In the writer’s experience, usually, volunteers for the position of a trustee for a charity are driven by the fact that they believe in the charity’s aims/purpose. Often, they have little to no knowledge of what is required of them, what their duties are, and the ramifications, such as personal liability, if matters are approached in the wrong way. The Charity Commission has recognised this fact in its recent campaign to seek to raise knowledge of trustees in England and Wales.
New quiz for trustees to test their knowledge
The most recent step in that campaign is the release of a short quiz designed to test the knowledge of trustees, with feedback after answering each question. This quiz is backed by a handful of five-minute videos dealing with issues such as conflicts of interest, what to send to the Charity Commission, Safeguarding for Charities, and Dealing with Charity Finances. The quiz can be taken here and the guides can be viewed here.
Paul Latham, Director of Communications and Policy at the Charity Commission, said:
“The 700,000 trustees in England and Wales provide a vital service, not just to their individual charity, but to society more widely.
As regulator, we have an important role in supporting them to do the best job possible, ensuring they have the resources they need to fulfil their legal duties and responsibilities with confidence. Our trustee campaign aims to do just that, engaging trustees with thought-provoking content, and encouraging them to reflect on their skills and knowledge and whether there are any gaps in their awareness that our guidance can help fill.
We encourage all trustees to take our new quiz – it’s quick and designed to be fun, but it will also help you assess your own knowledge, and take action to address any areas in which you might need more support or learning.”
Whilst this quiz and the video guides are useful tools in signposting when there may be issues that Trustees should be aware of, they are simply that, signposts. Trustees’ duties/their role can present some challenging circumstances that need dealing with and it is difficult to see how a few 5-minute videos could properly prepare a trustee to tackle all eventualities that come their way. The quiz and the videos therefore seek to highlight areas where Trustees may wish to seek further independent advice on how to proceed in certain circumstances.
How can Nelsons help
Kevin Modiri is a Partner in our expert Dispute Resolution team, specialising in charity law, civil disputes, insolvency, inheritance disputes, data breach claims and defamation claims.
If you have any questions concerning the subjects discussed in this article, please do not hesitate to contact Kevin or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester, or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online enquiry form.
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