Bookkeeping for charities and community groups
Charities and clubs answer to trustees, members and funders. The books must show not only what was spent but which fund it came from and why.
- Flat £15 an hour
- No contract
- Qualified UK team
- Pay online in minutes
Bookkeeping for charities and community groups
Your price
3 hours at £15
£45
Set-up fee£0
ContractNone
Regulated firm
Qualified team
Qualified team
Certified advisor
ProAdvisor- FreeAgentSupported software
- 4.9 out of 5300+ Google reviews
The short answer
What does bookkeeping for charities and community groups involve?
Bookkeeping for charities and community groups means keeping donations and Gift Aid declarations, grant agreements and income, expenditure by project and fund and the rest of your records accurate and reconciled. At £15 an hour, a typical community sports club (about 80 transactions a month) needs about 3 hours a month, which is around £45.
What makes these books different.
Every sector has its own records and rules. These are the ones that matter for charities and community groups.
Restricted and unrestricted funds
Money given for a specific purpose must be tracked and spent as intended, separately from general funds.
Grants and funder reports
Funders often require reports showing exactly how their grant was spent, so costs are coded to projects.
Gift Aid
Valid declarations and donation records allow Gift Aid to be claimed, and errors can mean repayment.
Trustee reporting
Trustees need clear budgets against actuals, not a once-a-year surprise.
£15
an hour, flat
£45
a month for a typical community sports club
3h
of bookkeeping a month, about 80 transactions a month
0
contract, stop whenever you like
Records we keep for you.
- Donations and Gift Aid declarations
- Grant agreements and income
- Expenditure by project and fund
- Membership subscriptions
- Event income and costs
- Bank and cash records
Rules worth knowing.
Registration
Most charities in England and Wales with annual income over £5,000 must register with the Charity Commission.
Charity accounts
Larger charities follow the Statement of Recommended Practice, and all must keep adequate records for their annual return.
VAT
Many charity activities are exempt or outside scope, while trading can be taxable, so each income stream is reviewed.
General information, not tax advice. Rules change, so check GOV.UK or ask your accountant. Last reviewed November 2026.
A typical month.
A community sports club with about 80 transactions a month. Here is the time it takes and what it costs.
- Core bookkeeping (31 - 100)3h
Each month
£45
Where this sector is most common.
Using ONS business counts for 2026, public administration is the biggest share of local businesses in these places. We serve all of them online.
- York0% of local businesses, 1.2 times the UK share, about 25 firms
- Milton Keynes0% of local businesses, 1.2 times the UK share, about 45 firms
- Swansea0% of local businesses, 1.0 times the UK share, about 20 firms
- Swindon0% of local businesses, 1.0 times the UK share, about 20 firms
- Gloucester0% of local businesses, 0.9 times the UK share, about 10 firms
- Peterborough0% of local businesses, 0.9 times the UK share, about 20 firms
Clients say it better than we do.
4.9300+ Google reviews of Accotax
“He took the time to explain every step of the process and made a complex situation much easier to understand.”
Hugo Alvarez
Google review of Accotax
“They take the time to understand how our business works and what our needs are.”
Mael Leboucher
Google review of Accotax
“Very prompt in responding to questions and patient with us even when we seem to be slow.”
Mansur Liman
Google review of Accotax
“The work was completed promptly, my tax return was successfully filed.”
Sergey M
Google review of Accotax
charities and community groups: your questions.
Can you do fund accounting?
Yes. We set up restricted and unrestricted funds or classes in your software and report each separately for trustees and funders.
Not sure where your books stand?
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