It’s easy for charity trustees and not-for-profit boards to get caught up in the detail and lose sight of the bigger picture. Effective governance means knowing which issues deserve the board’s attention, and which don’t.
So, what should charity trustees and boards be focusing their attention on? Every charity faces its own challenges, and every board is different, but there are some issues that consistently deserve greater scrutiny. Here are ten areas that are worth keeping firmly on your board’s radar.
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The relationship between funding and diversity
Funding is, of course, one of the biggest issues facing many charities today. But perhaps the question for trustees isn’t whether they should worry about funding, but where they should focus their attention. Boards can’t control every funding challenge, so their energy could be better spent on the areas they can influence. One of the most important of these is ensuring that the board itself has the right mix of skills, experience and connections to support the charity’s funding efforts.
While you may not think it, the importance of board diversity is always worth repeating even when related to funding. Having a diverse board can bolster a charity’s resilience and give it the best chance of fulfilling its purposes into the future.
Moreover, as the Charity Commission says in its CC30 guidance on finding and appointing new trustees, “Having a diverse range of backgrounds, characteristics and perspectives on your board can help you to show your funders and other stakeholders that your charity’s actions and practices are inclusive”’
Funders are increasingly asking questions about board composition when considering the resilience and suitability of charities during the grant and bid awarding decision process. It might not be the deciding factor but how well your board represents the communities you serve, and wider society as well, may be an indication of how well you can deliver on your mission and steward any funds awarded, and therefore have a bearing on how successful your funding applications may be.
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Managing external hostility
Charities are increasingly on the frontline of the culture wars. Seemingly, any charitable act, pursuit of justice or attempt to support those most disadvantaged in society risks becoming the target of ideologically driven criticism, campaigning or hostility.
Should trustees be worried? Unfortunately, yes. But that doesn’t mean charities should step back from their mission or avoid difficult issues. Instead, boards should make sure their organisation is prepared.
The best defence is a well laid plan:
- Good governance: Firstly, get your house in order. Make sure your governance, policies and procedures are as unimpeachable as possible. Leave no gaps through which you can be accused of wrongdoing.
- Communications Policy: Secondly build a strong communications plan that covers all the processes you will need to follow if you’re the target of a hostile attack, whatever form it takes including:
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- Crisis communications planning including who needs to know and who is approved to speak publicly
- Pre-prepared, clear and consistent messaging including key talking points and statements
- Identification of those responsible for managing media relationships and organisational spokespeople and representatives
- Agreed social-media protocols
- Clear escalation procedures.
- Training: Ensure that everyone with an identified role in the process has been trained (run media and spokesperson training sessions for example). Also hold briefing sessions for all trustees, staff, volunteers, service users and anyone else who could potentially be impacted so that everyone knows what the key messages and processes are.
By taking this approach, you can be confident that all trustees and staff can respond confidently and proportionately when criticism or hostility arises and you’ll be able to hit the ground running
If you are interested in learning more about topic, our ‘Bravery on Boards’ session at the 2026 Festival of Trusteeship explores some of the challenges facing boards today.
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Being (or feeling) excluded from a decision-making process
Have you ever read through board papers with the worrying thought, “Wow, I don’t even remember discussing that”? An occasional memory lapse is one thing, but if this keeps happening, it could be a red flag.
If you’re consistently hearing second-hand about major decisions you don’t remember making, or discovering that plans are already in motion, you may have a two-tier board. Key strategic decisions could be being made by a smaller group without proper discussion and oversight by the board as a whole.
Are decisions being made by:
- A chair and CEO working in silo?
- A smaller group of trustees, such as a finance subcommittee?
- The senior leadership team without board oversight?
If so, it is important to bear in mind that every trustee is responsible for key decisions that are taken by the board even if they weren’t in the room when the decisions were made.
You can combat this by querying anything you aren’t sure about:
- Ask how a decision was arrived at, and more importantly when and where it was made
- Suggest a change to process for future decisions
- And if it’s too late to reverse a particular decision, suggest checks and balances to monitor the progress of anything you and other trustees are not comfortable with going forwards.
If problems are being caused by board relationships or ways of working, our guide to toxic charity boards explains how to recognise the warning signs, address difficult behaviour and take practical steps to improve how the board works together.
Our 8 top tips from charity experts provide guidelines on how to build and recruit an inclusive, effective trustee team.
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‘Inside’ and ‘Outside’ the boardroom. Are team dynamics as they should be?
Trustees have a strategic role, which means they can sometimes feel removed from the day-to-day reality and operation of the organisation. Staff may also be reluctant to raise concerns with the board or may feel they need to present a more positive picture than the reality. So, if you regularly leave board meetings with a nagging feeling that you’re not getting the whole story, don’t ignore it.
Start by talking to your CEO. They may find it easier to discuss concerns openly in a one-to-one conversation before bringing them into a more formal board setting. You don’t have to be the chair to start that conversation, although it’s sensible to keep the chair informed.
Also, as a board, you should make sure you have appropriate ways to understand what is really happening across the organisation. Procedures that enable a clear read of what’s happening and present opportunities to gather data or have a touch point can include:
- Staff surveys
- Opportunities for trustees to meet staff, volunteers and anyone else relevant
- Visits to services and projects
- Away days
- Exit feedback
- Safeguarding and whistleblowing reports
- Regular reporting on staff turnover, sickness and complaints.
