Good Governance
Management Committee members have overall responsibility for meeting an organisation’s legal duties, ensuring it is properly managed, and for promoting good practice in all its activities.
Good governance is about effective leadership and ensuring that an organisation is properly run. Voluntary and community organisations have a committee that is responsible for carrying out the day-to-day running of the organisation. This is known as the governing body. This committee can be called a wide range of names including management committee, executive committee, steering committee, trustee board or board of directors. They all mean the same thing.
Our Fact Sheet covers the twelve essential board responsibilities and the seven principles of good governance.
Legal Structure
When an organisation is formally established it will adopt a governing document or set of rules. This governing document is the legal document which represents the rules for the way your organisation will operate. Understanding and adhering to your governing document is of vital importance to ensure your organisation is being properly run.
Our Fact Sheet includes an overview of the main legal structures for community groups, including the main advantages and disadvantages of each.
Charitable Status – what is a charity?
Charities have a wide range of legal structures. A charity can be set up in different ways but to be a charity an organisation has to meet a set of criteria.
Charities must have exclusively charitable purposes. Charitable purposes are set out in the Charities Act 2006. The purposes of a charity will be set out in the ‘objects’ clause in its governing document. All charities must be able to demonstrate how their purposes benefit the public.
To register as a charity, organisations must apply to the Charity Commission. The Charity Commission is a Government body with the legal powers to regulate and support charities in England and Wales. If your organisation’s annual income is over £5,000 per year and you meet the criteria for registration then your organisation is viewed to be a charity and must register. Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIO’s) do not have to meet the income criteria.
For more information on Charitable Status visit the Charity Commission website.
Our Fact Sheet includes further details on charitable status.
Roles & Responsibilities of Management Committees and Trustees
Voluntary and community organisations have a committee that is responsible for carrying out the day-to-day running and the steering of the organisation as its governing body. The committee may be known as the management committee, executive committee, steering committee, or board of directors. They all amount to the same thing. Management committee members & trustees have overall responsibility for meeting the organisation’s legal duties, ensuring it is properly managed, and for promoting good practice in all its activities.
Our Fact Sheet includes information on:
- Legal Duties
- Managerial tasks & good practice
- Key responsibilities of the Chair
- Key responsibilities of the Treasurer
- Key responsibilities of the Secretary
- Checklist for your first management committee meeting
Northumberland Community Voluntary Action (Northumberland CVA) can help you with various aspects of governance from reviewing your governing document to delivering bespoke training courses to helping you register as a charity.
For more information, advice and support contact: Martin Conway martin.conway@176.32.230.53 or telephone 01670 858688