“It’s Not You, It’s Your Governing Document” ─ When Merging Charities Need An “It’s Complicated” Clause

The latest Good Merger Index shows that a record number of charity mergers took place between May 2024 and April 2025 - revealing a 49% increase compared to the previous financial year. 

Charity mergers are often presented as a way to achieve greater efficiency and impact or to build long-term resilience and financial stability. However, for unincorporated charities, the process can require a little more care than the headlines sometimes suggest. This is not because the legal framework is defective, but because it is carefully designed to do something valuable: protect charitable assets and safeguard the intentions of those who gave them. The result is a merger process that demands careful planning, strong trustee engagement, and, most of all, expert legal structuring.