Different types of company

Charity
A charity is an organization set up to provide help and raise money for those in need. Charitable organizations are non profit organization (NPO).  Many charities are centered around either religion, education or health. In the case of our study it could fall under both education or health as the centre could be educating the people to sail but also sailing can improve the mental and perhaps physical health of the people doing it. Getting disabled people to move past the stigma surrounding phyisical activity can drastically improve there mental wellbeing. Also this physical activity could help these people with mobility, balance and strength therefore improving their physical health.

An advantages of a charity is that they are recognised for social good so therefore this can aid with fundraising as people are more likely to give to a charity. Furthermore some grant funding is only available to charitable organisations. On the other hand charities may find restrictions on work that can be carried out or funded.  Furthermore the trustees of the charity are often unpaid.

A sailing example of this is the Andrew Simpson Sailing foundation, which is a charity set up in the memory of Olympic gold medalist Andrew Simpson. Its set up to support the next generation of British sailors. 

Another example is the Jubilee Sailing Trust which is very applicable to my study as it promotes taking both able bodied and disable bodied people to sea. Its main aim is to promote eqaulity and showing that teamwork can help people achieve great things. Its an accredited United Nations disability charity, which works with tall ships.

Sail4cancer is another sailing related charity which provides water based holidays and resbite days for families that have been affected by cancer. It states on there website that they raise their funds through individuals and companies.They also heavily rely on their volunteers to keep the charity going as they decribe them as their "biggest asset".

Community Interest Company

CICs are designed to be easy to set up, with aspects of a company form such as certainty and flexibility but also like to show special feautures to ensure they are working to benefit the community. They are a non- charital social enterprise by defintion. A social enterprise is a business which has primarily social objectives. The surpluses of the business are not supposed to maximise the profit of the shareholders or owners, but should be reinvested in the business or community. Since they have been created over 10,000 have been set up throughout the UK. CICs can be converted into Charities, but will keep benefitting the community until they do so. 

An advantage of CICs are that they are easy, quick and inexpensive to set up and that they are specifically designed for social enterprise. A disadvantage in comparison to charities are that the brand of CIC is not as well recognised as charity in the eyes of the public. 

An example of this is the Sail Boat Project. "We widen access to the sea, offering sail training onboard, navigation training on land, using these activities to increase confidence and a sense of wellbeing in marginalised coastal communities. We build relationships with individuals and organisations who are, or who work with marginalised people, helping them to get the most out of the ctivities and opportunities we provide".(5)

Another sailing related CIC is Colwyn Bay Watersports which works with Conwy County Borough Council. This CIC is registered to Wales. 

The final example of a CIC is the Swansea Association for independant living. This company is not sailing related however it is disability related. It used to be an incorporated company however it recently became a CIC. If we link this back to the explanation of a CIC is that it is primarily for social enterprise. The Swansea Association for independant living aids disabled people in living full independant lives. This is fully to do with people and therefore fits as a social enterprise. 


A Limited Company

There are two main types of limited company: A private limited company (ltd) is often a small business such as an independent retailer in a market town. Shares do not trade on the stock exchange. A public limited company (plc) is usually a large, well-known business. There shares are traded on the stock exchange. 

An advatantage of a limited company is tax effiency especially on profits and personal income. The directors of the company can keep there their income level between the two bands by splitting it between dividends and salary. On the other hand it is usually more expensive to set up a limited company. Also something that would be key to somewhere like Whitlingham is there is a restriction on what the company name can be for limited companies.

An example of a limited company is Sunsail Worldwide which is a large boat charter company, which operates across the world. Sunsail is a private limited company, which means the shares in this company are not traded on the stock exchange.

Sail dalmatia is another boat charter limited company which operates in Croatia and Montenegro. This is also a private limited company.

Whitlingham

Whitlingham is currently ran by Educator Solutions which is a private limited company that became incorporated in April 2016. Before that it was ran by Nofolk County Council. *** Need to find out the relationship between Norfolk County Council and Educator Solutions***. 

So would it be most beneficial for Whitlingham to be a charity, a CIC or a limited company for this project of offering disabled sailing oppurtunities. A charity is suitable for organisations that anticipate a lifetime of asking for money, in the form of donations, grants, bequests or what have you. The CIC is intended for organisations that will have primarily social purposes but will earn a significant proportion of their income from trading. CICs are more likely to be financed through loans than grants. Furthermore the charity brand is very well recognised whereas CIC is hardly known. CICs are more liable to pay tax than charities. On the other hand however CICs are bettter able to reward their directors financially than charities are. Furthemore the rules and regulations regarding charities is much stricter than for CICs, as charities have to undergo a public benefit test. Only one CIC application has ever been refused. CICs can also offer shares however the dividends that can be paid to shareholders is capped such shares are not very appealing. The last thing is that the decision need not be final and that a CIC can convert into a charity and vice versa.

There are several different types of sailibility organizations in the UK at the moment: an association of individuals, a section of a sailing club, a registered charity and an incorporated charity. This confirms that the best way to do set up a sailibility centre would to be a charity possibly slightly seperate to Educator Solutions ltd. To become a CIC or ltd the disabled sailing would have to be organised individually which I think is less beneficial than with the help of the RYA. It could set up as a charity to begin with and get the help of the RYA and then when they have gained more experience, transfer to become a CIC and work independently.