The Charity Commission’s annual return service for 2017 is now available. The Commission advises using the service outside peak hours (10am to 3pm) to avoid any problems logging in. What you need to submit depends on annual income. The guide to the accounting essentials for charities explains the …

The Theatres Trust [Alliance member] has announced the tenth round of awards from its UK Theatres Small Grants Scheme (UKSGS). Recipients include essential health and safety works to raise handrails at the Acorn Theatre, Penzance, to remove asbestos at the Criterion Theatre, Coventry, and to install a …

The Government has stated that firms and charities urgently need to do more to protect themselves from online threats, according to new Government research and a ‘cyber health check’. One in ten FTSE 350 companies have no response plan for a cyber incident Only six per cent …

The National Audit Office has published Due diligence processes for potential donations after reviewing the systems and policies relevant to donations management in place across a number of the museums and galleries sponsored by DCMS. The report notes that museums and galleries increasingly rely on philanthropic donations due …

The Government has announced that over two thousand young people from England and Wales will take part in a national concert to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War. The ‘Lest We Forget’ concert, backed by £90,000 government funding will take place in …

Heritage Open Days (7-10 September 2017) is England’s largest grass roots heritage festival involving over 40,000 volunteers and 5,000 events. This year, thanks to additional funding by players’ of People’s Postcode Lottery, the festival is focusing on LGBTQ heritage, with a series of newly-commissioned, community-focused arts …

This year’s SAVE [Alliance member] lecture is by architecture and design critic Oliver Wainwright entitled: ‘Just a certificate on the wall? UNESCO World Heritage status and the battle for the city’. The lecture at London’s Courtauld Institute on 16 October 2017 will examine if we …

The ONS has published Local authority green belt statistics for England: 2016 to 2017. The extent of the designated Green Belt in England as at 31 March 2017 was estimated at 1,634,700 hectares, around 13% of the land area of England. Overall there was a decrease …

The IHBC [Alliance member] has launched a new Guidance Note on ‘Thatching, chimney stacks and fire’, exploring a single issue that brings together the most fundamental considerations in conservation practice: material, construction, design and risk.

Arts Council England and the Local Government Association have developed The Culture Hub: good practice in cultural services. It highlights interesting and innovative case studies from local authorities across the country who have found creative ways to invest in arts and culture.  It’s a great …

The government will renew the Green Flag Award licence making sure that Britain’s best parks and green spaces will be recognised and rewarded for another 5 years. The Green Flag Award accreditation scheme is the national quality standard for public green space, used by the vast majority …

The Barclay Review on Non-Domestic Rates for Scotland has two proposals which would affect listed buildings: the existing 100% vacant listed building rate relief limited to 2 years, but expansion of the categories of properties that can qualify for Fresh Start relief (50%) so that all listed …