Family First appeal of Charities Registration Board decision dismissed

Published 3 September 2018

The independent Charities Registration Board notes the recent decision of the High Court on the removal of Family First as a charity under the Charities Act 2005.

The court confirmed the Board’s decision that Family First’s purposes are not exclusively charitable.

This is the first substantive decision of the High Court applying the Greenpeace Supreme Court judgment that held that advocacy purposes were capable of being charitable.

The Board acknowledges the High Court’s guidance, which will assist the Board’s future decision-making.

The role of the Board

The Board makes charities registration decisions based on the facts before it, applying the relevant statutory and case law, and maintaining consistency of its approach with previous decisions.

The role of the Board is to maintain the integrity of the Charities Register by ensuring that entities on the Charities Register qualify for registration. A purpose is charitable if it advances a public benefit in a way that is analogous to cases that have previously been held to be charitable.

View the decision

For more information on advocacy purposes, see advocacy for causes, and the previous blog(external link) explaining how the test is applied.