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Charity governance support in Redcar & Cleveland

Practical governance help for Redcar & Cleveland charities and community groups, plus the trustee resources we trust most.

Good governance keeps your organisation safe, legal and moving the right way. It also helps trustees feel confident about the decisions they make. This page is for trustees, committee members and leaders of charities, community groups and social enterprises across Redcar & Cleveland. Below you will find practical charity governance support from RCVDA, plus the guidance we trust most.

So what is governance? In short, it is how your organisation runs, sets its direction and stays accountable. It covers your purpose, your decisions and your legal duties. Whether you are just starting out or reviewing a long-standing board, we can help you get it right.

How We Can Help

RCVDA works alongside your board, never over it. As the local support body for Redcar & Cleveland, we shape our help around small, often volunteer-led groups. For example, we can:

  • review your constitution or governing document, then suggest plain-English updates
  • help you write or refresh key policies, from conflicts of interest to safeguarding
  • support trustee recruitment, induction and board reviews
  • talk through a specific worry, such as a tricky decision or a gap on your board
  • run a simple governance health-check with you, then agree clear next steps together

Our first conversations are free, friendly and without obligation. So if something is on your mind, please get in touch or call us on 01642 440571.

Start with the Charity Governance Code

The Charity Governance Code is the sector’s benchmark for a well-run board. It is not the law, and no regulator makes you follow it. Even so, funders and the Charity Commission increasingly expect boards to know it and use it. Above all, it is a practical tool that helps trustees talk openly about how they work.

The voluntary steering group refreshed the Code on 3 November 2025. Here is what changed, and why it matters to you:

  • There is now one Code for every charity. The separate “smaller charities” version has gone. Instead, the Code flags extra points for larger charities and those with staff.
  • It rests on a foundation principle — that your charity meets its legal duties — plus seven supporting principles: organisational purpose, leadership, ethics and culture, decision making, managing resources and risks, equity, diversity and inclusion, and board effectiveness.
  • It follows an apply-and-explain approach. In other words, you use the parts that fit your charity, then explain briefly in your annual report how you apply it.

If you are a small group, do not be put off by the Code’s scope. Start with the foundation principle, then take one supporting principle at a time. We can help you work out which parts matter most for you.

Your legal duties depend partly on how your charity is set up. Therefore it helps to be clear which type you are:

  • Unincorporated association or trust — a simple structure for smaller groups, run by a committee or trustees.
  • Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) — a charity that is its own legal body, registered only with the Charity Commission.
  • Charitable company — a company limited by guarantee that is also a charity, registered with both Companies House and the Charity Commission.

Not sure which one you are, or thinking about changing? We can talk it through and point you to the right route. The GOV.UK guide to setting up a charity explains the main structures too.

Governance Essentials

The resources below are the ones we recommend most often. We keep the list short on purpose, and we link to the original source each time. Each one is a web page you can read now, so nothing important is hidden in a download.

Your core duties as a trustee

Money and risk

Decisions and meetings

Your board

What This Means for Trustees and Leaders

Good governance is a habit, not a one-off task. So start small, then build over time. In practice, that means four simple steps:

  1. Read the foundation principle of the Code with your board, then rate yourselves honestly.
  2. Fix the biggest gap first — often that is conflicts of interest, reserves or trustee recruitment.
  3. Put review dates in your calendar, so your policies never go stale.
  4. Ask for help early. We would much rather have a quick chat now than untangle a problem later.

Whenever you are ready, we are here to help you take the next step.

Sources and Further Reading

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