RESPONSIBILITIES OF CHARITY TRUSTEES

(CC 3 & CC3A)

Applicable to all charity trustees
You are a charity trustee if you are

1. The director of a charitable company; or

2. A member of the management or executive committee of a charitable association; or

3. The trustees of a charitable trust.

You and your fellow trustees have full responsibility for your charity and must

- Act together and in person and not delegate control of the charity to others (you may be
able to delegate area of work, but they must remain under the trustees' control);

- Act strictly in accordance with the charity's governing document;

- Act in the charity's interests only and without regard to your own private interests;

- Manage the charity's affairs prudently and take a long-term as well as a short-term view;

- Not (without explicit authority) derive any personal benefit or gain from the charity of which
you are trustees; and

- Take proper professional advice on matters on which you are not yourselves competent.

In managing the charity's finances you must

- make sure that bank accounts are operated by more than one person;

- make sure that all the charity's property is under the control of the trustees;

make sure that funds held for different purposes are kept in separate bank accounts, or the
charity's accounting records show clearly at all times the amount of funds held for each
purpose;

- keep full and accurate accounting records; and

- collect in full all money owed or due to the charity, including tax and rating relief.

In applying the charity's income you must

- spend it solely for the purposes set out in the charity's governing document;

- spend it with absolute fairness between persons qualified to benefit from the charity; and

- spend it for the purposes of the charity unless you have some specific future use for it in
mind, or unless you have explicit authority to accumulate it.

If your charity has land or buildings you must

- either occupy and use it for the charity's purposes or let it for the maximum possible return;

make sure it is maintained in good condition;

- consider the need for insurance;

- regularly consider whether you are using it to the best advantage of the charity; and
make sure that the charity property is vested in the trustees or in the name of a nominee
where there is proper authority to do so.

If your charity has funds to invest you must

- invest only within the limits of the powers granted by the charity's governing document or
the Trustee Act 2000;

- constantly monitor the performance of the investments;

- avoid speculation and invest prudently to achieve both income and capital growth; and

- seek professional advice about what investments are most suitable for your charity.

If your charity needs to employ staff you should

- give each employee a proper contract of employment and a written job description making
clear the extent of his or her authority to act on your behalf.

If you raise funds by appealing to the public you should

- make sure that your appeal properly describes what the public's donations will be used for;

- be open and honest if asked about the costs of the appeal;

- not use fund-raising methods which exert undue pressure on people to give;

- approve in advance any fund-raising or advertising campaign carried out on your charity's
behalf; and

- require fund-raisers to hand over money raised or collected by them before deducting their
fees or expenses.

You and your fellow trustees will put yourselves at risk of personal liability only if you

- cause loss to the charity by acting unlawfully, imprudently or outside the terms of the
charity's governing document; or

- commit the charity to debts which amount to more than its assets.

You should become a charity trustee only if you

- are prepared to give the necessary time and effort to the management of the charity;

- can help the charity achieve its aims through your expertise or commitment; and

- understand and accept that trusteeship carries legal duties and responsibilities.

You cannot be a charity trustee if you

- are under 18 years of age (unless the charity is a registered company but even it is
inadvisable); or

- are disqualified under section 72 of the Charities Act 1993 for example because you are an
undischarged bankrupt or have an unspent conviction for an offence of dishonesty or
deception; or

- (in the case of charity trusteeship of a children's charity) you are banned from being a
trustee under the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.

Before you first become a charity trustee you should

- study the charity's governing document to learn about its purposes and administrative
procedures;

- ask your fellow trustees to give you full details of the charity's property, investments and
income; and

- study recent accounts and minutes of meetings to learn about the charity's finances and

policies.