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Tools and guidance

Tools and good-practice guidance to help you review, run and improve your board, compiled by NCVO's governance experts

  • Governance

Charity Governance Code

Read the new Code, which sets out principles of good governance for charities.

Governance wheel

The governance wheel is a simple tool that helps boards of voluntary organisations quickly get a sense of how well they’re functioning and fulfilling their roles.

Strategic planning

Information and tools on strategic planning.

Trustee recruitment pack for small organisations

Six steps to follow when recruiting trustees and nine editable documents to aid your recruitment

Trustee skills audit

A skills audit is a useful way of identifying what trustees bring, and the gaps in skills and knowledge on your board. It can be useful when you’re looking to recruit new trustees.

Individual trustee self reflection

Self reflection is an important part of your professional development and will help you to do your role effectively.

Individual trustee performance reviews

Guidance on conducting individual trustee performance reviews

  • Governance

Financial procedures manual

Templates and guidance for creating a financial procedures manual that will provide a framework for managing your organisation's finances.

  • Governance

Before you start

How to use NCVO's financial procedures manual template

  • Governance

ACEVO and NCVO joint statement on announcement of Orlando Fraser as preferred candidate for next Charity Commission chair

ACEVO and NCVO today release a joint statement following announcement of Orlando Fraser as preferred candidate for the next chair of the Charity Commission.

  • Government and politics

NCVO announce Sarah Vibert as CEO

  • Inside NCVO

FSI and NCVO partnership becomes new home of small charities coalition helpdesk

Today the Small Charities Coalition (SCC) announced that the FSI (the Foundation for Social Improvement) and NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations) have come together to secure the SCC Helpdesk and other key services.

  • Collaboration

Respond, recover, reset: 18 months of real-time research reveals how the charity sector changed through the pandemic

Two years ago the UK went into its first national lockdown, the final report of the Charity Covid-19 Impact Barometer survey project, led by Nottingham Trent University, with Sheffield Hallam University and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations

  • Coronavirus
  • Responding to crises

NCVO and centre for ageing better partner to increase age-friendly inclusive volunteering in england

NCVO has announced today that it will partner with the Centre for Ageing Better to support its efforts to increase age-friendly inclusive volunteering in England.

  • Collaboration

#VounteersWeek 2022: A time to say thanks

With just two months to go until Volunteers’ Week 2022, taking place 1-7 June, the organisers have shared the news that the theme for this year’s week-long celebration is ‘A time to say thanks’.

  • Involving volunteers

NCVO hosting new initiative examining how understanding power can enable voluntsary organisations to embody integrity

NCVO has announced that it is hosting a new initiative called Power & Integrity (PI) – launching today – which aims to enable more coherent, integrated and impactful approaches to organisational integrity in the voluntary sector.

Funding Central has closed

NCVO’s funding database, Funding Central, is now closed. Browse alternative resources and guidance

  • Funding and income

Transfer of Trusted Charity standard delivery to the Growth Company

NCVO has transferred the delivery of the Trusted Charity standard to our Trusted Supplier the Growth Company

  • Involving volunteers

VCQA update in 2022 and beyond

Following a strategic review, NCVO has taken the difficult decision to stop providing VCQA. We are delighted to announce that we will transfer ownership rights of VCQA to the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA) from 1 January.

  • Involving volunteers

Developing a monitoring and evaluation framework

Learn about how to create a monitoring and evaluation framework

  • Impact and evaluation

Examples of monitoring and evaluation frameworks

View what some monitoring and evaluation frameworks look like for different organisations

  • Impact and evaluation

Choosing your evaluation methods

Learn about which evaluation method will be best for the type of evaluation work you're doing

  • Impact and evaluation

Choosing your method

Find out about the process of choosing evaluation methods, and what some of those common evaluation methods are

  • Impact and evaluation

Using interviews

Learn about what types of interviews there are and what to consider when running interviews

  • Impact and evaluation

Planning and running focus groups

Learn about how to plan for and run focus groups

  • Impact and evaluation

Designing questionnaires

Learn about the basics of questionnaire design

  • Impact and evaluation

Using creative data collection methods

Learn about different creative data collection methods and when they can be used

  • Impact and evaluation

Using secondary data

Learn what secondary data is and how to find it

  • Impact and evaluation

Analysis and reporting

Learn about how to generate evaluation findings and to report clearly in an appropriate format

  • Impact and evaluation

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Safeguarding essentials for trustees (0.5 day)

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

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