How to start a community group in the UK: the practical guide

1. 1.Purpose — what are you actually for?

   Write it in one sentence. Not 'community wellbeing in the village' — too vague to register with anyone. Something like 'maintain and run the village hall for the benefit of residents of Little Chalfont'. Specific. Bounded. Testable. Charity Commission registration tests this directly via the public-benefit requirement.

2. 2.Audience — who do you serve, and how do they know?

   Beneficiaries vs. members vs. wider community. A residents' association serves residents. A foodbank serves people in food poverty. A village hall serves anyone hiring the hall. The line matters for governance (who votes), for funding eligibility (who counts as a beneficiary), and for insurance (whose risks are you taking on).

3. 3.Structure — incorporated or not?

   If income will stay genuinely under £5,000 and you won't hold assets, employ anyone or sign a lease, an unincorporated association with a written constitution is enough. If any of those apply, default to a Foundation CIO — £0 to register, single regulator, limited liability for trustees from day one. See the legal structures guide below for the full comparison.

4. 4.Name — and is it free?

   Check three places: Charity Commission register (or OSCR / CCNI in Scotland and NI), Companies House, and intellectualproperty.gov.uk for trade marks. Also check the .org.uk and .co.uk domain. Add a place name or qualifier if there's a clash — 'Friends of Little Chalfont Village Hall' is fine even if 'Friends of the Village Hall' is taken nationally.

1. 1.A written constitution

   Even an unincorporated group needs one to open a community bank account. The Charity Commission publishes free model constitutions (CC22a for small unincorporated charities, the November 2023 CIO model for incorporated). Use them — bespoke wording for a small group is wasted effort.

2. 2.A community bank account

   Personal accounts cause endless problems — funder scrutiny, tax confusion, signatory disputes. Open a community account at NatWest, Lloyds, Metro, Co-op or one of the digital options (Tide, Starling, Mettle). All require the constitution. Some charge fees, some don't — see the community group bank account guide.

3. 3.Two or three trustees / committee members

   Foundation CIO needs 1 trustee minimum but 3 is the sensible floor. Unincorporated charities need 3+. Pick people who'll actually turn up — name recognition without attendance creates governance gaps that bite at every grant application.

4. 4.Public liability insurance — usually

   Almost any activity beyond a private meeting needs PL. Hire contracts demand it. Council leases demand it. Event licences demand it. £5m is the legacy standard; £10m is increasingly required. Budget £100–£300/year for the smallest groups.

5. 5.A documented decision log

   A simple Google Doc or notebook recording who decided what and when. The minute book is the audit trail you'll wish you had if the Charity Commission, a funder, or the bank ever asks. Start it before you need it.

Three early money decisions matter more than people think:

• The bank account.Personal accounts cause problems — funder scrutiny, tax confusion, signatory disputes. A community account at NatWest, Lloyds, Metro, Co-op, Tide, Starling or Mettle solves all three. Most require the constitution. Some charge fees, some don't.
• Gift Aid.Only registered charities and Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) can claim. Donors must have paid sufficient UK tax. Adds 25p per £1 to qualifying donations. Worth registering for from day one if you're charitable.
• The first grant.National Lottery Awards for All (up to £20,000) is the friendliest first application for most small groups. Local Trust and your district council's small grants pot are the next tier. The big household-name trusts (Garfield Weston, Esmée Fairbairn, Wellcome) don't fund first-year applicants — build a six-month track record first.

1. Public liability (£5m–£10m). Almost non-negotiable. Hire contracts, council leases and event licences will demand evidence. £100–£300/year for the smallest groups.
2. Employers' liability (£5m minimum, £10m standard). Legally compulsory if you employ anyone, including paid cleaners and caretakers. Usually bundled with PL in a small-charity package.
3. Trustees' indemnity (£250k–£1m). Proportionate once you have paid staff, a lease, or significant assets. Often a £50–£150 add-on to the package. Pointless for a £200-a-year coffee-morning group — see the trustee indemnity decision aid.
4. Cyber and professional indemnity. Worth considering if you process personal data online or give regulated advice (debt advice, immigration, mental health support).
5. Buildings cover. Only if you own a building. The village hall guide covers this in depth.

• Minutes.Every committee meeting — even informal ones — should produce a one-page minute with date, attendees, decisions. The minute book is the audit trail you'll wish you had if anyone ever asks.
• AGM. Required for Association CIOs (within 18 months of registration, at least every 15 months after). Sensible for any membership-based group regardless of legal requirement.
• Conflicts of interest register. Trustees with relevant outside interests should declare them; the register is maintained by the secretary or clerk. The Captain Tom Foundation case is the cautionary tale for what happens when conflicts go unmanaged.
• Safeguarding policy. Mandatory if you work with children or vulnerable adults. The NSPCC publishes a free template.
• GDPR / data protection. ICO registration (£40 for small charities) is required as soon as you process personal data electronically. Add a basic privacy notice to your website / member forms.

• Your local CVS. Council for Voluntary Services / Voluntary Action / Community Action — every county has one. Free advice on setting up, governance, funding. The single most useful local resource for new community groups.
• NCVO. National Council for Voluntary Organisations — strong written content, particularly on governance and trustee duties.
• Resource Centre.Long-standing charity infrastructure body. Free constitution templates, plain-English guides, decent on practical questions like “how do we actually run an AGM”.
• Charity Commission CC22a, CC22, CC49. The statutory guidance documents are dry but accurate. Worth reading once.
• ACRE / your local Rural Community Council. If you're running a village hall or rural community organisation, the RCC network is the right call. Sector experts who know your specific landscape.
• Charity Excellence.Donation-funded charity portal with practical guides and self-assessment tools. Doesn't monetise; useful for that reason.

• UK community group legal structures, compared →

  Every structure available — CIO, CIC, charity, BenCom, unincorporated — with the conversion routes between them.

• CIC vs charity vs CIO: which structure fits? →

  The most common comparison question, answered in one page.

• Community group bank accounts compared →

  The realistic options at NatWest, Lloyds, Metro, Co-op, Tide, Starling, Mettle.

• Public liability insurance for community groups →

  What it covers, what it costs, who needs £5m vs £10m.

• Trustee indemnity insurance: do you actually need it? →

  A decision aid — when TII is proportionate, when it isn't.

• The National Lottery Community Fund, explained →

  The biggest first-grant route for most new UK community groups.