[Nick Stiven]

Sally

In most cases, yes — your charity will still have to pay VAT (usually 20%) on roof re-felting or roof repair works, even though you are a registered charity. Charity status alone does not create a blanket VAT exemption for building maintenance or repairs.

HMRC’s default position is that work to existing buildings is standard-rated unless a specific relief applies.

You may qualify for reduced or zero VAT only if:

• The building is being substantially altered, not merely repaired.

• It has been empty for 2+ years (certain residential reliefs may apply).

• It is part of an approved conversion.

• It is a listed place of worship, or if

• Specific grant schemes or heritage funding are available.

It’s also always worth looking at our Association’s website for your answer. This link may be useful:

VAT – Opportunities for Almshouse Charities

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Judith

No, not automatically—and usually not at all unless your governing document allows it.

‘Vicar for the time being’ ties the trusteeship to a specific office, not a person. When there is no vicar (interregnum/vacancy), the office still exists—but there is simply no one to occupy that trustee seat.

So the trusteeship normally just falls vacant temporarily.

You can only appoint someone else instead if your governing document gives you a route to do so. There are three possibilities:

(A) Governing document is strict (most common). If it simply says ‘the Vicar for the time being’ with no flexibility:

• You cannot substitute another church officer (warden, lay member, retired priest, etc.).
• The position remains vacant during the interregnum.

Trying to “fill” it informally would be ultra vires (outside your powers).

(B) There is a clause allowing substitution or co-option. Some schemes include wording like:

• trustees may co-opt additional trustees, or
• a named body (e.g. PCC, bishop, patron) may appoint a replacement.

If so, you could:

• co-opt a temporary trustee, or
• ask the relevant body to nominate someone during the vacancy.

But this is not the same as replacing the ex officio role—it’s just filling the gap pragmatically.

(C) You amend the governing document (a longer-term fix). If this is likely to recur (and it will), the clean solution is:

• amend the scheme via the Charity Commission (which sounds ‘scary’ but is actually pretty easy).
• update wording to something like:

“the Vicar or during a vacancy such other person as the PCC shall nominate”

That avoids paralysis during future vacancies.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Suzanne

‘Of limited means’ is a deliberately flexible phrase. At its core, it simply means someone does not have much money or financial resources—but it’s not a precise legal or financial threshold unless a specific policy defines it.

In plain terms, it usually implies a person:

* Has low income and/or minimal savings,
* Can meet basic needs, but only just, and
* Has little financial resilience (e.g. unexpected costs would be difficult).

Why is it vague?

The phrase is often used in:

* Charity governing documents.
* Grant criteria.
* Almshouse eligibility.

… but without a fixed definition, because trustees or decision-makers are expected to apply judgement based on circumstances.

In an almshouse context (important for you), ‘of limited means’ typically involves looking at:

* Income (pensions, benefits, earnings),
* Savings and capital,
* Outgoings (especially rent, care, health costs), and
* Overall ability to live independently without hardship.

It’s relative, not absolute:

Someone might not qualify for state benefits, yet still be ‘of limited means’. Equally, someone with modest income but substantial savings might not qualify.

The key point (and where trustees often go wrong) – don’t treat it as a fixed income cutoff. If you do, you risk being too rigid (excluding genuinely needy people). Or inconsistent (if decisions aren’t documented).

As you have already implied, someone ‘of limited means’ in Surrey might actually be pretty well off in County Durham!

A good approach is to:

* Define your charity’s interpretation (even informally).
* Apply it consistently.
* Record the reasoning behind your decisions.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Debbie

Providing accommodation to staff is normally a taxable benefit (BIK). The accommodation is not taxed if it qualifies as job-related accommodation, meaning:

The employee needs to live there to do the job, or
It’s standard for the role and improves performance.

In your scenario (Assistant Warden + “optional” house), if the accommodation is:

● Optional, or

● A recruitment perk

It will almost certainly be taxable.

You will have be clear about your position:

● If living on-site is genuinely required, make it contractual and the accommodation would likely be tax-free.

● If provision of the accommodation is just you trying to be helpful or make the job attractive, you must treat it as a taxable benefit.

We provide the services of a single Warden and, after 38 years experience (in our case), we are convinced that those services are only successfully provided if our Warden lives in.

We believe, therefore, that the Warden’s accommodation is essential to the effective functioning of the post-holder, and we thus insist that living in the provided accommodation is a requirement of the post.

Our Warden’s accommodation is therefore tax-free.

Our Warden does have some taxable BIK however:

● Fuel and Light (to the value of whichever is the lesser: 10% of the Warden’s gross salary OR the flat’s total gas and electricity costs).

● TV Licence.

