The Charities Act 2022 came into substantive force across 2023 and 2024. The calendar year just closed was, for the practice, the first full year of advised property disposals conducted under the new regime. A short retrospective is now possible, and probably useful, for the trustees and clerks who will commission such work in 2026.

The headline changes

Three changes have made the most practical difference:

  • The scope of qualified surveyor advice under section 119 has been broadened — the surveyor's report can now address a wider range of disposal options without separate authority.
  • The procedure for disposing of "designated land" — land held for a particular charitable purpose — has been simplified. The previous requirement for parliamentary consent in many cases has been replaced with a more proportionate Commission process.
  • The advertisement requirements have been relaxed, with the test now being one of "reasonableness" rather than the previous prescriptive list.

What surprised us

Two surprises emerged over the year. The first was how often the "shorter, simpler" route still required careful professional judgement. The 2022 Act has removed friction from the process, but it has not removed responsibility. The qualified surveyor's report remains the central document; the trustees' minutes remain the contemporaneous evidence; the Charity Commission's view of "best consideration" has not softened.

The second surprise was the gentle but real change in marketing expectations. Where the previous regime prescribed advertisement in two newspapers and a specialist publication, the new regime asks for a reasonable approach. In practice, "reasonable" has come to mean: a clear marketing strategy, evidence of targeted distribution, a documented data room, and a transparent offer-evaluation process. The bar has not been lowered; it has been moved.

The 2022 Act has not made charity disposals easier. It has made them better.

Three lessons for trustees

For trustees and clerks contemplating a property disposal in 2026, three practical points emerge from the year just completed:

Commission the qualified surveyor's report early. Begin the conversation with a qualified surveyor before any view of value is formed. The report informs the disposal strategy; it should not arrive after the strategy is set.

Document the marketing process contemporaneously. A short file note after each marketing decision — the channels chosen, the audiences targeted, the offers received — protects the trustees and provides the evidence the Commission may, in due course, ask to see.

Record the rationale in the trustees' minutes. Not the decision, which goes in any event, but the reasoning behind it. Why this method of sale, at this time, on these terms. The minutes that record reasoning are the minutes that read well a decade later.

The practice advises charities, parochial church councils, and educational trusts on the disposal and acquisition of land and buildings across the region. Initial conversations are always confidential.