ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of recent developments in law and regulation for charities in England from the perspective of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), an umbrella body providing support to charities and representing their interests to the government and other external bodies. The NCVO is the largest representative body for charities and voluntary organizations in England. It works alongside its sister councils in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales, with whom it collaborates on UK-wide issues. The first detailed proposals for reform of charity law came from within the charity sector, specifically from a working group set up by NCVO to look at the role and relevance of UK charity law in modern times. The Charities Act 2006 sought to update the law so that a lay audience would more easily understand it, and it would reflect more accurately the range of organizations which are, or should be, charitable in modern society.
