Governance

Support for UK charities

CTN the Trustee Network is a charity for trustees. Membership is free, and the website  includes signposting to information and services for trustees, learning and sharing opportunities, and a trustee-finder where charities can search for and advertise for trustees.

Reach has a service called TrusteeWorks which helps organisations find great trustees and volunteers find satisfying trustee roles.

Toolkits, guides and information sheets

The Hallmarks of an Effective Charity sets out six standards that will help trustees improve the effectiveness of their charity, and uphold the principles that the Charity Commission's regulatory framework exists to support.

The Charity Commission published a new governance code for smaller charitable organisations in November 2011, Good governance – a code for the voluntary sector: smaller organisation version. It mirrors the principles of the main governance code but is designed to be clearer and easier to use for those organisations with limited resources.

NCVO offers an extensive range of resources on governance and leadership, including guides and toolkits to good governance, and research papers. In particular, the second version of the Code of Governance, published in October 2010, set out best practice for governing a voluntary or community organisation.

NGOs laws and regulation around the world

The International Programme of the Charity Commission for England and Wales manages NGO Regulation Network designed for people, organisations and governments wanting to find out more about the regulation of NGOs.

The International Center for Not-For-Profit Law provides regional and global overviews of the legal and regulatory framework affecting civil society organisations and reports on the regulatory constraints NGOs are facing.