£30m tax boost from HMRC voluntary sector projects

HM Revenue and Customs grants to voluntary and community sector organisations that help people with taxes, benefits and tax credits led to additional tax of £30.6 million being declared last year.

During 2012-13, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) made £2 million available to voluntary and community sector (VCS) bodies to provide help and advice to customers who need support to meet their obligations and claim entitlements. 

More than 3,500 volunteers were trained by the organisations to answer people’s questions on tax credits, benefits and tax issues. As a result, HMRC customers also took up an additional £29.9 million of credits and benefits.   

Exchequer Secretary David Gauke said:

“These results show that HMRC’s grants to the voluntary sector continue to provide 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.  The results of the HMRC Third Sector Grant Funding Programme for 2012-13: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funding-1213-results.htm

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

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

• help customers who are hard to reach and need enhanced support to get the right entitlements and pay the right amount of tax
• improve the experience of those customers in their dealings with HMRC, and
• help HMRC to understand better the needs of customers who seek enhanced support from the voluntary and community sector.

4.  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.

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

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

7.  Further information: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/grant-funding-news.htm  and

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/vcs/funding1112.htm

8.  Follow HMRC on Twitter @HMRCgovuk

9.  Images are available on HMRC’s flickr site www.flickr.com/hmrcgovuk