The duties of a Company secretary are not specified by law but are usually detailed in the employment contract. No special qualification is required to hold the secretary position for private limited companies. However, in a public limited company, the secretary must hold certain qualifications as specified in the company law.
The main duties of a company secretary are that of responsible for maintaining the statutory registers such as filing relevant forms to Companies House within stipulated dateline. For example, forms 288 must be filed to Companies House within 14 days if there are changes to directors’ appointments.
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Providing shareholders and auditors with notice of meetings
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Send copies of resolutions and agreements to Registrar of Companies,
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Provide a copy of the accounts to every shareholder of the company and,
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Prepare and keep copies of minutes of meetings
Under the new Companies Act 2006, a private limited company now no longer required to appoint a company secretary. This means that the duties of maintaining the company statutory registers are the responsibility of the directors of the company.
This further simplified the process of forming a private limited company. All that required to incorporate a limited company is a single person who can be the sole director and sole shareholder. The new change in Companies Act has made unincorporated sole trading form of the business structure unattractive.
If your company would like to remove the secretary from the registers, you must file form 288b to Companies House.
Canterbury Accountancy – Solutions for company official appointments
