A BOLTON software specialist which helps charities collect gift aid cash — reclaimed tax on donations — has been shortlisted in the Payment Project of the Year category at a prestigious awards.

Up against national retailers such as Tesco, Subway and B&Q in the BT Retail Week Tech & Ecomm Awards 2015, Nisyst has been shortlisted for the innovative software incorporated in its CHARiot system.

The Bolton firm submitted its entry together with The Children’s Society, which among other UK charities, has benefited greatly from the advanced payment software.

Paul Tate, new business manager at the Children’s Society, said: “I’m delighted that Nisyst has been shortlisted for this award and wish them the best of luck.

“Nisyst’s CHARiot Full Scan Mode has removed any margin for error in our shops and has significantly increased Gift Aid capture, adding £500 to £800 per week to the bottom line, which is a total of approximately £26,000 to £41,000 per year.

“Thanks to Nisyst’s can-do approach to enhancing their already impressive software, our EPoS is always aligned to our revenue growth strategy and supports the growth of our retail network.”

Every year, UK charities lose out on millions of pounds in Gift Aid that has not been collected, either because they use manual cash till and paper-based Gift Aid management systems, or because the Gift Aid collection functionality on their existing EPoS system can be by-passed at point of sale.

Dave Chunilal, technical director at Nisyst, added: “Retail Gift Aid is worth £60 million a year, and much of this is lost through ineffective Gift Aid collection — so we developed a solution to help charities maximise margins.

“Our unique CHARiot system was designed with the user in mind and is the only solution of its kind on the market. Using Toshiba ST A20 EPoS hardware, CHARiot not only captures 100 per cent of Gift Aid through its Full Scan Mode (FSM) function, but allows easy access to efficient management tools including full tracking and stock control.

“We are delighted to be shortlisted in the category, standing next to with some extremely credible, big hitters in the retail industry, so we’re looking forward to the event and fingers crossed our system will be recognised on the night.”

The BT Retail Week Tech & Ecomm Awards will take place on Wednesday, June 10, at the Hilton Hotel in Park Lane, London.