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Help and guidance

Our help and guidance content includes step-by-step guides, downloadable templates and interactive tools to help you run your voluntary organisation

Setting up

Learn about the practical steps you need to take to set up your own organisation

  • Setting up

Deciding to set up a new charitable organisation

Access our guidance to help you decide if you should set up a new charity, voluntary organisation or community group

  • Setting up

Choosing your legal structure

What you need to consider when choosing your legal structure and the main characteristics of different legal structures

  • Setting up

Understanding charity status and registration

Find out what charity status is and if you need to register as a charity

  • Setting up

Understanding social enterprise

Find out about social enterprises and their associated legal structures

  • Setting up

A charity's governing document: What it should include

Find out what information should be included in your charity's governing document

  • Setting up

Running a charity

Guidance and tools to help you run your charity or voluntary organisation

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Setting up
  • Closing down

Employing and managing staff

Practical guidance to help you recruit, manage and develop paid members of staff, including a useful introduction to employment law

  • Employing and managing staff

Employing staff essentials

Familiarise yourself with the essential aspects of employing paid members of staff

  • Employing and managing staff

Volunteering during the covid-19 pandemic: What we know

  • Coronavirus
  • Involving volunteers

Governance round-up: July 2022

Read our latest round-up for trustees and governance professionals, with useful sector updates, training courses and written guidance.

  • Governance

Impact round-up: August 2022

In this edition, Sandy Chidley, senior consultant, spotlights opportunities in impact and evaluation and shares useful evaluation resources and training opportunities

  • Impact and evaluation

Time Well Spent: A national survey on the volunteer experience

Our survey of more than 10,000 people provides the most detailed analysis of volunteering for a decade

  • Involving volunteers
  • Digital and technology

Time Well Spent: Employer-supported volunteering

Building on existing work on corporate volunteering, this report looks at employer-supported volunteering through the eyes of the volunteer

  • Involving volunteers
  • Employing and managing staff

Government policy and funding round-up: August 2022

This round-up will help you to stay informed about our influencing work, and any government policy and funding announcements. For news related to what’s happening in parliament, see our regular inside track round-up.

  • Government and politics

Governance round-up: August 2022

Governance consultant Sally Stephens shares updates on the Charities Act and the Charity Governance Code, along with some exciting training opportunities for trustees

  • Governance

Turning abandoned shares into support for communities – and what you can do to help

We explain what dormant assets are, how they could support communities and how you can help make that happen.

  • Law and regulation

Supporting members through the cost of living crisis

  • Government and politics
  • Responding to crises

Government must provide immediate financial support to help communities

Voluntary sector partners joint statement on the cost of living crisis

  • Government and politics
  • Responding to crises

Understanding the law on safeguarding

Find out about the key legal sources that we refer to in this guide

  • Safeguarding

Charities’ general duties of care

Find out where charities' duties of care can arise from and who they might affect

  • Safeguarding

A charity’s duty to have liability insurance

The key duties for charities and volunteer organisations regarding insurance

  • Safeguarding

A charity’s duty to report safeguarding issues

Find out about the Charity Commission's expectations for reporting incidents

  • Safeguarding

A charity’s duty to not discriminate or harass

The Charity Commission's recommended steps that your organisation can take

  • Safeguarding

Trustees’ safeguarding duties

Find out about the specific role that trustees can play in safeguarding

  • Safeguarding

Safeguarding children

Find out about the key Acts and treaties designed to protect children

  • Safeguarding

Overview

Key areas of law to be aware of if you or your organisation is responsible for safeguarding children or young people

  • Safeguarding

General duties to safeguard children

Duties of various bodies to protect children and young people

  • Safeguarding

Key duties of public bodies

Key duties of public bodies for safeguarding children or young people

  • Safeguarding

Safeguarding essentials in charities (1 day)

All voluntary organisations have a duty to keep the people they work with safe from harm. This course introduces the basics of safeguarding within a charity context in England and highlights effective safeguarding practice

Tools and methods for measuring outcomes (1 day)

Get an introduction to data collection methods and practical guidance for evaluating your work

Recruiting volunteers (0.5 day)

This course will develop your skills and help you use a marketing approach to recruit volunteers

Better impact reporting (0.5 day)

This practical session will build your awareness of different types of reporting and support you to tell a compelling story through your reporting

Advanced project management (1 day)

Are you confident in your general project management skills but looking to strengthen your expertise? This course moves beyond the basics of project management to better understand techniques, activities and principles within a charity context.

Leading change and transformation (2 days)

This practical two-day course for aspiring and existing charity leaders will teach you how to adapt to an ever-changing environment. Learn how to successfully deliver meaningful change to improve your team or organisation

Managing people in the charity sector (2 days)

This course will equip managers in the voluntary sector with the skills and techniques they need to effectively manage paid members of staff

Advanced data protection (2 x 0.5 days)

This advanced course is specifically for data protection leads or officers in charitable organisations.

Good practice in volunteer management (1 day)

This course provides an introduction to the key principles of good volunteer management and how to apply them in your organisation

Governance Forum

Our Governance Forum is a space for charity governance professionals and those who support good governance to come together, learn and network