Get in touch with us on 028 9087 7777 or via the support request form or you can email our team. Please check COVID-19 Information Hub for regular updates.
Governance and Charity Advice
Information and advice
Our various governance advice notes provide detailed guidance on the most common queries that we deal with, for example, charitable status, legal structures, conflicts of interest, company administration. We can also provide advice and guidance on your specific queries however we ask you to check our comprehensive advice notes in the first instance.
Governing document review and drafting service
We provide a service for reviewing and/or drafting governing documents, for example constitutions or memorandum and articles of association, tailored to meet your organisation’s needs. The governance team will work with you to ensure that your Objects clause sufficiently covers your current activities and that the governance arrangements are clearly laid out and reflective of what happens in practice. Please contact the governance team for details of the charges for this service.
CCNI Helper Group for charity registration
As one of the Charity Commission’s ‘helper groups’ we can assist you with your online application for registering with the Charity Commission. In working with a number of organisations we have found that the question that poses the greatest challenge is ‘the public benefit statement’. We will use the Commission’s public benefit toolkit to help charities write this and would encourage all organisations to read the Commission’s helpful registration support guidance BEFORE starting the online application.
Governance training for the board
For many boards, participating in governance training is a very important aspect of maintaining good governance. It is an opportunity for board members to gain a better understanding of their role and that of the board as a collective. It may be a time for the board to examine how effective it is and identify areas for improvement and/or it may also be an opportunity to keep up to date with the latest in charity regulations. Our governance team can design a bespoke session relevant to the needs of your board and deliver it in your own premises at a time that suits the board members, daytime or evening. We also provide more general governance training which is sometimes available on the training calendar, for example, risk assessment and governance for new trustees.
Charity regulation
The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland commenced compulsory registration of charities in December 2013. We provide the sector with the most up to date information on the key changes in charity regulation. For the latest on new charity regulations and a history of recent charity law reform in NI, please see our dedicated charity regulation webpage.
Code of Good Governance
The revised Code of Good Governance sets out the principles and practices of good governance for the boards of voluntary and community organisations. Launched in early 2016 by the Developing Governance Group (DGG) it has been widely accepted as the set of standards for governance in the sector. In order to help boards adhere to the principles of the Code, the DGG devised a governance health check as a self-assessment framework in which boards could assess their own governance practices. In addition, the practical resources on the ‘diycommitteeguide’ website have been remapped to the principles of the Code.
The Code of Good Governance was first published in 2008, and after consultation with the sector is was agreed that the revised five principles were more appropriate for all sizes of organisations to work with.
Useful Links
Updates
Portadown Wellness Centre case study
Alan McDowell is a board member of Portadown Wellness Centre, which received support from the governance team. He gave his view on his experiences of working with NICVA.
Independent review of charity regulation has commenced
The Minister for Communities has commissioned an independent review of charity regulation in N.Ireland which commenced on 25 January 2021.
Making time for governance
The past year has been a challenging time for organisations across the sector but technology has enabled many of us to do things differently, whether it be holding our board meetings online or adapting our services to meet public health guidance.
AGMs and company house filings
Companies, registered societies and credit unions that are due to hold an AGM in early 2021 will be glad to hear that they will be permitted to hold this online.
Trustees' Week 2020 was a hit with Trustees
Trustees’ Week is a time to celebrate and recognise the great work done by thousands of trustees. This year Trustees got the opportunity to brush up on their governance knowledge at our series of webinars for Trustees.
Trustee annual reporting webinar recording
If you missed our webinar on Trustee annual reporting for Trustees' Week you can watch it now at the link below.
The Code of Good Governance in a virtual world webinar recording
If you missed the Developing Governance Group's webinar for Trustees' Week on the Code of Good Governance in a virtual world, you can watch it now below.
What does being a charity trustee mean? webinar recording
Sarah Finnegan, Head of Compliance and Enquiries at the Charity Commission for NI, kicked off Trustees’ Week with a webinar on What does being a charity trustee mean?
Great boards, Great Board members - Trustees' week
As part of Trustees' week 2020 we held a webinar on what makes and great board and becoming a great board member in partnership with BITC. It is part of a series of Skills Match webinars.
Charities SORP - Time for Trustees to have their say
Charities which prepare accounts on the accruals basis are legally required to apply the Charities SORP. This SORP is in the early stages of being redeveloped and charity trustees' views are being sought.
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Resources
Events
Governance for new, or nearly new, Trustees **FULLY BOOKED, ANOTHER DATE HAS BEEN SET FOR 19 MAY 21** 20 Apr 2021 - 16:00 to 18:00 |
NICVA 61 Duncairn Gardens Belfast Co Antrim BT15 2GB |
online . . Co Antrim . |
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The Preparation and Independent Examination of Charity Accounts (Accruals) 1 Jun 2021 - 09:30 to 9 Jun 2021 - 12:30 |
online . . . |
Team
Denise Copeland | Governance and Charity Advice Manager |
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Donna Semple | Governance and Charity Advice Officer |
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Michele Crilly | Governance and Charity Advice Officer |
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The information that we were supplied with was most beneficial. We have since taken various steps to support Good Governance and probity, adhering to the Good Governance Guide and ensuring that the organisations operate with the governing document.