Governance and Leadership - Resources
A leading source of publications about governance for the UK voluntary and community sector.
Download the governance hub resources brochure (PDF 1.5MB) or find out directly about all the resources:
Find publication by letter:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Good Trustee Guide
Ideal as an introductory pack for new board members or as a refresher for long-serving trustees, The Good Trustee Guide provides comprehensive information about a trustee's role and guidance on developing an effective trustee board.
Order this publication
Order 5 copies for the price of 4
Table of contents (PDF 43KB)
Sample chapter - The Essentials (PDF 76KB)
A Chair's First 100 Days
This guide is packed with all the information you will need to get started as a successful new chair. It serves as an induction framework outlining a chair's role, how to chair effective meetings and build healthy relationships.
The A-Z of Good Governance - Governance Hub
The A-Z of Good Governance is a pack of 26 cards which include simple, illustrated explanations of some of the key terms used in governance and trusteeship. The cards also include questions and exercises aimed at helping you and your organisation reflect on how you operate as a board. These cards provide a light hearted means for boards to explore key issues in good governance.
Order this publication
Download the A-Z of Good Governance
Better Communication = Better Governance
The public expects efficient and accountable communication, demanding a rapid, accurate response from staff, on-time service delivery and an accountable body to deal with problems and complaints. This guide looks at the board's role in effective communication, offering checklists, model documents and case studies to help your board improve in this crucial area.
The Board Answer Book
The Board Answer Book offers case studies demonstrating some of the most common board dilemmas - from how to recruit trustees, to making sure your meetings are more effective.
Each case study is answered by three different governance practitioners, who provide handy hints and tips to deal with each situation.
The Board's Responsibility for Appraising the Chief Executive
This publication offers practical advice and tips from Dorothy Dalton, an experienced board member and chief executive. The publication includes an explanation of a range of different appraisal systems to suit all kinds of organisations.
Code of Good Governance
The Code has been formulated to help and support board members in the important and rewarding work that they carry out. It is primarily aimed at trustees in the voluntary and community sector but will also be useful to chief executives who provide the bridge between trustees and staff.
Order this publication
Download the code (PDF 277KB)
Code of Good Governance (pocket-sized version)
This pocket guide is a summary of Good Governance: A code for the voluntary and community sector. It is intended to help and support board members in the important and rewarding work that they carry out. It is also useful for staff or advisers supporting governance in an organisation.
Good Governance (pocket-sized version) 5 copies
Good Governance (pocket-sized version) 10 copies
Download the Code of Good Governance (pocket-sized version)
Code of Governance Toolkit
The toolkit is based on the national Code of Governance for the Voluntary and Community Sector.
It shows how the Code of Governance can be used and is designed to help you start using the Code in the context of your own organisation
Click here to download individual Code of Governance Toolkit resources
Developing Trustee Boards
This manual provides the resources and techniques to enable trainers to introduce principles of good governance and to explore issues of particular concern to the board. It includes a self-assessment tool for reviewing your trustee boards.
Directory of Approved Consultants 2009
If you are considering using a consultant but don't know where to start, the ninth edition of this popular directory lists 217 consultants working with the voluntary sector.
Effective Retreat Planner
This guide offers a step-by-step approach to retreat planning, from setting a framework for the day to the practical details of event planning.
Retreats provide an opportunity for trustee boards, staff and stakeholders to get to grips with the thorny issues that don't make it onto routine meeting agendas. Effective retreats give the freedom to think creatively about the bigger issues.
For Love and Money
For Love and Money is the result of research commissioned by The Governance Hub, in partnership with the Social Enterprise Coalition, and conducted by third sector specialists from the Open University.
Order this publication
Download For Love and Money (PDF 1.74KB)
Funding and Costing Workforce and Governance Development
This resource, produced by the UK Workforce Hub and Governance Hub, is designed to help you better understand the costing and funding implications of organisational development so that you are better able to plan, budget, cost and fundraise around these critical areas.
Order this publication
Download Funding and Costing Workforce and Governance Development (PDF 444KB)
The Good Governance Action Plan Workbook
Trustees, chairs and chief executives acknowledge that a dedicated, well-trained board is vital to the successful operation of any voluntary sector organisation. This workbook has been designed so that boards are empowered to take responsibility for their own development.
Good Management Guide for the Voluntary Sector
Managers in the voluntary sector face the challenge of balancing value-driven and business objectives. This guide addresses the specific needs of people working in a management role in the sector and is a useful induction for those new to management.
Good Practice in Trustee Recruitment (Toolkit)
The Good Practice in Trustee Recruitment Toolkit sets out practical advice for seeking the best people to govern a community or voluntary organisation. You could introduce the 10-step process to trustees, or delegate recruitment tasks to staff members where appropriate.
Order this publication
Download the toolkit (PDF 289KB)
Click here to download individual Trustee Recruitment Toolkit resources
Recruit a Trustee (pocket guide)
Recruit a Trustee is a companion publication to the Good Practice in Trustee Recruitment Toolkit, a more extensive guide also produced by the Governance Hub, which sets out practical advice for seeking the best people to govern a community or voluntary organisation.
Order this publication
Download Recruit a Trustee - Pocket Guide (PDF 234KB)
Honorary Treasurer's Handbook
This handbook outlines the role of the treasurer and how this contrasts with the role of the finance director. Using practical examples and case studies, the publication demystifies the role of the treasurer and provides useful resources for the treasurer and for the board.
