What is the most common failing in charity governance?
Julian Lomas
As I write at the end of Trustee’s week 2025 a colleague has sent me this anonymous blog. It’s an all too familiar story of casual, sometimes well-intentioned but ultimately harmful dominance in charity governance. In a world where Trustee recruitment is possibly tougher than it has ever been, why make things harder by excluding people with behaviours like those described in this blog? I wonder, is this something you’ve experienced? Would you like to do something about it? If so contact us at julian@almondtreeconsulting.co.uk to discuss your organisation’s needs.
An anonymous account as a new charity trustee
He leans back on his chair, in that way I’ve only ever seen men do, speaking louder and more slowly than necessary to ensure that despite my need for a safe and inclusive conversation, his, the Chair’s, is the last opinion to be heard.
‘The leaner’ in question is the Chair of Trustees of a medium-sized local charity at which I am in the so-called induction period as a trustee, I fear this will be the role-limiting shape of things to come.
I say so-called, because like most clubs, there’s a set of opaque ideas, rules, acronyms, regulations and expectations that are technically available, but in reality handing them over means handing over power and this is consciously and/or unconsciously avoided at all costs.
Whether it’s the tour of the site I’m supposed to have had, the introduction to staff members with an organagram or my repeated ask for explanations of the acronyms or historical context for decisions during Board meetings, their absence makes the experience like walking through fog and occasionally bumping into things by chance.
If I reach the other side without too many bruises, I might have something to offer.
Having worked in the third sector for most of my professional life and even held other trustee, non executive and executive director positions, there’s something I like about this charity and its purpose. And so I remain determined to hold their mission, impact and my strategic and legal role at the heart against all odds. Mostly because the Chair is standing down soon.
For now the charity and board are not weighed down by a fear of going bankrupt, but instead by an over-involved, unchallenged, power-hungry operational Chair with too little curiosity and too much day-to-day involvement.
A month after becoming a trustee there’s an ‘induction meeting’ with the Chair, requested by me as per the ‘induction checklist’ (which is in fact devised for staff but in the absence of anything else, provided to trustees who clearly aren’t actually expected to make use of it). During this meeting I seek to understand better my role, the charity’s priorities, where I can bring value, the training expected of me (having explained that Ladder Safety probably isn’t a good use of my time), roughly how many ‘unplanned’ meetings there will be, how I like to communicate and be communicated with, including, as a working person, the notice I need and if/when we might actually go through the Induction Checklist.
There’s a lot of leaning back in his chair and not many answers.
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Want to find out more? Contact us at julian@almondtreeconsulting.co.uk to discuss your organisation’s needs.