Most importantly, have a clear plan for resolving any issues, set targets and revisit them regularly. That way, you can make sure both the minutiae and the mission stay on track.
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Am I making a difference? Can I do more?
This is a worry worth having. Trusteeship can sometimes come with an inflated sense of prestige, pride and even power. Before you know it, a trustee can start taking up rather too much space at the party: “I’m a TruSTee, don’t you know?” The danger is that status can get in the way of what trusteeship is really about: serving the charity and its beneficiaries.
Don’t be that person.
Instead, worry yourself by asking, “Am I doing enough?” “Am I supporting my CEO?” “Am I putting my skills and experience to the best use?” “Do I really know what I’m doing?”.
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Have you heard about the three major governance changes that have landed on England and Wales charity trustees? While not all of them apply to every charity, and not all are equally urgent, we propose triaging them by applicability, legal status, effective date, risk exposure and workload.
What are the three charity governance areas that have changed?
- A new version of the Charities Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) applies to accounting periods starting on or after 1 January 2026. This encourages all charities to explain how they are responding to and managing environmental, social and governance matters
- The Code of Fundraising Practice sits within the responsibilities of the Fundraising Regulator and sets the standards that apply to fundraising activity for charitable, philanthropic or benevolent purposes conducted by all charitable institutions and third-party fundraisers in the UK
- The Charity Governance Code 2025 (CGC)’s voluntary standard was refreshed in November 2025. It reflects the legal obligations on Trustees, as set out in the Charity Commission’s The Essential Trustee (CC3), and supports these with practical suggestions on how to ensure good governance in organisations of all sizes.
This blog summarising the 3 regulations and includes a 7-step Trustee Checklist to help you address the regulatory changes.
Our completely free ESG survey has been updated to include questions about your organisation’s position against current regulatory expectations and good practice.
Insights from the survey, including best practice ideas from peers can inform strategy, governance, policies and operational priorities, helping you plan your next steps with confidence.
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What are my responsibilities for potential financial crime?
With many charities handling significant sums of money and often relying on public trust, they can be vulnerable to exploitation. Criminals may try to use donations to disguise illicit funds or funnel money through charitable channels to support illegal activities. It is therefore crucial that trustees, senior staff members, or anyone involved in charity operations understanding how anti-money laundering (AML) laws apply.
Trustees are legally obligated to protect the charity’s assets and ensure they are not used for financial crime by conducting due diligence donors, partners, and beneficiaries and implementing proper financial controls
Our blogs on Anti Money Laundering and Financial Crime and Data Protection explain the requirements and outline some practical steps that trustees can take. There are also money management sessions in the 2026 Festival of Trusteeship programme.
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What should I be doing about AI?
Charities today face a dual challenge: responding to the opportunities AI presents while safeguarding the people and communities they serve. The key is to approach AI not as a standalone project, but as a strategic lens — one that helps you strengthen your mission, improve outcomes, and build organisational resilience.
To do this, your team needs to find out the answers to the key question: How do we ensure our strategy remains relevant, ethical and impactful as AI accelerates change?
Our Strategy and AI blogs give you a starting point by as asking and answering some of the key questions including:
If you need some help on working out where to start, our interactive workshops will leave you and your team with a list of practical and simple next-steps to start on your AI journey.
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How do I forecast if my charity is going to be the next one to close?
We’ve all seen news of charities large and small having to close. And this isn’t simply a story of new or poorly established organisations failing. Many are long-established charities that eventually reach a point where continuing is no longer viable.
The warning signs of a developing crisis are often there, but they can be easy to miss amid the pressures of running an organisation day to day.
Trustees and senior leaders should look out for signs such as:
- Deteriorating finances
- Growing operational strain
- An increasingly challenging external environment
- Repeated failure to address known problems
- Growing regulatory or compliance pressures.
No one wants to think the unthinkable, but preparing before a crisis develops can give trustees and senior leaders more options, and more time to act.
Our charity crisis management resources include a crisis checklist designed to provide structure and clarity when difficult decisions need to be made. It can help leaders recognise warning signs such as repeated deficits, cashflow pressures, declining reserves, high staff turnover and reputational problems.
It’s also worth exploring strategic partnerships or merger before they become a necessity. Even when an organisation is not in crisis, considering opportunities to collaborate, share resources or merge can be a valuable part of long-term strategic planning and help strengthen resilience for the future.
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What is the impact of my organisation?
Charities today are increasingly expected to create lasting, positive changes for people, communities, and the environment. The concept of “social value” – the broader, often intangible benefits stemming from an organisation’s activities – has emerged as a vital lens through which to measure true impact.
The challenge is how to measure and report on something so intangible. In addition, applying this to often complex, values-driven, people-focused activities with multiple outcomes can create tensions and difficulties that need handling with expertise and sensitivity. A Theory of Change can serve as the backbone of social value measurement and is always a good place to start before moving on to a data driven approach.
If these worries are starting to keep you awake at night, you’re not alone, and you’re in the right place.
The Festival of Trusteeship 2026 runs from 9th to 13th November and is packed with 18 sessions covering all of things we hear that trustees (and aspiring trustees) and charity leaders want to learn about and discuss.
Blog written by Eastside People Marketing and Communications Manager Marina Stedman
