Where to find trustees

Over a third of charities experience difficulties recruiting trustees and two thirds struggle to find trustees with the appropriate skills. However, over 80% rely on word of mouth or personal recommendations to find their new board members.

Trustees come from all walks of life and there are many sources of potential trustees. Here are some ideas:

• Informing members (if your charity is a membership organisation) – for example, by circulating details of the trustee vacancy and desired skills and attributes to members before an AGM
• Advertising in the local press
• Arranging news features in the press about the charity and the contribution made by trustees
• Posters in public places
• Open evenings for prospective candidates
• Using a trustee brokerage service - agencies or organisations that match trustee vacancies to people interested in joining boards.
• Asking contacts and networks – word of mouth can still be useful provided it does not cause a lack of diversity - and provided that trustees are recruited on the basis of what they bring to the board rather than because of their personal connection with board members.

Whichever route you choose, remember to:

• emphasise the positive contribution made by trustees and the fulfilment and reward that comes with the role
• be as clear as possible about the role, duties and expected time commitment involved – this will be particularly important to candidates who may not have been in a trustee role before.

Other useful resources

• Trustee Recruitment Resources for Small Organisations
• Good Practice in Trustee Recruitment Toolkit
• Recruit a Trustee Pocket Guide
• Trustee Bank  Our free service to advertise and search for trustee vacancies
• Trustees Unlimited Recruiting trustees so that you have a balanced yet dynamic board in a cost effective manner can be a challenging task. Trustees Unlimited was established to provide a solution to the problem many not for profit organisations face - trying to recruit high quality trustees in a rigorous and yet cost effective way.