Charities have particular problems with being forced to use banking services intended for businesses, a survey involving more than 1,200 organisations concludes.

An absence of appropriate banking facilities has forced some small charities to hold money in personal accounts or keep cash at home, a survey has found.

The survey was co-ordinated by a coalition of voluntary sector umbrella bodies, which called for the Charity Commission to help address the “complex and overlapping challenges” it identified.

A report into the research, published yesterday, says small charities, in particular, faced problems with day-to-day banking and says the services they need are unavailable or unsuitable for voluntary organisations. It also concludes that online banking is not well designed for small charities.