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About us

Find out about our services, the way we operate and how we champion voluntary action

Who we are

We’re the membership community for charities, voluntary organisations and community groups in England

Our services

Find out how we can support you, from support for small charities and training to consultancy and corporate relations

Training

We offer a range of training courses designed to help you do what you do best

eLearning: Roles and duties of trustees

This flexible, interactive course will help you understand your duties as a trustee and support you to run your charity effectively so you can make a bigger difference

Leading on purpose

A practical four-month programme for emerging charity leaders who are on their way to leading organisations

Our vision for charity leaders

Learn about the mindset, knowledge and connections that emerging leaders need to guide the sector into the 2030s

Support for small charities and voluntary organisations

We know small charities make a big impact with limited resource - that's why we're here to help

Small charity helpdesk

Ask our practical support team any question about the setting up or running of your charity or voluntary organisation.

Climate campaign: Putting the environment at the centre of decision-making this Trustees' Week

We launched a new campaign in the summer of 2023 to help trustees and charity leaders consider the environmental impact of their charities’ investments

  • Campaigning

Practical support bulletin: November 2023

Resources, events, support and information on the big issues affecting small charities

  • Funding and income
  • Governance
  • Cost of living

Celebrating Trustees’ Week 2023

Our chief executive Sarah Vibert celebrates the start of Trustees' Week and shares our plans

  • Governance

King’s Speech 2023: Takeaways for the voluntary sector

Our policy and public affairs manager, Chris Walker, summarises the announcements from the King's Speech likely to impact our sector

  • Government and politics

The importance of diversity in your trustee board

Explore why diversity is a key area of reflection for your trustee board and what needs to happen to make a board truly diverse

  • Equity, diversity and inclusion
  • Governance

Open letter to the chancellor on vital funding for public services delivered by charities

Read our open letter calling on the chancellor to ensure charities can continue providing essential services for communities

  • Funding and income
  • Cost of living

What is the true cost of giving support to public services?

Why the government must act to cover the true cost of charities delivering public services

  • Cost of living
  • Funding and income

The inside track: November 2023

An update on what's happening in Westminster. Find out what the King’s Speech and government reshuffle means for charities

  • Government and politics

Volunteering round-up: November 2023

The latest volunteering news, resources and dates for your diary

  • Involving volunteers

Governance round-up: November 2023

Lessons from Trustees’ Week 2023 and upcoming dates for your diary

  • Governance

Approaching diversity through equality and inclusion

How to approach diversity at board level

  • Governance

Approaching board relationship challenges

How to approach board relationship challenges and have constructive conversations

  • Governance

Dealing with problems and disputes between trustees

Use this page to learn about how to broadly encourage positive trustee relationships and manage disputes.

  • Governance

Having challenging conversations

Use this page to understand how to approach challenging conversations with your board.

  • Governance

Carrying out a governance review

What to consider when carrying out a governance review and the different types of review

  • Governance

Annual report and accounts

Information on annual reports and accounts for charities, and sample documents.

Board meeting agenda

A template agenda for a board meeting.

Code of conduct

A sample code of conduct for trustees.

Declaration of interests

Sample declaration of interests form for trustees

Expenses claim form

Sample trustee expenses claim form

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

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

Advanced data protection (2 x 0.5 days)

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

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

Governance Forum

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

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

Charity finance strategy (1 day)

This course will give you an overview of how to build a simple finance strategy. We’ll introduce tools to help you build the financial resilience of your charity

Data protection essentials (2 x 0.5 days)

This essentials course is suitable for anyone within an organisation that handles the personal data of staff, service users, beneficiaries, volunteers, customers, members or supporters, and needs to know the basics of data protection for voluntary organisations.

Safeguarding essentials for trustees (0.5 day)

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

Designated safeguarding leads in charities (1 day)

This one-day training course provides an overview of the roles and responsibilities of safeguarding leads in charities in England