There’s no single right answer. The best structure depends on your organisation’s activities, size and how you plan to fund yourself.

Some general pointers to help you think it through:

Community Interest Company (CIC)
If you plan to trade commercially (sell goods or services, generate income beyond grants and donations) and want flexibility over how you use profits, a Community Interest Company (CIC) is often a natural fit. CICs are quicker and cheaper to set up, but you won't get charity tax reliefs or be eligible for charity-only funding.

Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
If your work is exclusively charitable (education, relief of poverty, advancing health, etc.) and you plan to rely mainly on grants, donations and charity-only funding streams, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) may suit you better. You'll get Gift Aid and other charity tax benefits, but you'll be more restricted in how funds are used and more heavily regulated.

Charitable Company
If you want to trade commercially and access charity funding, a Charitable Company structure combines elements of both, but it also means reporting to two regulators (Companies House and the Charity Commission), so there's more administration involved.

Unincorporated Association
If you're a very small, informal group not ready to incorporate at all, an Unincorporated Association is the simplest starting point. However, be aware that it doesn't provide personal liability protection for you or your committee members.

Professional Advice
We recommend speaking to a solicitor or accountant, or referring to the Charity Commission's and Companies House's guidance, to help you decide which legal structure is most suitable for your organisation.

The minimum number required depends on the legal structure you choose. However, we
recommend having at least three directors, trustees or committee members (as
applicable) to support good governance, provide a wider range of skills and experience,
and enable effective shared decision-making. Having three or more people involved in
running your organisation can also improve accountability, resilience and continuity as
your organisation grows.

Yes. Your organisation should have its own bank account, separate from any personal
accounts. This helps ensure transparency, accurate financial record-keeping and good

governance, regardless of whether you are set up as a CIC, CIO, charitable company or
unincorporated association.

You can use the Dawes Road Hub address (at a cost only). We do not recommend using
your home address, as this becomes part of the public record on Companies House.

The time it takes to register your organisation depends on the legal structure you choose
and the regulator responsible for processing the application. Some structures can be
registered within a few working days, while others may take several weeks or longer. It is
worth building some flexibility into your planning timeline and checking the latest guidance
from Companies House and/or the Charity Commission for current processing times.

Each type of organisation has different annual filing and reporting requirements. It's important to keep these up to date to remain compliant with the relevant regulator.

Community Interest Company (CIC)
File your annual accounts and CIC Report (CIC34) with Companies House within 9 months of your financial year-end (or 21 months after incorporation for your first set of accounts). You must also file a Confirmation Statement separately within 14 days of your confirmation statement date (the anniversary of incorporation). This confirms your company information is up to date and is separate from your annual accounts.

Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
Submit your annual return and accounts to the Charity Commission, generally within 10 months of your financial year-end. CIOs are not registered with Companies House, so there are no Companies House filing requirements.

Charitable Company
A Charitable Company must file with both regulators. Submit your annual accounts to Companies House within the same 9-month (or 21-month for first accounts) deadline as a CIC, together with a Confirmation Statement. You must also submit your annual return and accounts to the Charity Commission, typically within 10 months of your financial year-end.

Unincorporated Association
There are no formal filing requirements with Companies House or the Charity Commission because an Unincorporated Association is not a registered legal structure. If your annual income is below £5,000, you may still be able to register with HMRC for Gift Aid without becoming a registered charity. However, you should maintain accurate financial records for your members or trustees, and if your organisation trades, you should ensure you meet any applicable HMRC tax obligations.

Important Note
Filing deadlines are based on your organisation's financial year-end, so the exact dates will vary. If you're unsure of your filing deadline, you can check your organisation's record on the Companies House or Charity Commission website.

This depends on the size and stage of your organisation, but we advise having the right policies in place to protect you, your team and the people you work with. If you're a member of Sobus, we can provide template policies to help you get started.

