Governance Support Case Study

As part of our Infrastructure Support and Development Project, funded by The BIG Lottery, Kingston Voluntary Action offers support to Management Committees in the borough in order to help them manage their performance and plan more effectively.  We are currently working with a number of different organisations of various sizes and the case study below gives an example of how we have helped a small health-related organisation.

The organisation first approached Kingston Voluntary Action because their Chair (who also was their Acting Treasurer) died and left them not only saddened, but also concerned about their future.  With the Chair’s death, the number of Trustees on the Board was reduced to five and since their Governing Document states that the Management Committee must consist of at least six members, there was an urgent need for governance support.

KVA provided guidance on how and where to advertise for new trustees and with help from Kingston Volunteer Centre, we were able to identify several possible candidates.  From these, the organisation has now recruited a local resident as a trustee who has lots of relevant experience (civil servant for over 30 years, a school governor and a chair of PTA) and enough time to devote to the committee.  The Acting Chair attended KVA’s training session ‘Recruitment and Induction of Trustees’ and there are two more people interested in joining the Board.

Our initial assessment of the organisation’s governance involved looking at the Governing Document, which led to some changes being suggested. The organisation will consider these and, with our assistance, review the Constitution once the new trustees are in place and more familiar with the organisation.

We visited the organisation during one of their committee meetings and conducted a short quiz on duties and responsibilities of trustees.  This revealed a need for a refresher workshop, which all participants agreed was useful. The organisation has also identified a need to strengthen their practice around the Data Protection Act.
We hope to continue working with this organisation to further strengthen their governance.

Their Acting Chair said “The help given by Kingston Voluntary Action, and the courses provided, have been invaluable in enabling our organisation to re-focus itself and prepare to move forward  after a period of difficulty.”

We have worked with other organisations in Kingston by introducing them to the Code of Governance, encouraging them to take on a governance review, helping them to distinguish between the management and leadership in their organisations, to establish conflict of interest policies and procedures, understand the rules around employment of trustees, and general role descriptions for honorary officers. Where necessary, groups were referred to our community accountancy advisor for one–to-one support.

This year we are looking to assist a further 10 organisations to improve their governance, so if the Management Committee of your organisation needs support in that area, please contact Sanja Kane, Training and Workforce Development Co-ordinator who will visit your organisation to assess your specific needs.