This legal structure combines the limited liability of a company with charitable status. While there are some unique features to it, in many ways, the SCIO structure was set up to avoid duplication in regulation and reporting efforts, where a company limited by guarantee also wishes to take charitable status. SCIOs are regulated by and report to OSCR alone. As a charitable body, all its activities must be charitable in nature, and it has an ‘asset lock’ (see box 1) built in. SCIOs are commonly used to hold and disburse community benefits.
More information on SCIOs is available from SCVO and OSCR.
