In the U.K., since 2006 when they had their new Charities Act passed, one of the things it did was say that every charity every year would have to demonstrate that it had a public benefit. Currently, the rule is that if you're applying for charity status, for the first three heads of charity, which is advancing religion, or advancing education, or relief of poverty, you don't actually have to show that you have any public benefit. Only with the fourth head of charity, which is other purposes beneficial to the community that the law regards as charitable, do you have to demonstrate that there is a public benefit.
On May 8th, 2012. See this statement in context.