Good Governance Checklist
Although every organisation is different, the trustees of any charitable or non-profit organisation, also known as the Governing Body should be able to answer positively to these questions:
| Are you absolutely clear who your trustees are? |
| Can any others who are ‘connected persons’, i.e. to whom a member of the board has a ‘personal connection’ be identified? |
| Are all the appointments of directors/trustees up to date and have all necessary filings been made? |
| Can the charity trustees clearly identify the members of the organisation? |
| Are any funds or assets held for specific purposes? If so, are sufficient safeguards in place to oversee compliance with the donors’ wishes? |
| Are the charity trustees in effective control of the properties owned by the organisation? Do the trustees know who is registered on the title deeds of the properties of the organisation? |
| Do you have a ‘governance manual’ containing all the information that your governing body needs, including the structure of the organisation and how decisions are made? |
| If you have staff, is there a clear and respectful relationship between the Chairperson and the most senior staff person? |
| Is the structure suitable to enable the organisation to comply with the requirements of the Charities Act 2009? Do the Memorandum and Articles of Association/Constitution need to be altered to take advantage of the provisions of the Act? |
| Has the role of external representatives on your governing body been discussed and agreed openly? |
| Are all members of the governing body aware of their responsibilities? |
| Do you have written terms of reference for the governing body, each sub-committee / working group in your organisation, as well as written role descriptions for trustees and officers? |
| Are the meetings of your trustees (governing body) and members effective? Are they properly recorded and minutes drawn up? |
| Do you have the right number of people on your governing body? |
| Have you done an audit of skills of your governing body? |
| Do you have proper planning and systems in place for the recruitment, induction and ongoing training of people on your governing body? |
| Do you have written procedures for the rotation off or retirement of people on your governing body? |
Continue to Ensuring human resources are managed
Additional Resources
Check out the following publications published by The Wheel for more information on how to get the trustees on your governing body to be able to answer “yes” to the checklist above:
- Solid Foundations: a resource guide for building strong and effective organisations in the community and voluntary sector
- Getting to Grips with Governance: a resource guide for community and voluntary organisations
- Reducing the Risk: a resource guide to risk management in community and voluntary organisations.
Visit The Wheel's shop for details on how to purchase any of these guides.
For additional information, advice and support please contact us at info@wheel.ie or phone: (01) 454 8727.
