Preena Patel

Preena advises charities and not-for-profits across a wide range of governance, regulatory and structural matters. She works closely with boards, executive teams and founders to ensure organisations are set up for long-term impact, strong governance and regulatory compliance.

Since starting her legal career, Preena has worked extensively with charities, schools and not-for-profit organisations, supporting them from inception through to growth and collaboration. Her practice spans the full lifecycle of charitable organisations, from establishment and registration through to restructuring, mergers and governance reviews.

Preena undertook a secondment to the in-house legal team at Save the Children International as part of her training contract, where she gained valuable insight into the operational, regulatory and commercial challenges faced by international charities.

Preena is also a trustee of a small grant-making charity focusing on the environmental and social benefit of sustainable rice farming.

• The establishment and registration of charities (including charitable companies limited by guarantee, CIOs, Trusts and Royal Charters) with the Chairty Commission, including for corporate foundations.
• Governance reviews including constitutional updates, trustee training and the development of governance policies.
• Restructuring advice including choosing appropriate legal structures, conversions and incorporations for both national and international organisations.
• Charity mergers and acquisitions, collaborations, partnerships and hive-outs.
• Group re-organisation including establishing trading subsidiaries.
• Liaising with regulators including the Charity Commission, the Privy Council and Companies House on constitutional, regulatory and registration matters, including serious incident reports.

• Author of an article on charity collaborations in SEE Change Magazine.
• Author of an article on good governance in Independent School Management.

Preena is a member of both the Law Society and the Charity Law Association.