The Regulator for Charities in England and Wales
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Faith and Social Cohesion Unit
Faith-based charities form a significant part of the charitable sector. The beneficiaries of these charities can be counted in their millions, and they make a huge contribution to communities across England and Wales.
Listening to faith-based charities
Following our successful consultation with independent and black majority churches, the Commission has run a series of workshops with a whole range of faith-based charities over the last two years, to learn more about the way they work and to help strengthen their governance and effectiveness.
We have held a total of 15 events and met with representatives from over 800 faith-based organisations. These have included representatives from the Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, Hindi and Buddhist communities, as well delegates from the UK’s smaller faiths such as Baha’i and Zoroastrian. Feedback from these events will be published on these pages shortly.
The events have been hugely successful and have given the Commission a valuable insight into the main issues, concerns and tensions faced by these charities, and a clearer understanding of the benefits they bring to the communities in which they work. Summaries of the feedback from the events held with Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, Buddhist and Hindu charities are available below in PDF format.
Feedback from:
Faith and Social Cohesion Unit
Building on this project, the Commission is setting up a dedicated Unit to work with and support faith-based charities.
The Faith and Social Cohesion Unit will provide support and advice to faith-based groups through outreach work, capacity building training and guidance. It aims to:
- engage with faith communities to identify and support organisations that could be but are not currently registered with the Commission;
- assist faith-based charities to improve their standards of governance and accountability and thereby increase their effectiveness;
- work collaboratively to achieve and promote well run and effectively regulated faith-based charities; and
- improve the Commission’s and society’s understanding of faith-based charities.
The Unit will initially work primarily with Muslim charities and communities. A Project Board including representatives of the Mosques and Imams National Advisory Board (Minab) has been established to direct the Unit’s work and to provide specialist advice.
The new unit will be headed by Ghulam Rasool. With extensive experience of working with faith communities at the grass roots, Ghulam has been actively involved in interfaith initiatives, religious education, and has been at the forefront of capacity building within faith organisations and upskilling of religious leaders. Ghulam has also worked on innovative projects with young people to promote tolerance and understanding between different faith and ethnic groups.
For more information on registering as charity, and to learn how to take advantage of the benefits that registering as a charity can bring, read the following information leaflet, 
– which provides tailored advice for faith-based organisations