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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

Time to flex: Embracing flexible working

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Equity, diversity and inclusion

The Road Ahead 2022

  • Coronavirus
  • Responding to crises
  • Government and politics

UK Civil Society Almanac 2021

  • Government and politics
  • Involving volunteers

Levelling up: The role of charities and volunteering

  • Government and politics
  • Involving volunteers

Charities Bill: Lords Second Reading

  • Government and politics

Where power lies: How lived experience is engaged in voluntary sector governance and decision-making

  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Governance

Rebalancing the Relationship: Final report

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Collaboration

Rebalancing the relationship: emerging findings and draft recommendations

  • Employing and managing staff
  • Collaboration

The Road Ahead 2021

  • Funding and income
  • Coronavirus
  • Responding to crises

Time Well Spent: Diversity and volunteering

  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Involving volunteers

Safeguarding in the grant making process

Safeguarding considerations for grantmakers

  • Safeguarding

Safeguarding in grant applications

How grant makers can contribute to better safeguarding practice

  • Safeguarding

Safeguarding with grantholders

Safeguarding considerations for grantmakers and grantholders

  • Safeguarding

Leading by example

How local infrastructure organisations can set an example to smaller charities and voluntary organisations with safeguarding

  • Safeguarding

Making safeguarding a priority

How local infrastructure organisations can make safeguarding a priority

  • Safeguarding

Making sure your own safeguarding is robust

How to embed robust safeguarding processes as an infrastructure organisation

  • Safeguarding

Managing information and confidentiality

How to manage information and confidentiality as an infrastructure organisation

  • Safeguarding

Recognising the risks your members present

How infrastructure organisations can promote safeguarding among their members and other organisations they support

  • Safeguarding

Supporting groups to become safer organisations

Guidance for safeguarding for small organisations and groups without their own safeguarding resources

  • Safeguarding

Your key responsibilities

Things you must do to embed safeguarding practices as an infrastructure organisation

  • Safeguarding

Recruiting volunteers (0.5 day)

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

Tools and methods for measuring outcomes (1 day)

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

Authentic leadership (1 day)

This practical one-day course for aspiring and existing charity leaders will strengthen your understanding of authentic leadership, so you can lead with integrity and impact

Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in charity governance (2 x 0.5 days)

This course has been created by The Social Justice Collective to help you understand, address and embed equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) into your governance practice

Boost your personal influence and impact (0.5 day)

Learn practical tools and techniques to increase your capability, confidence and impact when seeking to influence others – both within and outside your organisation

Financial governance for trustees (0.5 day)

This course will revisit the core financial duties of a charity trustee and explore what it means to practice good financial governance

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

Charity trustee induction and refresher (2 x 0.5 days)

This course will give trustees an overview and understanding of charity governance, regulation and best practice

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

Safeguarding essentials for trustees (0.5 day)

This introductory course explains the key trustee responsibilities for safeguarding, following guidance from the Charity Commission