Charity & Not For Profit

Shared values and deep expertise.

Like any organisation, not-for-profits need to achieve their purposes and be financially sustainable. It’s just that their purposes and motivations are very different.

We’ve been at the heart of the sector for decades and understand the complex structures, governance, management and commercial issues and challenges you face.

We apply our commercial skills, legal expertise and specialist sector know-how to help you set up new initiatives. To support you into, and out of, commercial deals. To help avoid disputes and guide you through them when they arise, through the thickets of regulation. To help you campaign for the outcomes you seek. We’ll also help to manage your reputation.

Working with you

Our employment lawyers have helped to define the legal position of volunteers. Our real estate lawyers are as adept with trusts for ancient buildings as they are with modern office leases. Our finance team leads on social investment. Our public law team will fight your corner in a judicial review or campaign for change.

We understand the sensitivities and pressures of reputation management when you’re under scrutiny. Our dispute resolution team can help resolve and avoid your issues sensitively. And if it comes to a complicated regulatory investigation, we have the experience to steer you through.

As a B Corporation, we believe there’s more to doing business than just making a profit. Our values and our own purpose inform our decisions as a business and they help to shape the advice we give to purpose-driven organisations like yours.

Explore

Briefing for Charities & Social Enterprises | 30 June

Our weekly roundup of news and updates from across the sector. To help you navigate this week’s content, the links below will take you straight to content by topic. Charity Commission At the Third Sector Conference 2026, Charity Commission Chair Dame Julia Unwin gave a speech about “The Commission’s role in uncertain times”. She discussed …
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Managing charity financial distress: key takeaways from our roundtable

Following on from our March webinar on Managing Financial Difficulties, Bates Wells and FRP Advisory hosted a Financial Management Roundtable on the 10th June which explored the challenges facing charities in the current funding environment. There was a particular focus on trustee duties in distress, early warning signs of financial difficulty, and practical approaches to …
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Briefing for Charities & Social Enterprises | 23 June

Our weekly round-up of news and updates from across the sector. To help you navigate this week’s content, the links below will take you straight to content by topic. Investigations and complaints The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into St Andrew’s Healthcare.  This comes after a regulatory compliance case into concerns about safeguarding …
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Webinar | Resolving trade mark disputes for charities | 7 July 2026

A charity’s name and brand – its identity – can be one of its most valuable assets. Someone else adopting a name or brand that’s too close to yours, or even deliberately imitating you online, can have serious consequences. Also, an allegation that you have infringed a third party’s rights can be extremely damaging. Resolving …
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Immigration update: sponsor licence compliance for faith-based organisations

Faith-based organisations play a significant role in the UK’s migration system, regularly sponsoring overseas workers to fill specialist religious roles. Although sector-specific data is not published by the UKVI, it is widely understood that many of the UK’s 140,000 sponsor licence holders are prominent faith-based organisations. However, it is a challenging time to be a …
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“Bates Wells have a strong team of people who are not only highly qualified and experienced but also approachable and work pragmatically to find a way forward.”

Charity, Chambers 2024

“Bates Wells break issues down, simplify, and explain complex matters. The advice is sound, professional, and solid.”

Charity, Chambers 2024

“The team are all marked by their excellent communication skills and confident knowledge of the law. You get real quality advice from friendly and understanding members of the team.”

Charity, Chambers 2024

‘Bates Wells has unrivalled knowledge of the charity sector and is the go to firm in the space of social investment and blended finance.’

Charity, Legal 500 2024

‘This team is not only excellent at understanding charities and not-for-profits, they are at the forefront of the fast evolving field of social investment and purposeful business.’

Charity, Legal 500 2024
Meet our team

Our charity solicitors give practical advice on the full spectrum of charity and commercial law – from drafting commercial contracts, to advising on grants, to handling the most complex, high profile and sensitive cases.

View our charity services

Visit our Spotlight hub to watch our panels on demand, and explore our resources.

Spotlight – the annual Bates Wells charity conference