Changes introduced by the Charities Act from 7 March 2024

The Charities Act 2022 has been coming into force in stages since it received Royal Assent on 28 February 2022. It aims to simplify some of the legal processes that charities must follow when dealing with charity land. It has now been confirmed that the next tranche of changes will come into force on 7 March 2024 and this article provides a high-level reminder of the upcoming changes relating to charity land. For a more detailed review, please take a look at Caroline Cohen’s recent article here

Changes coming into force on 7 March 2024:

1. General restrictions on dispositions: Pursuant to section 18, certain charity to charity disposals will now be caught by the rules. Dispositions by liquidators, receivers and mortgagee or administrators will no longer be captured by the rules as they are already subject to separate duties and obligations.
2. Statements to be included in documentation: Section 23 will amend the wording which must be included in certain documents (including contracts for sale, leases, transfers and charges) to make the wording clearer. There are now prescribed statements which must be included when making dispositions that are to be registered at HM Land Registry and further guidance is expected once the amendments are in force.

If you have any questions about the points raised in this article, please get in touch.