Minimum Starter Pack — Essential from Day One
• Conflict of Interest Policy
• Code of Conduct Policy
• Complaints Policy
• Data Protection Policy (GDPR)
• Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Policy
• Finance Policy
• Health and Safety Policy
• Safeguarding Policy (if relevant to your work)

As Your Organisation Grows

When You Hire Staff
• Anti-Harassment and Anti-Bullying Policy
• Hybrid and Remote Working Policy
• Recruitment & Employment Policy
• Time, Attendance & Flexibility Policy

When You Apply for Funding
• Monitoring and Evaluation Policy

When You Scale Operations
• IT, Communications & Security Policy
• Social Media Policy

1. Policies for Working with Volunteers
If your group relies on unpaid volunteers, it's important to avoid implying an employment contract by creating a dedicated volunteer framework.

• Volunteer Policy — outlines volunteer roles, your commitment to volunteers, and how they will be supported and supervised.
• Volunteer Agreement & Role Description — clarifies expectations, boundaries, and confirms that volunteering is not legally binding employment.
• Expenses Policy — explains which out-of-pocket expenses (such as travel or meals) will be reimbursed and how claims should be submitted.

2. Safeguarding & Vulnerable Groups
These policies are essential if you work with children, young people or adults at risk.

• Safeguarding Policy — defines harm and abuse and explains the procedure for reporting concerns.
• Safer Recruitment & DBS Checks — outlines vetting procedures for volunteers and staff, including Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks where required.

3. Legal Compliance & Governance
These policies help ensure your organisation operates safely, fairly and in line with legal requirements.

• Data Protection Policy (UK GDPR) — covers how personal data is collected, stored and used.
• Equal Opportunities / EDI Policy — promotes fair access to volunteering and employment opportunities and helps prevent discrimination.
• Financial Management Policy — sets out how funds will be received, managed and accounted for.
• Health and Safety Policy — explains your duty of care, risk assessment procedures and accident reporting processes.

4. Code of Conduct & Issue Resolution

• Code of Conduct — sets expectations for acceptable behaviour when representing the organisation.
• Complaints Policy — explains how complaints will be received, investigated and resolved.
• Grievance and Problem-Solving Procedures — provides a fair and transparent process for volunteers or staff to raise concerns or resolve disputes.

5. Additional Policies for Paid Staff
If your organisation employs paid staff, you become subject to UK employment law and should also have the following policies in place.

• Absence, Sickness & Holiday Policies — explains statutory leave entitlements and reporting procedures.
• Disciplinary Procedure — should comply with the ACAS Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures.
• Whistleblowing Policy — protects employees who report wrongdoing internally or externally.

Having these policies in place from an early stage can help build trust, support good governance, strengthen funding applications and reduce legal and operational risks as your organisation develops.

No, we do not offer an accounting service or financial management advice.

Yes, our office space at Dawes Road (Fulham) and Freston Road are available to use at a
reduced cost. Please get in touch for current rates and availability.

Once you’re a member of Sobus and fully set up, we’re able to advise you on funding
opportunities and details are available on our website once you’ve joined. It’s worth bearing
in mind that the funding landscape is becoming increasingly competitive, so alongside
grant applications we’d encourage you to think about other ways of generating income for
your organisation too.

When you become a member, we can identify funding opportunities where you can apply
for funding. We have relationships with a few local funders that we can discuss with you. We
can also signpost or connect you to other organisations for partnership or collaborative
working, which may help develop your services or secure potential funding.

We understand that moving everything online can feel like a big shift, particularly for
smaller organisations. It is worth being aware that virtually all funding applications are now
submitted online, so building confidence with digital tools and online forms is an essential
skill going forward rather than something that can be avoided. We run occasional informal
sessions to help VCS organisations get more comfortable with IT and online systems and
we’re happy to point you towards these. However, please do bear in mind that these
sessions are designed to build your confidence and skills rather than to complete
applications on your behalf. Ultimately, being able to manage your own online applications
independently will be an important part of running your organisation. If you’re finding the
early stages of setting up and managing things online particularly difficult, do get in touch
and we’ll do what we can to point you in the right direction.