Helper groups
A number of groups and umbrella organisations have volunteered to provide practical support to individual organisations applying for registration or submitting accounts and reports to the Commission.
The document below provides the contact details for the helper groups, along with information on the support each organisation can offer and who they work with.
Support offered by helper groups will vary depending on the capacity and remit of each helper group.
The Commission provides helper groups with training and materials to support them in delivering this service to other organisations.
Practical help through access to a scanner or the internet
If the person within your organisation who is completing the application does not have access to a scanner or to the internet in order to complete the online application process, the first point of contact should be other trustees, volunteers or members of staff within your organisation. If you are still unable to gain access, you should contact your local library to see if they have any of these facilities available. Most libraries do. You can find details for all libraries in Northern Ireland by clicking on the following link: www.librariesni.org.uk/
If this is not possible some helper groups may be able to provide access to a scanner or to the internet.
Support to complete the registration application or submit accounts and reports.
Some helper groups will be able to provide support to assist organisations in drafting and submitting their online registration application or submitting their annual accounts and reports. For example, a helper group may support you to use the Commission’s Purposes and public benefit toolkit to prepare your public benefit statement, which is one of the sections on the online registration system. Or help you understand which parts of the Annual Monitoring Return form your charity needs to complete.
It is important that charity trustees understand that while the Helper groups will offer support where they can, or sign post to others, the responsibility for submitting reports on time lies with the charity trustees.
Keeping informed
Some helper groups share information from the Commission with the organisations they work with and support. This is important to ensure that individual organisations have access to the most up to date and relevant guidance and are aware of key developments in charity registration and regulation.
How do I contact a helper group?
If you need support in completing your application to register as a charity in Northern Ireland, or in submitting your annual accounts and reports then please consider contacting the helper group relevant to your organisation to see if they can provide the assistance you need. For example, If you work with rural organisations you may want to contact one of the Rural Community Networks or Omagh Forum for Rural associations.
Contact details can be found in the Helper group list at the top of this page, including information on the support each organisation can offer and who they work with.
Are you interested in becoming a helper group?
If your group is interested in becoming a helper group, please use the contact us form to let us know.