● Provision of a private home telephone.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Sally

You can, but only if you are explicitly authorised, so you have 2 options:

Option A (cleanest):
Get a trustee (e.g. the Chair) to sign (!)

Option B (still fine):
Ensure you have minutes that say:

• The accountants have been appointed.
• The Clerk is authorised to sign the engagement letter.

Then sign as:
“[Your Name], Clerk to the Trustees, for and on behalf of the Trustees of [Charity Name].

Thereafter, you could set up delegated authority:

You would need a written scheme of delegation or standing orders saying the Clerk can:

• Enter into routine contracts (e.g. professional services) for the trust, and
• Sign documents up to a certain value/of a specific type.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

William

Why not help each of your non-internet-banking residents, every year in December, to draft and then send out a simple 4 paragraph letter to their bank to set up, amend or cancel their standing order, ready for January?

I have used this system for some 30 years now. It still works well enough. It’s easy to set up, using a simple mail-merged letter. And it’s a lot cheaper than DDs.

I have found it wise to give the postal system and the bank plenty of time to process the letter in their respective ways.

To this end, to save everybody the cost of stamps and ensure all the SO letters get actioned in good time, I offer to personally walk all the SO letters to the relevant bank branches in my local town. This is because, for example, all letters to any far-flung Barclays branch in the country will get actioned by any local Barclays branch, through the bank’s own systems).

This:

(a) gives me some exercise (!),

(b) ensures the SO letters are clearly and correctly drafted and get to the right place in good time, and

(c) helps out my dozen or so ‘internet-challenged’ (and, truth be told, ‘admin-challenged’) residents.

It’s actually very little trouble and, after all, only happens once a year.

Of course, it doesn’t work with Internet-only banks, but the residents who choose such banks do so because they are already internet-banking-savvy

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Jennifer

We asked ourselves the same question. However, if, like us, you:

• Own a small number of properties already properly vested in trustees (or the Official Custodian),

• Have no borrowing or development plans,

• Have stable governance, and

• Don’t employ staff (or only minimal clerk support),

then a CIO is probably a solution in search of a problem!

I’d be surprised if your insurance doesn’t already (or could if asked to) offer trustee indemnity insurance.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Jacqui

First port of call might be the Almshouse Association website itself:

https://www.almshouses.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Buzzacott-buz2092_-_09_retention_of_accounting_records_-_final-aw1.pdf

Then, have a look at:

https://www.restore.co.uk/informationmanagement/resource-hub/insights/gdpr-what-are-the-statutory-retention-periods-for-hr/

Finally, I find that, for a speedy, succinct answer, I turn more and more to either ChatGPT or Google AI.

Simply copy and paste your original question into one or other of these two (free) programs. Hit ‘enter’ (or, in ChatGPT, the vertical blue arrow) – you will be amazed at how useful an answer you will get back.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.ukj

[Nick Stiven]

Sally

It looks like you have done all the right things so far. In particular you are aware that you have responsibility for some ‘neutralised’ asbestos that now needs managing. I don’t think you need any more specialist education/courses. You simply need to take appropriate action and this is what you should be doing:

Floor Tile Management

• Active management is needed, not just recording

• Regular Condition Monitoring
Inspect tiles annually or more often if there is a risk of disturbance
Look for cracking, lifting, and wear of the tiles in high-traffic areas
Remember that changes in condition affect the risk level

• Implement “Permit Before Work” Controls.
Contractors and volunteers must check your management plan, with its asbestos register, before any work near your hidden asbestos-laden tiles and all and must be informed of asbestos locations.
Contractors to sign to confirm they’ve seen asbestos info.
No drilling, sanding, or lifting tiles without proper controls.

• Keep the Register Alive.
Update the asbestos management plan if changes occur.
Review the register and the management plan at least annually.
Ensure the plan is a current and actively used document.

It’s all fairly obvious, when you think about it!

Hope this helps.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

• This reply was modified 1 month ago by clerk.stjohnswilton.

[Nick Stiven]

Lynne

I have emailed you (via the Clerk’s email on your website, which I trust will reach you) as my answer was too long for this forum.

However in summary:

While a landlord must be safe and follow the law, a charity trustee must ALSO act in the best interests of the beneficiary, making the duty of care in a charity/beneficiary relationship higher and more fiduciary in nature.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Lynne

I think you have hit the nail on the head. In answer to your question – ‘Yes. Definitely.’

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Lynne

We provide a digital telecare unit to all of our residents. We think this is a Good Thing.

And we can afford to do so.

The alternative (where residents live independent lives) is that residents call 999 directly in an emergency, and would need to carry a mobile 24/7 to approach the level of connectivity to call for help that a telecare system offers.. Yes – that system does work, and pretty well too, but we’ve gone for providing a ‘full bells and whistle’ provision because we think it is a rather better solution.

