ACNC Makes Unique Deal With Charity
5 February 2015 at 10:27 am
In an Australian first a charity based in Alice Springs has partnered with the national charity regulator in an attempt to improve its governance.
The Yipirinya School, an independent Aboriginal school and charity, recently signed an enforceable undertaking with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).
The agreement was made to try to rectify record keeping and governance concerns at the charity.
Assistant Commissioner and General Counsel at the ACNC, Murray Baird, said that the agreement was a positive outcome.
“By offering the ACNC enforceable undertaking, the charity is committing itself to improving a range of governance issues,” Baird said.
“We are extremely pleased to work with the charity and we have every confidence in the Management Committee to rectify the situation.”
The President of the Yipirinya School Council Inc Management Committee, Jungala Kriss, also welcomed the collaborative approach taken with the ACNC.
“The Yipirinya Management Committee welcomes the opportunity to work with the ACNC in a process of reviewing our constitution, policies and practices to ensure that the Yipirinya School Council meets the governance standards required of a charitable Not for Profit organisation, so as to serve the best interests of our children and our community,” Kriss said.
Baird said that an enforceable undertaking was one of many regulatory tools at the ACNC’s disposal.
“Part 4-2 of the ACNC Act sets out a range of enforcement powers available to the ACNC,” he said.
“This includes warnings, directions, injunctions, and of course enforceable undertakings. Ultimately, the ACNC also has the power to revoke the status of a registered charity and we have done so on a number of occasions where we believe a charity is no longer meeting the minimum governance standards.
“In situations such as this our regulatory approach allows us to work with the charity to rectify the situation.
“We will continue to offer guidance and support to ensure the charity gets back on track.”