Involving Young People
This guide offers practical advice with checklists and dos and don'ts to assist recruiters in attracting young people to their organisations.
Is it Seaworthy? Assessing and Funding the Capacity of Voluntary and Community Organisations
Is it Seaworthy? helps those who are funding and supporting the voluntary and community sector check the organisational capacity of the bodies they work with. It draws on ideas in numerous research publications as well as a variety of assessment frameworks currently in use. It provides an overview of the issues, real life case studies and suggests Capacity Assessment Prompts', which can be used to help assess organisational capacity.
Order a copy of this publication
Download Is It Seaworthy (PDF 508 KB)
The Leadership Labyrinth
This report draws together an understanding of contemporary leadership within the third sector. The Leadership Labyrinth draws both on existing research undertaken by the Third Sector Leadership Centre and other organisations, and on a series of 26 interviews across a variety of leadership contexts which were carried out for this publication.
Learning to Fly
This leaflet provides an introduction to the role of governance in a small organisation and also details useful resources for improving how your board functions.
Order this publication
Download Learning to Fly (PDF 119KB)
Learning to Lead
Learning to Lead: Ten Ways to Develop Your Leadership Skills is a guide to the range of leadership development interventions that are available for sector leaders.
Living Values Training Pack
This training pack is designed to highlight the importance of identifying values, and working by them amid the pressures acting on the voluntary sector. The training pack complements the 'Living Values' pocket guide and includes a range of materials to use in interactive sessions.
Order this publication
Download Living values pocket guide (PDF 199KB)
Looking After Leaders
According to new research, 95% of leaders in medium-sized charities operating in the health and social care field feel unable to access the development they need to advance their leadership skills......
Lost in Translation
Lost in Translation offers a comprehensive guide to establishing and maintaining a healthy working relationship between the two top organisational leaders.
Recruiting a New Chief Executive: A guide for trustees and chairs
This new publication is a step-by-step guide to making the process of recruitment a success. It includes a model job description, interview questions and an example contract.
Reducing the Risks
The responsibility for a charity or voluntary and community sector organisation ultimately rests with its board of trustees. So it is essential that these board members have the awareness, knowledge and confidence to identify and manage the risks associated with their role.
Order this publication
Download Reducing the risk (PDF 247KB)
Reducing the Risks (training pack)
This training pack is designed to help trustees learn to assess and minimise the risks associated with trustee liabilities. It complements the Hub's publication Reducing the Risks: A Guide to Trustee Liabilities, and includes a range of materials to use in interactive sessions
Order this publication
Download the training pack: Reducing the Risks (PDF, 1.4Mb)
Setting Chief Executive Remuneration
This guide helps trustee boards make these complex decisions, offering a systematic approach to setting CEO packages.
Tending your Board
This guide recognises that many organisations struggle to find the time to review their board's performance, so the suggestions are grouped into monthly themes in order to help busy trustees make inroads into improving the work they do.
Order this publication
Download Tending your Board (PDF 1.2MB)
.jpg "Trust Youth")
Trust Youth
Trust Youth is a guide to what being a trustee means for children and young people.
It is aimed at children and young people, to let them know what trusteeship is all about, and explains key terms. It is also a useful guide for adults and organisations, suggesting the best way to recruit and support young trustees.
Order this publication
Download the Trust Youth guide (PDF 414KB)
Trustees and Management Committee Members National Occupational Standards
The Standards are aimed at individual trustees, board members and governors in organisations both large and small. They represent a standard of best practise for the role of governance.
Order this publication or Download it (PDF 157KB)
Trustee and Management Committee National Occupational Standards (pocket-size)
This is a handy pocket sized version of Trustees and Management Committee Members National Occupational Standards.
These standards complement Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector.
Order this publication (pocket sized) or Download it pocket-sized (PDF 85KB)
Trustee and Management Committee National Occupational Standards (toolkit)
This toolkit has been produced to help you use The Trustees and Management Committee Members National Occupational Standards within your organisation. It is also useful for trainers working with boards and trustees. The toolkit provides structured and practical steps for applying the NOS Standards in the context voluntary and community organisation both large and small.
Order this publication
Download the toolkit (PDF 323KB)
Click here to download individual National Occupational Standards resources
Trustee Standards in Practice - A Guide for Smaller Organisations
This online guide about the National Occupational Standards for Trustees and Management Committee Members provides practical advice on different approaches to applying the Standards and how to use them to get the most from boards.
It contains organisational development resource, Personal learning resource for individuals.
Order this publication
Download Trustee Standards in Practice (PDF 233KB)
Voluntary Sector Strategic Analysis 2008/09
This analysis examines the current trends that can positively or negatively shape the future of the voluntary and community sector, and the place of your organisation within it.
Other publications
Being Who You Say You Are - A Guide to Governance for Faith-based Organisations
Better Governance: An Introduction to Measuring and Improving Board Effectiveness
Governance and Organisational Structures
What Management Committees Need to Know
Back to top
Research reports
A Matter of Common Sense - Full Report
A Matter of Common Sense - Summary
Chairs of Voluntary and Community Organisations: Support and Learning Needs
Funding for work force and governance development
Governance Advisers Support Need Analysis
Mapping Governance Learning and Support for Chairs in England 2005
Measuring Governance Performance
Support and Resource Needs of Trustees and Chairs in Voluntary and Community Organisations
Unambiguous advice on the liabilities of trusteeship: qualitative research and analysis
What makes Chairs of governing bodies effectice? Jan 2010
Back to top
