Charitable Status

Balm of Gilead is a Registered Charity with the Charity Commission. In line with the Charity Commission the Church (charity) must have Trustees.

Who are charity trustees?

Charity trustees are the people who form the governing body of a charity. They may be known as trustees, directors, board members, governors or committee members. Trustees are responsible for controlling the management and administration of a charity. The great majority of trustees serve as volunteers, and receive no payment (other than to repay necessary out-of-pocket expenses incurred). Trustees should work together as a team, and have collective responsibility for their charity.

Being a trustee can be hard work, but by contributing you should also gain. Trusteeship should be rewarding, providing opportunities for personal development. As you give your skills to the running of your charity, you will at the same time gather new skills and experience.

What are the duties of trustees?

Trustees have, and must accept, ultimate responsibility for directing the affairs of their charity, ensuring that it is solvent and well-run, and delivering the charitable outcomes for the benefit of the public for which it was set up. You need to keep in mind the following areas of responsibility.

Ensuring compliance – Trustees must ensure that their charity complies with:

• Charity law, and the requirements of the Charity Commission as regulator; in particular you must ensure that the charity prepares reports on its work, and submits Annual Returns and accounts as required by law. You can find more information in our publication The Hallmarks of an Effective Charity (CC10).
• The requirements or rules, and the charitable purpose and objects, set out in the charity’s own governing document. All trustees should have a copy of this document, and be familiar with it.
• The requirements of other legislation and other regulators (if any) which govern the activities of the charity; these will vary according to the type of work the charity carries out, and whether it employs staff or volunteers.
• The requirement for trustees to act with integrity, and avoid any personal conflicts of interest or misuse of charity funds or assets. You should check the charity’s governing document for provisions relating to conflicts of interest and you can find more information in Charity Commissions website guidance on conflicts of interest and in its publication Trustee expenses and payments (CC11).

Duty of prudence – Trustees must:

• Ensure that the charity is and will remain solvent; this means that you need to keep yourself informed of the charity’s activities and financial position.
• Use charitable funds and assets wisely, and only to further the purposes and interests of the charity.
• Avoid undertaking activities that might place the charity’s property, funds, assets or reputation at undue risk.
• Take special care when investing the funds of the charity, or borrowing funds for the charity to use.

Duty of care – Trustees must:

• Exercise reasonable care and skill as trustees, using personal knowledge and experience to ensure that the charity is well-run and efficient.
• Consider getting external professional advice on all matters where there may be material risk to the charity, or where the trustees may be in breach of their duties.To fulfil these responsibilities properly, trustees should make sure that they keep up to date with what the charity is doing. You should give enough time and energy to the business of the charity, and meet regularly enough to make the decisions needed. How this is done will vary between different types and sizes of charity.

What is the Charity Commission?

Charity Commission is the independent charity regulator for England and Wales. Their job is to work with charities to ensure that they are accountable, well run and meet their legal obligations. They also aim to promote public trust and confidence in charities. Most charities must register with the Charity Commission, although some types of charity do not have to register. They provide a wide range of advice and guidance to charities. They produce a twice yearly newsletter which is sent to all registered charities in England and Wales and offer a number of online services via their website. You can also read and download any of their publications and guidance from their website.

Balm of Gilead is a registered charity with the Charity Commission. The registration and Trustee details can be found on the Charity Commission Website