What is governance, and what is its purpose in our organisation?
Why not ask your own governing body
You could ask members individually or put the question to the whole board at your next meeting.
Don't provide them with the answer.
Listen to what they say.
You might find that people have quite different understandings of what governance means — and what it is supposed to achieve.
That's worth knowing.
I encourage every third-sector organisation I work with to schedule this question for discussion by its governing body.
1 The promise
Better governance. Better decisions. Better change.
The Governance Framework helps third-sector organisations
strengthen their governance so they can deliver more effective and
lasting outcomes for the people and communities they exist to serve.
2 The problem
You are part of our essential sector because you want to make a positive difference to the lives or environment of your beneficiaries.
Our sector is more closely scrutinised than ever before. And quite rightly. It can only exist with the trust and support of the public.
Regulators priorotise governance risks and remind us how governance failures can damage public trust and confidence in the whole sector.
ICAEW (2023)
* Fewer than half of charities provide new trustees
with key information such as governing documents, accounts, and
legal responsibilities.
* Only 32% interview trustee candidates,
and less than 1 in 10 offer mentoring or shadowing as part of induction.
The Charity Commission and Pro Bono Economics (2025) found that:
* Just 6% of trustees are recruited via open advertising; over half
of charities rely on personal contacts.
Across the available
evidence:
Third Sector board induction is inconsistent and often
insufficient, especially among small charities.
The Charity Commission Sector Risk Assessment 2026 states:
Governance risks can be a contributing factor to many other risks facing charities, so addressing these issues can help charities avoid wider problems.
OSCR
2026-27 business plan and regulatory priorities:
Priority 3: Helping to improve charities’ and the wider public’s understanding of core governance matters in areas such as:
• Financial health of charities
• Trustee and senior management disqualification
• Governing documents
• Narrative reporting and accounts
Across all jurisdictions, the top five governance risks consistently identified are:
Trustees failing to exercise effective oversight
Conflicts
of interest and lack of independence
Weak financial management
and controls
Poor risk management and strategic planning
Board
capability, culture and succession weaknesses
The newer trend (2024-2026) is that regulators and infrastructure bodies are increasingly treating organisational culture, board behaviour, diversity, inclusion, cyber resilience and financial sustainability as governance issues rather than operational ones.
None of these reflect a lack of commitment from trustees in our sector. They reflect the need for better support.
3 The solution
To enable you to access better support and avoid these potential problems in your organisation, I have developed the Governance Framework - a comprehensive, practical governance improvement framework for third sector organisations, to help you deliver more effective and lasting outcomes for your beneficiaries.
4 What The Governance Framework can help you achieve
It will help your organisation:
-
* Bring your governance information together in one place, creating a practical foundation for decision-making, induction, funding applications and communications
• Strengthen trustee recruitment, induction, succession and sustainability planning.
• Increase transparency and accountability, helping maintain public trust and confidence.
• Communicate your organisation's impact more effectively.
• Demonstrate alignment with recognised good governance principles.
• Deliver greater impact for your beneficiaries
5 What you receive
✔ A complete governance improvement framework with practical, step-by-step guidance. Delivered as a searchable PDF for immediate download and practical use
✔ Ready-to-use templates that enable you to create your licenced governance plan.
✔ A single-organisation licence to use and adapt the completed governance plan.
✔ 30 minutes of personal implementation support or join a 2.5-hour small-group governance workshop. (T&Cs apply **)
✔ Critical updates included for twelve months.
✔ Optional consultancy if you'd like me to work alongside you.
Who is The Governance Framework for?
✔ Registered charities
✔ SCIOs
✔ CIOs
✔ Community groups
✔ Social enterprises
✔ Community interest companies
✔ Voluntary organisations
✔ Faith-based charities and groups
✔ Start-ups
✔ Established organisations
6 Why trust me.
I've had the privilege of working with hundreds of third-sector organisations for more than 35 years, as an advisor, mentor, educator and practitioner. I've also established and run a social enterprise myself.
That experience has shown me that TSOs are always looking for practical ways to strengthen their impact and be more sustainable.
Currently I am supporting organisations with life cycles from start-up to wind-up.
7 Testimonials
"This is fantastic. Despite being involved in third sector organisations for a long time, I am always nervous about getting the governance right and [The Governance Framework] will offer excellent information and confidence."
Anne Barclay Wigtown and Bladnoch Town Team SCIO
"Our board meetings are now much more focused!"
Chair of client Organisation
"We completed our governance framework in six weeks"
Development Association
“Extremely in depth and useful, David. I have no doubt that your experience, leadership, professionalism and knowledge, will be a valuable asset to any organisation engaging with [The Governance Framework]”
Bill Stewart
8 Investment
-
£100 per organisation
Your purchase includes:
* The Governance Framework as a searchable PDF
* your licensed copy for use within your organisation
* practical templates
** 12 months of critical updates
** your choice of 30-minute one-to-one implementation support or a 2½-hour small-group online imlementation support workshop
Introductory offer: implementation support is included with your purchase.
9 FAQ
Why should we pay when there's so much free governance guidance available?
When I conduct training, I ask attendees 3 questions: What do you do? What are your purposes? What is your organisation’s legal form? It is no surprise to me that the vast majority of attendees cannot answer these questions. You can try this yourself. Ask your board members, staff, volunteers and other stakeholders three simple questions: What do we do? What are our purposes? What is our organisation's legal form? If the answers aren't clear, that may be a useful starting point for strengthening your governance.
Is this just a re-print of the Regulators advice?
No. The Framework is not intended to replace regulatory guidance or legal advice. It brings together the practical governance issues that organisations need to consider and turns them into a structured framework, supported by templates that can be adapted and used. It draws on more than 35 years of experience working with third-sector organisations and the common governance challenges they face
We have trustee insurance, so we’re protected against claims.
Insurance is an important part of managing risk, but it does not remove the need for good governance. The Governance Framework is a little like a smoke detector — but better! It helps you think about how to stop the fire starting in the first place.
We’re just a little organisation; we don’t need it.
Good governance isn't only for large organisations. In fact, smaller organisations can have fewer people, fewer resources and less specialist support — making a clear, proportionate governance framework particularly valuable. The Governance Framework is designed to be proportionate to the size and scope of your organisation
We don’t have the time or resources to do this.
You probably already have most of what you need — it is just in different places. The Governance Framework shows you how to bring that information together and provides templates for areas where something is missing. At the end of the day though, governance is not a spectator sport. It’s something you should be considering at every business (board or committee) meeting.
10 Ready to strengthen your governance?
Buy The Governance Framework
Payment via Credit/Debit card or your PayPal account
Need to ask a question first? Contact David
Are you a TSI, CVS, funder or other organisation supporting third-sector organisations?
The Governance Framework is also available through a small-scale distribution licence arrangement, allowing organisations to purchase licences for the TSOs they support.
You decide how the licences are distributed — whether sold, subsidised or provided free as part of your support.
