OPERATIONAL GUIDANCE

EXEMPT CHARITIES

FURTHER EDUCATION CORPORATIONS

OG 57 C3 – 19 December 2008

Functional responsibility

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The Law	Refer to a lawyer	Refer to an accountant

	Further education corporations (FECs) are bodies corporate which are established to conduct certain former local authority maintained educational institutions, county, controlled and grant-maintained schools specified by Order of the Secretary of State. Their powers are laid down in ss.18 and 19 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 and they are governed by instruments and articles of government which must comply with the requirements of Schedule 4 to the Act. The first FECs were established on 30 September 1992 to operate from 1 April 1993.
	FECs were formerly exempt charities under the provisions of paragraph (j) of Schedule 2 to the 1993 Act.
	They are now exempt charities by virtue of s. 22A of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 as inserted by s. 41 of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998.
	So far as it is a charity, any institution which is:
	administered by or on behalf of any FEC; and
	established for the general purposes of, or for any special purpose of or in connection with, that corporation
	will also be exempt.
	The basic conditions that such an institution must satisfy are set out in OG 57 C1 section 2.2.
	A list of colleges and other institutions funded by the Further Education Council may be found on the Association of Colleges website.

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