous appointments have been made by virtue of that subsection or of the corresponding provision of the M2 Local Government Act 1894 or the M3 Charities Act 1960, and more than one trustee is appointed, half of those appointed (or as nearly as may be) shall be appointed for a term of two years; and

(b) an appointment made to fill a casual vacancy shall be for the remainder of the term of the previous appointment.

[F8 (9) This section shall not affect the trusteeship, control or management of any voluntary or grant-maintained school within the meaning of the Education Act 1996.]

(10) The provisions of this section shall not extend to the Isles of Scilly, and shall have effect subject to any order (including any future order) made under any enactment relating to local government with respect to local government areas or the powers of local authorities.

(11) In this section the expression “formerly (in 1894)” relates to the period immediately before the passing of the Local Government Act 1894, and the expression “formerly (in 1927)” to the period immediately before 1st April 1927; and the word “former” shall be construed accordingly.

Textual Amendments

F7 Words in s. 79(b)(c) substituted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 66(6), Sch. 16 para. 101(4) (with ss. 54(5)(7), 55(5), Sch. 17 paras. 22(1), 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

F8 S. 79(9) substituted (1.11.1996) by 1996 c. 56, ss. 582(1), 583(2), Sch. 37 Pt. I para. 119 (with s. 1(4), Sch. 39)

Marginal Citations

M1 1972 c. 70.

M2 1894 c. 73.

M3 1960 c. 58.