One of the great joys of leading the Commission is the opportunity it provides to meet with charities of all shapes and sizes. It is a privilege to hear directly from trustees about their experiences and witness the impact of their work. And I have been struck, during my first few months in office, by the earnest commitment of those involved in charity. It is clear that most trustees take their duties and responsibilities incredibly seriously, and recognise that strong governance, and excellent outcomes, are inextricably linked. But trustees’ time is finite, and their energy often spread thinly.
I am very aware that the Commission regulates a voluntary sector, run by people who, by and large, give their time to charity on top of already busy working and personal lives. Trustees of smaller charities might deal with everything that goes on in their charity – from fixing a leaking tap, to raising enough funds to keep the show on the road, to managing potential conflicts of interest with transparency and integrity. I am therefore determined to ensure that we make it as easy as possible for our trustees to get the correct advice right from the start. It is imperative that trustees understand and follow the rules to avoid risks caused by unintentional poor governance. Now more than ever, we must also be a recognised source of clarity and support. I have seen first-hand the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on charities. Not only are rising prices and rising demand placing financial pressures on charities, they also make for governance challenges, and make for tired, and sometimes overwhelmed trustees.
Helping trustees to be certain in uncertain times
Unfortunately, at the moment, too few trustees act prudently and seek out our guidance when they need help. Many ask a fellow trustee or colleague, or go online, reaching sources that may not provide a definitive answer. And indeed, trustees may not always know when they could benefit from sound advice. Many trustees are overconfident of having the necessary knowledge and understanding to carry out their role. Our research shows that around 98% of trustees feel ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ confident but, when asked questions about how to run their charity, many are less well informed than they believe.
I want to help change that. Two things are crucially important in this respect. First, our guidance must be clear, and as simple as possible, ensuring that busy trustees of all backgrounds and walks of life can understand and follow it. This is where our suite of five-minute guides come in. Short and intelligible, the guides cover the basics of charity governance. Most recently we introduced a short guide on campaigning and political activity. Other guides cover issues from safeguarding responsibilities to managing conflicts of interest. We have gone a step further in our commitment to make our guidance as engaging as possible, also producing videos to bring the basics to life. These have been designed with trustees in mind, offering short bursts of information, particularly for those always on the go.
Second, we must go to trustees with these guides, rather than sitting back and waiting for trustees to find our pages. This week, we launched the latest iteration of our trustee campaign. Designed to help trustees be certain in uncertain times, the campaign uses social media platforms to reach out to trustees and promote our five-minute guides to trustees. Previous phases of this campaign, which began in March 2021 have been a great success, almost doubling the percentage of trustees who are aware of our five-minute guides post-campaign (from 23% to 40%). And 39% reported taking or intending to take action as a result of reading the five-minute guides, such as bringing the need for governance changes to their next board meeting. I want to build on these successes and reach even more trustees with tools and information that equip them to run their charities prudently.
Tailoring information to each charity
As part of our wider effort to support trustees, our MyCommission Account will, with time,be a further game changer, helping to tailor and target information at individual trustees in a way that is relevant to their experiences, and the charity they are involved in. At the moment, we’re asking charities’ contacts to sign up for an account, before we roll the service out to individual trustees. Please, if you haven’t done so already, make sure the Commission has the right official contact for your charity – and encourage that person to follow the instructions for setting up an account when they get an invitation from us.
And if you see our campaign pop up in your social media feeds, please help spread the message. Share our videos, encourage your fellow trustees – or if you’re a staffer – your board, to make use of our five-minute guides.
The Commission cannot always be a friend to individual charities – sometimes, where there is wrongdoing, it is our duty to step in decisively, and take firm action. But to most charities, most of the time, I hope we remain a welcome provider and starting point for support, guidance, and orientation, in an uncertain – and often challenging – world.
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