Invited to become a trustee

[thirdistheonewiththehairychest]

Hi,

I was just wondering if anyone has any experience being a trustee of a charity. I have been asked to consider this for a charity that is local to where I live and which I have had a bit of contact with in the past (I know some people who work for the charity).

I am obviously doing some research into what it would involve but would be interested to hear people's experiences of the trustee role.

What was the time commitment for you? How many meetings did you have to attend? What responsibilities/tasks did you have in between meetings? What were the challenges?

Thank you in advance for any insight you're able to give me 😊

A trustee is effectively a director of the charity so there are legal responsibilities- can find these on the charity commission’s website. Time commitment and exact responsibilities vary a lot between charities. I had one trusteeship where I was very hands on ( particularly with the finances and investments) and have one currently which is the opposite- there’s a very strict separation between staff and trustees. Currently I attend about 6-8 meetings a year of 2 hours each. I also chair two committees so there is a fair bit of prep involved in that.

One thing to really kick the tyres on is the other trustees. Are they responsible people who will make considered and serious decisions or are they a bunch of flakes with no discernible skill sets who will leave everything to you. Are there enough of you to spread the load but not so many that communication/ decision making is difficult.

Also think about the strategy of the charity going forward and how well equipped you feel to help them meet any challenges. I always make it v clear that I don’t do fundraising. However we have other trustees who excel in this area. My expertise is more on the programme side of it.

A trustee is effectively a director of the charity so there are legal responsibilities

But there is a significant and major difference. A director of a company (and charities can hold company status, and many do for the reason I am going to explain) has limited liability for financial liabilities unless there is clear and obvious wrongdoing / negligence. A trustee does not have limited liability and is personally liable for the actions and debts of the charity. After seeing what being a trustee has done to a couple of friends who just wanted to help do good, and ended up being dragged through the courts and then saddled with £1,000's in debts. it isn't something I would touch with a bargepole. And to be clear - they did nothing wrong. The management committee was corrupt (literally) but hid what they were doing until it all exploded badly. The management committee were not trustees and so could not be held responsible - only the trustees could be held responsible, and they were. I would agree to being (and am) a director of several charities, but hell would freeze over before I became a trustee.

Do your due diligence and look up your legal responsibilities before you sign up for this. If it goes wrong it has all sorts of personal ramifications. Make sure you look at the accounts and understand the state of their finances. Don't take anyone's word for anything - that doesn't get you off the hook if it all goes wrong.

Not something I would touch with a barge pole personally!

Whether the trustees are personally liable depends on the legal structure of the charity. If it is a company or a CIO, the directors have limited or no liability. If the charity is a trust or an unincorporated charitable association, the trustees are personally liable.

I am a trustee of a small charity that is an unincorporated charitable association. I attend 3 trustees' meetings a year and the AGM. The trustees keep in touch by email between meetings and occasionally make decisions that way, but the volume of email is not high - perhaps 2 or 3 per month. I have other responsibilities, but I have chosen to take them on. They are not part of my role as a trustee.

The answers for a trustee of a large charity would be very different. Indeed, the answers for a trustee of another small charity could be very different. You need to research the charity concerned, talk to existing trustees and read the various guides the Charity Commission have published.

You seem very confused. A charity director is also a trustee.

Yes I get the point that some charities aren't incorporated. But if you read the charity commission guidance you will see that the director of an incorporated charity is also the trustee and the two terms can be used interchangeably.

I would seek legal advice before becoming a Trustee. There are a number of responsibilities. I turned down the offer once as I didnt want anything coming back at me - more than my job is worth

It kind of depends on that charity how it runs and what the existing trustees bring to the table as well.

I’ve been one for years for a local charity, they’re very well run and have people with accounting backgrounds and hr backgrounds as trustees as well as people with the background specific to what the charity does - I do have some knowledge of the sector they work in but not as much as others and am very local and have experience of it as a service user.

So I attend a full board meeting once a quarter and a smaller sub group meeting once a quarter, the AGM and every 3 years or so we have extra strategic planning/development days. The accounting people do separate finance meetings and report back and there’s a different sub group I’m not part of because I bring nothing to the table for that.

But for me, not a huge time commitment.

This is a good clear summary explaining why charity directors are trustees (but not all trustees are directors, it depends whether the charitable entity is a company)

Op if you are worried about personal liability check there is trustee insurance in place

Trustee insurance doesn’t provide cover for every eventuality. For example, if the trustee/s have been negligent they will not be covered.

This is wrong. Trustee insurance usually covers negligence amongst other things. Reckless or wilful wrongdoing is generally not covered.

Agreed. And the charity commission take the view that they don't want to discourage people becoming trustees so only act if there is very clear wrongdoing.

Plus many charities are companies or CIOs.

I'm a trustee and it's a great and interesting way to contribute to society.

I work for a small charity and tbh don't understand why the trustees do it. Huge responsibility for no pay. Not a massive time commitment for those who only turn up for meetings but considerable for the chair and a handful of others. E.g I was interviewed by a panel of trustees and we currently need a new CEO, recruitment will be a big job. I'll do most of the leg work but the responsibility is with them.

I think you'd have to believe passionately in the work of the charity and be very personally invested in its aims and tbh probably also have the kind of ego that means you need to feel important.

Apologies if my first comment caused confusion. I have only been a trustee/ director of an incorporated charity and the two terms were/ are used interchangeably.

I think you'd have to believe passionately in the work of the charity and be very personally invested in its aims and tbh probably also have the kind of ego that means you need to feel important.

Ouch 🤣. Hurt feelings aside I’m not sure that’s true on either count. I think you have to believe that what the charity is doing has value/impact. I’m not sure you need passion and it may help that you can be dispassionate about certain things. Re. egos, I think it’s nice to believe that you can add value/ help solve problems but I’m not sure it’s a huge status thing. Most of my Co trustees have other directorships or day jobs which would already give them that. One is also v driven by her Christian faith, albeit in a v liberal way.

I think itd really unpleasant to think people do it for egotistical reasons.

For me it is a way to give back to society, I have relevant skills and as well as using them in my day job I feel i would like to use them to help a couple charities with causes close to my heart. Far from thinking I am awesome and entitled to the position, I have been shocked when I have been invited /selected.

The charity sector depends on people being willing to volunteer to be trustees, so it's somewhat baffling to see people who work in the sector being negative about the role.

@illiterato your first comment was a good description of the role and in a charity company it's normal for trustee and director to be used interchangeably

Thanks so much everyone. There's certainly a lot to think about here and I definitely need to look more into the personal liability side of things.

I think it sounds like something I will probably pass up on. I have also been asked to consider becoming a school governor which sounds much less risky (and closer to my heart anyway).

Governance is quite a hot topic. Basically, it is about how the charity (or whatever) makes sure that you continue to be fit for the job by means of on-going training. Read up on it and find out what the charity / governing body does to support you.