What you are trying to do
You have inherited the job of getting the annual return filed. It might be the first year you have looked at it, or the previous treasurer may have left a folder with half a set of accounts, a few bank statements and a note that says "Charities Online, password in the drawer".
What you need is simple to describe. You want to file on time, with figures the trustees have signed off, and without a letter from the regulator asking why the numbers do not match the bank. Most people in this seat are not accountants. A village hall treasurer, a church-based food bank treasurer and the volunteer who keeps the books for a youth group all end up in the same place: the evening before the deadline, with a spreadsheet that has three versions of the same total.
The good news is that the return is mostly a matter of getting the year's money in order first. Once the cash book reconciles and the income and expenditure figures are settled, the filing itself is a series of boxes to fill in.
The UK rules in plain English
The rules depend on where your charity is registered.
- England and Wales: the Charity Commission receives the charity commission annual return. It is filed online and goes with your annual accounts and trustee annual report.
- Scotland: the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) handles returns and accounts.
- Northern Ireland: the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (CCNI) does this job.
What you have to send depends on your income for the year. The Commission sets income thresholds, and each band brings different requirements, including whether the accounts need to be independently examined or audited. Those thresholds and rules change from time to time, so check the current guidance on GOV.UK and the regulator's website for your country before you start. Do not rely on a figure from a forum post or an old handover note.
In general, a few things hold across all three regulators:
- The accounts are signed off by the trustees before they are filed. Keep the minute or signed record that shows this.
- The return asks for summary financial figures, a description of what the charity did, and details of trustees and contacts. Have the trustee list and contact details to hand before you log in.
- Filing has a deadline, usually within ten months of the financial year end for England and Wales. Confirm the date for your own year end and your regulator.
- The records behind the figures should be kept for as long as the regulator and your governing document require. Ask the chair what your charity's policy says.
This is general information for volunteer treasurers, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Your trustees are responsible for the filing, and the current guidance from your regulator is the authority on what you must send.
How Vasker helps with the return
Vasker is bookkeeping software for unpaid treasurers. It does not file the annual return for you. You still log in to the regulator's service and submit it yourself. What Vasker can do is get the figures ready so that you are not rebuilding the year from bank statements in the last week.
In practice, that means:
- A cash book that reconciles to the bank. Each transaction sits against a fund, so restricted money is kept separate from general funds. When the bank balance and the cash book agree, the closing position is much easier to state with confidence.
- Income and expenditure with a prior-year comparison. The committee and trustees can see how this year compares with last year, which is the question most often asked at the AGM and by the trustees signing the accounts.
- Annual return figures laid out for copying across. The summary numbers are in one place, so you are transferring figures rather than hunting for them.
- Year-end packs. An examiner ZIP for the independent examiner, and a handover ZIP for whoever takes the role next. The handover pack matters if the return falls in the first months of a new treasurer's term.
Vasker's year-end figures are a working tool. They help you prepare the return. They do not tell you whether your figures are right in the Commission's eyes, and they do not guarantee that an examiner will raise no findings.
Next step
If you want to see how the figures look for your own organisation, you can create your free account and set up the starter cash book with one fund. There is no sales call and no setup fee. The free plan is enough to get your transactions into order before you decide whether you need the full books and reports.
Before you file, check the current thresholds, deadlines and examination rules on the GOV.UK or regulator pages for your country. The return is your trustees' responsibility, and the regulator's guidance is the reference for what it must contain.