And we can afford it.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Sarah

Did you know that,.as a charity, you can often access free or subsidised training via your local Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB) or the local authority adult social care training team. These typically include:

• multi-agency safeguarding training
• locality referral pathways
• case conferences participation training

You should ontact your local SAB for their training calendar — it’s often tailored to your area’s procedures.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Christian

Have you looked at the Charity Commission’s Operational Guidance for Almshouses (OG 65) – https://khub.net/web/charity-commission-operational-guidance/resources/-/ddl_display/ddl/862921277/861774141/maximized ?

Section 1.6 says:

1.6 Alteration in the circumstances of residents

Given that beneficiaries may occupy their residence for many years, it is likely that changes in their circumstances will occur during their occupancy. Examples of such changes include:
• changes in marital status, either by bereavement, or by a new marriage;
• other changes in status, ie new partner, death of partner; death of sibling, child living with parents leaves;
• in charities with a religious qualification, change of denomination e.g. from Church of England to Roman Catholicism, or change of church attended; or
• change in financial status, e.g. a legacy.

Normally, trustees should ask a resident to leave almshouse accommodation if their change of circumstance would have disqualified him or her as an applicant if it had happened before their appointment. However, it would not be a breach of trust for them not to do so in every case. The treatment of a resident is a matter for the discretion of the trustees, and before making such a decision, they should consider relevant factors such as:
• the wishes of the resident;
• the age of the resident (and the possible unsettling effect of asking him or her to leave);
• the health and physical capacity of the resident;
• the alternatives open to the resident;
• the relative merits of any other applicants for appointment; and
• any other pertinent factors (such as possible adverse publicity).

In sum – ‘How long is a piece of string?’

Trustees are constantly comparing and contrasting ‘relevant factors’, without any obvious algorithms available much of the time – but that’s what makes being a trustee interesting!

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Nick Stiven]

Julian

Clare and Charlotte are both right.

WMC can usually be covered by Housing Benefit or Universal Credit even though it is not rent and the resident is not a tenant. That works because HB/UC looks at eligible housing costs, not just “rent under a tenancy”.

This is because:

HOUSING BENEFIT (HB):

Under the Housing Benefit Regulations, someone can qualify if they are liable to make payments “in respect of a dwelling”, even where:
• There is no tenancy.
• The arrangement is a licence.
• The occupation arises from charitable provision.

Almshouse residents fit this category because:
• They are liable to pay WMC.
• The payment is a condition of occupying the dwelling.
• The dwelling is their only or main home.

UNIVERSAL CREDIT (UC):

UC uses the concept of “housing costs liability” rather than rent.

A liability can arise from:
• A tenancy.
• A licence.
• A condition attached to occupation by a charity.

Again, almshouse WMC fits — provided it is:
• Properly documented.
• Not discretionary.
• Payable as a condition of occupation.

WHAT PARTS OF WMC ARE USUALLY ELIGIBLE?

Local authorities / DWP will look behind the label and ask what the money is for.

Generally eligible:
• Repairs and maintenance.
• Building insurance.
• Management and administration.
• Communal services (lighting, cleaning of shared areas).
• Warden costs (if not personal care).

Generally not eligible:
• Personal care or support.
• Meals, catering.
• Laundry services.
• Personal utilities inside the dwelling.
• Medical or social care services.

Many almshouses therefore split WMC on paper into:
• Eligible housing costs.
• Ineligible service elements.

This makes benefit decisions much smoother.

However, for most small almshouses, these distinctions are irrelevant as they are incapable of offering any of the ‘ineligible service elements’.

WORDING MATTERS A LOT

Good wording (which helps benefits & avoids tenancy risk) includes:
• “Weekly Maintenance Contribution”.
• “Contribution towards the costs of maintaining and managing the almshouse”.
• “Payable as a condition of occupation”.
• “This is not rent and does not create a tenancy”.

Risky wording includes:
• “Rent”.
• “Arrears of rent”.
• “Landlord”.
• “Tenant”.

Benefit officers will often still pay HB/UC even if wording is sloppy — but you’re relying on goodwill rather than being on a solid footing.

TYPICAL BENEFIT DECISION LOGIC (SIMPLIFIED)

The council / DWP asks:
1. Is the claimant liable to make payments?
2. Are the payments required to occupy the dwelling?
3. Is the dwelling their home?
4. Are the costs housing-related rather than personal?

If yes, then the WMC payments represent eligible housing costs, regardless of tenancy status.

Nick Stiven
clerk@stjohnswilton.org.uk

[Author]

Posts