The Governance Code for Community, Voluntary and Charitable Organisations

The Governance Code which is a code of practice for good governance of community, voluntary and charitable organisations in Ireland was launched by Phil Hogan T.D., Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government on 28^th June 2012.  

In his speech the Minster said “The Code is the result of many months of hard work by a Working Group (which comprised 8 community and voluntary organisations and 3 other groups) who took on board views from the sector and extensive feedback from public consultation. An important aspect of the Code is that it has been developed by the sector for the sector with the key principle of enabling the community and voluntary sector to achieve the highest standards of governance in the running of their organisations. It has been designed to make it user-friendly for all organisations no matter what their size or stage of development.”

The Governance Code is for board members/trustees, managers, staff and volunteers of community, voluntary and charitable organisations and will be an invaluable tool to help these organisations perform to the highest standards possible.  

To coincide with the launch a booklet was issued entitled “Your Guide to the Governance Code for Community, Voluntary & Charitable Organisations.”  

Good governance means that policies and procedures are in place to ensure an organisation is run well. But good governance is not about rules. It is an attitude of mind. It is about the ethical culture of the organisation and the behaviour of the people on the governing body.

The Governance Code is based on five main principles:

Principle 1: Leading the organisation

1. Agreeing vision, purpose and values and making sure that they remain relevant
2. Developing, resourcing, monitoring and evaluating a plan to make sure the organisation achieves its stated purpose
3. Managing, supporting and holding to account staff, volunteers and all who act on behalf of the organisation

Principle 2: Exercising control over the organisation

1. Identifying and complying with all relevant legal and regulatory requirements
2. Making sure that there are appropriate internal financial and management controls
3. Identifying major risks for the organisation and deciding ways of managing the risks

Principle 3: Being transparent and accountable

1. Identifying those who have a legitimate interest in the work of the organisation (stakeholders), and making sure that there is regular and effective communication with them about the organisation
2. Responding to stakeholders' questions or views about the work of the organisation and how it is run
3. Encouraging and enabling the engagement of those who benefit from the organisation in planning and decision-making

Principle 4: Working effectively

1. Making sure that the governing body, individual board members, committees, staff and volunteers understand their roles, legal duties, and delegated responsibilities for decision-making
2. Making sure that the board exercises its collective responsibility through board meetings that are efficient and effective
3. Making sure that there are suitable board recruitment, development and retirement processes in place

Principle 5: Behaving with integrity

1. Being honest, fair and independent
2. Understanding, declaring and managing conflicts of interest and conflicts of loyalties
3. Protecting and promoting the organisation's reputation

Types of Organisations by Size

The Code recognises that the process for achieving these five principals will vary depending on the size and nature of the organisation.  It includes recommended guidelines and actions to help organisations fully adopt the Code.

In order to be relevant, and to be proportionately applicable, to all organisations regardless of size, structure or stage of development, the Code defines three categories of organisation (Type A, B or C) based on how governance is conducted.

Type A

1. The board members’ role is comprehensive, including governance, management and operations.
2. The organisation is run by one or more volunteers, who may or may not be board members.
3. The organisation does not employ staff.

Type B

1. The board members’ role is primarily governance, but with some management and operational responsibilities as well.  
2. The organisation employs one or more full-time / part-time staff members.

Type C

1. The board members’ role is solely governance, with a clear division between the governance role of the board and the management and operations role of staff.
2. The organisation may have any number of full-time / part-time staff, all reporting to a Chief Executive / Manager / Director

It is suggested that a Type B organisation that enters into service level agreements with Government departments or statutory agencies should comply with the Governance Code actions and recommendations of the Type C organisation.

In practice many community, voluntary and charitable organisations are most likely complying in with many aspects of The Governance Code but without having their practices and procedures documented in a Code.  

For community, voluntary and charitable organisations wishing to adopt The Governance Code it is suggested that:

1. Read the guidelines and actions for your organisation type and complete the appropriate checklist for your organisation.
2. Identify the actions you think your organisation needs to take to comply with each principle. Rank the actions and complete them within a reasonable timeframe.
3. Once you have completed these actions, you should state in your public materials that you comply with 'The Governance Code for the Community, Voluntary and Charity Sector in Ireland'. The Governance Code Principles Statement should then be signed and displayed publicly
4. Each year after the board has renewed its commitment to The Governance Code, you should notify The Government Code organisation who retain a list of organisations that have  adopted The Governance Code in a particular year

Self Assessment Checklists

Click here for Checklist for Organisation Type A

Click here for Checklist for Organisation Type B

Click here for Checklist for Organisation Type C

Further information on the Governance Code can be obtained from www.governancecode.ie website