Sector Specialism

Accountancy for Charity & Not-for-Profit Bookkeeping

Bookkeeping, fund tracking, payroll, and accounts preparation for small charities and not-for-profit organisations - framed around the realities of trustee oversight. AAT Licensed Practice. Tier 3 and Tier 4 services.

Tier 3+4
AAT Licensed Practice
Funds
Restricted vs unrestricted ledger
PAYE
Charity staff payroll
AAT
Qualified and licensed

Small charities punch above their weight when the bookkeeping carries the trustee report on its own - not the other way round

Smaller charities and not-for-profits often sit below the statutory audit and independent examination thresholds. What they need is bookkeeping that respects restricted and unrestricted funds at ledger level, payroll for paid staff (where applicable), VAT (where relevant reliefs apply), and an end-of-year set of accounts the trustees can sign off with confidence and that satisfies the Charity Commission’s filing obligations for the size of charity.

S.K.E. Accountancy works with smaller charities on the bookkeeping, payroll, and accounts preparation that supports trustee reporting. The practice has direct prior experience of charity bookkeeping - coding income against funds, separating donations from grants, and reconciling at month-end so the trustee report is produced from clean data, not Excel reconstructions.

Working as an AAT Licensed Practice means we stay strictly inside the services we are licensed to provide. Independent examination, statutory audit, and corporation tax (for trading subsidiaries) are not in our current scope - we will refer you to an appropriately licensed firm for those.

Where charity and not-for-profit businesses need bookkeeping that does the job - not just transactions

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Restricted & Unrestricted Funds

Restricted, designated, and unrestricted funds tracked at ledger level from point of receipt. Trustee reports and accounts produced from the ledger - not reconstructed in Excel at year-end.

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Donation & Grant Income

Donations, gift aid claims, and grant income coded distinctly. Each restricted grant matched against its qualifying expenditure so under- and over-spend is visible during the year, not after it.

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Charity Payroll

PAYE, NIC, and pensions auto-enrolment for charity staff. Volunteer expense records distinguished from employee pay.

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Trustee Reporting

Monthly or quarterly management reports prepared in a trustee-friendly format. Reserves position, fund balances, and year-to-date variance against budget visible without specialist accounting knowledge.

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Year-End Accounts (Below Audit / IE Thresholds)

Annual accounts prepared for trustees and for filing with the Charity Commission. Where your charity is below the audit and independent examination thresholds, our preparation work meets the trustees’ needs without external scrutiny.

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Trading Subsidiary Bookkeeping

Where the charity has a trading subsidiary (a separate limited company), the subsidiary’s bookkeeping and statutory accounts are prepared alongside the charity. Corporation tax computations remain with your tax adviser.

Bookkeeping & accounts - full service within Tier 3 + Tier 4 scope

One AAT Licensed Practice covers the bookkeeping, VAT, payroll, and accounts preparation that a charity and not-for-profit business needs day to day - without straying outside our licence.

  • Bookkeeping with restricted / unrestricted fund tracking
  • Donation, gift aid, and grant income recording (no claim filing - see below)
  • Charity payroll (PAYE, NIC, pensions auto-enrolment)
  • Quarterly trustee-facing management reports
  • Annual accounts (where below audit / IE thresholds)
  • Trading subsidiary bookkeeping and statutory accounts
  • Companies House filings for charitable companies and trading subsidiaries
  • VAT where the charity is registered (incl. partial exemption)

Smaller charities and not-for-profit organisations

Whether you are a registered charity below the independent examination or audit thresholds, a CIO or charitable company at a similar scale, a CIC delivering social impact, or an unincorporated not-for-profit, the underlying disciplines align - fund-aware bookkeeping, clean trustee reporting, and accounts prepared to a standard the trustees can sign off.

  • Smaller registered charities (below IE / audit thresholds)
  • CIOs and charitable companies limited by guarantee (small)
  • Community Interest Companies (CIC)
  • Trading subsidiaries of smaller charities
  • Faith-based and community organisations
  • Unincorporated not-for-profit associations

Charity & Not-for-Profit - frequently asked

Do you conduct independent examinations?

No. Independent examination is a Tier 1 AAT service and is not covered by our current licence. Where your charity is above the IE threshold, we will refer you to an appropriately licensed firm to conduct the IE. We can still prepare the underlying accounts that the independent examiner reviews.

Do you submit gift aid claims to HMRC?

Gift aid claim submission is a tax service. We maintain the donation records and gift aid declarations in a form ready for submission - the claim itself is submitted by your tax adviser, or in some cases directly by the charity through HMRC’s gift aid online service.

Can you prepare SORP-compliant accounts?

We prepare accounts in a fund-aware format suitable for smaller charities below the audit and independent examination thresholds. For full Charity SORP compliance with external scrutiny, we will refer you to an appropriately licensed firm and prepare the underlying records they need.

Do you handle the corporation tax on our trading subsidiary?

No - corporation tax is a Tier 2 service. We prepare the trading subsidiary’s statutory accounts and bookkeeping, and your tax adviser computes and files the CT600 and processes the gift-aided profit transfer to the parent charity.

Can you take over from our current bookkeeper mid-year?

Yes. We obtain professional clearance, take over the ledger, and pick up bookkeeping and trustee reporting from the next period.

For general accountancy questions, see our main FAQ or browse the full Q&A library.

Charity bookkeeping & accounts. Trustee-ready. Within scope.

Book a free 30-minute discovery call. We will review your current bookkeeping and reporting position and give you a fixed monthly fee.

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