OSCR to publish trustee names from 5 March 2026

Circle Thursday 5 March 2026. That’s when the final pieces of Scotland’s new charity law click into place and transparency steps up: trustee names will appear on the public Scottish Charity Register and, shortly after, full annual reports and accounts will be published there for five years. We’ve kept this guide practical so you can brief your board, protect people’s privacy, and meet the timetable with confidence.

What exactly changes on the Register? From early 2026 the regulator will publish the first and last name of every charity trustee on each charity’s Register page. OSCR will still collect home addresses, dates of birth and contact details to help it regulate, but those will not be displayed publicly. This adds visibility without exposing personal contact information. (oscr.org.uk)

What this means if you’re already on the Register before 5 March 2026: trustee names won’t appear until you’ve provided them. In practice, OSCR has been collecting trustee details through OSCR Online since 30 June 2025, so most charities will supply or confirm names via the annual return process or by updating the online record. (oscr.org.uk)

If you register a new charity on or after 5 March, you’ll give trustee details at application and, once approved, those names will appear on your entry. The Scottish Parliament’s own briefing describes this shift as improving accountability and mirroring practice in England and Wales, so audiences and funders can see who is responsible for governance. (parliament.scot)

Safeguards matter. Trustees can ask OSCR not to publish a name if doing so is likely to jeopardise the safety or security of any person or premises. That decision sits with OSCR under section 3(4) of the 2005 Act, and the regulator has a clear application route with examples of when an exemption is and isn’t likely to be granted. If you think a safety case applies, begin that conversation early and keep evidence. (oscr.org.uk)

Accounts are going public too. Every year you already submit annual accounts, a Trustees’ Annual Report and an external scrutiny report; from early 2026 OSCR will publish these exactly as submitted and keep them online for at least five years. Unlike today’s redacted approach for some charities, OSCR won’t remove personal information before publication, so review drafts carefully before filing. (oscr.org.uk)

Here’s a simple prep list you can fold into your next meeting agenda. Make sure your named OSCR Online users can get into the ‘Managing Charity Trustees’ area; confirm each trustee’s full name as you want it to appear; agree a short privacy note explaining that publication is a legal requirement; and check your draft accounts for unnecessary names or images before you sign them off. (oscr.org.uk)

For small, volunteer‑run groups, here’s the plain version. Your name will appear; your address, email, phone and date of birth will not. OSCR keeps those details internally so it can contact trustees and carry out regulation. If your home is listed as the charity’s contact address, that address may still show on the Register; if that worries you, consider using an office, PO box or mailbox service as the public contact. (oscr.org.uk)

Keep the dates straight. Trustee data collection via OSCR Online began on 30 June 2025. The Scottish Government’s papers set out three commencement steps for the 2023 Act-1 April 2024, 30 June 2025 and early 2026-which align with trustee‑name publication and full accounts going online. Separately, the 2025 accounting amendments take effect for periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026 and tie into the Act’s section 10 changes. (gov.scot)

What this means for learning and leadership. If you’re a student trustee, a volunteer chair or a small‑charity treasurer, treat March as your tidy‑up month: brief the board on why names will appear, note any safety concerns early, make sure your independent examiner or auditor is booked, and set a calm timetable for signing and filing. When in doubt, check OSCR’s guidance and keep your Register entry up to date-little and often beats a scramble. (oscr.org.uk)