Trustees, (also known as management committee members, or Board members) are essential for the running of voluntary organisations. They are the people responsible for ensuring that a voluntary organisation has a clear strategy, that it remains true to its original vision, and that it complies with all necessary rules and legal obligations.

Trustees' obligation to provide good governance brings them a number of important responsibilities. You may be directly involved in carrying out some tasks, while others can be delegated to the staff you employ. As a trustee, you will remain responsible for the staff's actions and you must monitor the way they carry out their duties. Briefly, trustees' responsibilities include:

• strategic planning
• accountability to funders and other stakeholders (service users, volunteers, staff etc)
• monitoring the work of the organisation
• evaluating the work of the organisation
• managing the organisation's property and land
• managing the organisations public relations
• representing the views of the organisation
• staff and volunteer management
• overseeing fundraising activities

People from all walks of life become trustees of voluntary organisations, and together they contribute huge amounts of time (unpaid!) and energy to a wide variety of good causes. Becoming a trustee can also bring significant personal and career benefits to individuals. 

To find out about trustee opportunities in your area, please select an area from the list on our home page, then select "trustees" from the category list.

Trustee news is an electronic newsletter sent out on a monthly basis, and if you’d like to receive it, please complete the simple online form at the following link www.wcva.org.uk/emembership, where you can also subscribe to WCVA’s funding and volunteer e-newsletters.