Trustee and governance

Charities should consider publishing expenses of individual trustees and senior managers but disclosure should not be mandatory, according to a report by an independent expert group.

A new, simplified constitution for very small charities has been launched by the Charity Commission in partnership with umbrella bodies, including NCVO. The new constitution is designed to provide a clear, concise, practical framework for charities with an income of under £5000. It uses clear, direct language that is easy to understand, is only 700 words long and covers all the requirements for a very small charity which does not own land or staff.

NCVO and CFDG have set up an independent expert group to report on best-practice on how registered charities disclose expenses.

The group is chaired by Lindsay Driscoll, former Charity Commissioner, Chair of the Code of Governance Steering Group and a Consultant at Bates, Wells and Braithwate.  The group also includes Debra Allcock Tyler, Chief Executive of the Directory of Social Change, Don Bawtree, Charity Unit Partner at BDO Stoy Hayward, and Paul Palmer, Professor of Voluntary Sector Management at Cass Business School.

Our Annual Trustee Conference was held on Monday 12 October 2009. The conference is the largest and most important annual event for anyone involved in governance. Workshop slides from the conference are now available.

'There is clearly a lot of interest in governance still and there was a good buzz around the conference and it was, as ever, very professionally run' Workshop leader, 2009 conference

The steering group of the voluntary and community sector’s Code of Good Governance, chaired by Lindsay Driscoll (pictured), has opened a consultation on the Code’s key principles. The aim is for the Code of Good Governance to remain voluntary but to have more meaning and to become an effective standard in the sector. The consultation closes on 24 November.

Code of Good Governance consultation (PDF 52KB)