Committee publication · Estimate memoranda · 19 May 2026
Charity Commission Main Estimate 2026-27 memorandum
From: Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Inquiry: The work of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Summary
The Charity Commission's Main Estimate memorandum for 2026-27 requests £37.851m in Resource DEL funding, a 13.4% increase on 2025-26, plus £2.874m Capital DEL and £3.4m Resource AME. The Commission faces significant operational pressure from increased demand and reduced staffing since 2022-23. Funding will support the Commission Futures Programme to strengthen digital capability and organisational capacity, though short-term performance risks remain around timeliness and casework queue management.
Key findings
- Resource DEL increases by £4.462m (13.4%) to £37.851m; Capital DEL decreases by £1.576m (-35.4%) reflecting the first year of the Commission Futures Programme 'Discovery' phase
- Net cash requirement rises to £40.650m (19% increase), with additional £2.3m transferred from other departments supplementing Treasury funding
- Operational pressure evident: staffing reduced materially since 2022-23 while registrations, complaints and casework demand increased; unallocated work increased across key services despite productivity gains
- Performance maintained on service standards: 4,996 regulatory concern cases concluded, 69 new statutory enquiries opened, 80% of registration requests decided within 30 working days; 96% quality standards in Q4 2025-26
- Commission Futures Programme aims to increase capacity, strengthen digital and data capability, and improve long-term sustainability, but short-term timeliness and queue management risks remain
Tone
ProceduralTopics
Key actors
Charity Commission for England and Wales, HM Treasury, Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR), Charity Commission Northern Ireland (CCNI), Charities Regulator Ireland, David Holdsworth
Notable line
“Performance has, however, been delivered in a context of significant operational pressure, particularly in Regulatory Services.”
Key Quotes
“Staffing has reduced materially since 2022-23 while demand has increased across registrations, complaints and casework.”
“Productivity gains have enabled service standards to be met, but have primarily slowed, rather than reversed, growth in casework queues.”
“… the Commission enters 2026-27 with an increase in funding via the Spending Review which has been provided to support delivery of the Commission Futures Programme …”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