£26m tax boost from HMRC voluntary sector projects

Grants of £2 million to voluntary and community organisations to help people with taxes, benefits and tax credits led to £26 million in additional tax being declared to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) last year.

This was an increase of 55 per cent on the previous year.

Some 4,500 volunteers were trained by these organisations to answer people’s questions on tax credits, benefits and tax issues. They will ensure that an additional 225,000 people per year get help and advice on HMRC-related issues.

Exchequer Secretary David Gauke said:

“I was very pleased at these results. They show that the grants are a cost-effective way of ensuring that vulnerable people on low incomes get the help they need with their tax affairs from an independent, trusted source.”

Notes for editors

1. In addition to voluntary and community organisations and charities, HMRC’s funding programme is directed at social enterprises, co-operatives and large and small mutuals.

2. HMRC has operated a multi-year funding commitment since 2007-08. The programme will continue to:

- help hard-to-reach and vulnerable customers get the right entitlements and pay the right amount of tax

- improve the experience of hard-to-reach and vulnerable customers in their dealings with HMRC, and

- help HMRC to better understanding of the needs of customers who seek enhanced support from the voluntary and community sector.

3. The current funding programme runs over the four years 2011-12 to 2014-15, and £2 million of grant funding is made available to the voluntary and community sector each year. The funding for the current four-year period has now been allocated.

4. HMRC has distributed £2 million across nine organisations in the VCS sector to undertake 17 projects aimed at providing support to vulnerable customers.

5. Successful organizations in the 2011-15 funding programme: www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funded-orgs.pdf

6. Further information: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/grant-funding-news.htm, http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funding-1011-results.htm and http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funding1112.htm

7. Follow HMRC on Twitter @HMRCgovuk

8. HMRC’s flickr channel www.flickr.com/hmrcgovuk