Q. What are my obligations as an enrolled EB?

A.

EBs must ensure that all LCF funds received are spent compliantly; sufficient records of all LCF income and expenditure are maintained and statutory reporting requirements are met.

You can take ENTRUST's 30 minute online training module to understand the obligations of an enrolled EB. The module can be accessed through this EB Enrolment Module link.

Q. What is forcible revocation?

A.

If an Environmental Body's (EB's) activities have resulted in a serious breach in the Landfill Tax Regulations 1996 (Regulations), we may refer the EB to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for enforced revocation.

If an EB is forcibly revoked it means the organisation can no longer receive or spend Landfill Ccommunities Fund (LCF) money and all Directors or Trustees involved in the running of the EB will be disqualified from involvement in any other EB now or in the future. In addition, HMRC has the power to reclaim tax credits from the donating Landfill Operator (LO) where qualifying contributions have not been spent compliantly.

Q. Can I start a project as soon as I have enrolled?

A.

No. All projects must be approved by your fund provider and approved by ENTRUST before any Landfill Communities Fund (LCF) money can be spent or works carried out.

Q. When you're completing a compliance inspection, who do you need to see and at which sites?

A.

We will need to speak to the people with knowledge of your management procedures, financial records and project records relating to the LCF or to someone who has authority to discuss these areas.

Most visits are conducted at the Environmental Body address provided by the organisation at enrolment as that is usually where the records we require will be held. However, we will conduct our inspections at whichever location is the most appropriate for the EB. We may also need to visit one or more of your project sites to confirm that the projects have been delivered according to the original project approval and they remain in compliant use. We will tell you in advance of the inspection which project sites we want to visit.

Q. What information do the compliance inspectors need?

A.

The inspectors will need to see all documents and records which demonstrate how Landfill Communities Fund (LCF) monies have been spent and evidence that regulatory obligations have been met. These will include:

  • Bank statements and mandates for LCF accounts;
  • Management accounts and information on your running costs charged to the LCF;
  • Details of how qualifying contributions have been spent and information on Contributing Third Parties;
  • Project files (including project costings, budgets, project expenses and invoices);
  • Any contracts, planning permission or other legal obligations;
  • Any documented procedures you use;
  • Your Board papers and project approvals; and
  • Your governance structure.

We will provide specific details of what documents we require when confirming the timing of the inspection. During the inspection the inspector may also ask to see additional random samples of files, this is normal audit practice.

Prior to the inspection we will review the information already provided to us, including Statutory Annual Returns; details of LCF Contributions and Transfers, Director/Trustee records and your Governing Documents so that we do not ask for information previously supplied. As part of your preparation for an inspection it would be helpful if you could review these details to ensure all of your records are up-to-date.

You can find out more about our inspection process in our compliance inspections leaflet available on the Compliance Inspection Process page of our website.

Q. Why am I being inspected?

A.

ENTRUST is the Regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund appointed by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). In order to satisfy our Regulatory duties we carry out an annual schedule of compliance inspections. The majority of our inspections are routine and are nothing to be concerned about.

Our inspections are identified through our risk model which consists of a number of risk indicators. The key indicators include:

  • The amount of Landfill Communities Fund (LCF) monies received, spent or uncommitted;
  • Performance in complying with statutory obligations, such as submitting Statutory Annual Returns, reporting of Contributions or Transfers; and
  • The results of previous compliance inspections.

We will also take into consideration any other information received which may indicate possible non-compliance with the Regulations. You can find out more about our inspections in our compliance inspections leaflet available on the Compliance Inspection Process page of our website.

Q. What can I expect at a compliance inspection?

A.

We carry out two main types of inspection: a project compliance (PC) inspection and a control framework inspection (CFI). Both of these will look at how your organisation is managed. A PC inspection will focus on your EB's delivery of projects. A CFI inspection is more detailed and in addition to reviewing project delivery will also cover your EB's governance and management arrangements.

The length and detail of the inspection will vary dependant on the size of your organisation. A Compliance Inspector will make contact to arrange a convenient date and time for the inspection and will explain what we intend to review, including details of specific projects, and will explain what will be required of you. This will also give you a chance to ask any questions you may have. We will then confirm all of the details discussed in an email or a letter.

We understand that Environmental Bodies in some cases are run by volunteers or individuals, we will therefore try and ensure that any disruption to you is minimised. However if you have any concerns please speak to your Compliance Inspector when arranging the visit or the Compliance Manager. All contact details are held on our website.  

On occasion, we may complete a desktop review instead of an inspection visit. If we complete a desktop review we will need you to supply all of the documentary evidence to us to support the review.

You can find out more about our inspections in our compliance inspections leaflet available on the Compliance Inspection Process page of our website.

Q. Why do you carry out compliance inspections?

A.

ENTRUST is the regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund (LCF) appointed by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). We have a duty to make sure that Environmental Bodies (EBs) receiving LCF monies are meeting the requirements of the Landfill Tax Regulations 1996.

One way of doing this is by visiting you and your projects to look at your procedures and records. We will always notify you, prior to the visit, of the documentation we will wish to review. We will give you as much prior notice of our intention to visit as possible.

We can also offer advice and recommendations for improvement at the inspection.

You can find out more about our inspections in our compliance inspections leaflet available on the Compliance Inspection Process page of our website.

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A.

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Q. What is RSS?

A.

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