Charity Commission guidance: ‘Decision-making for charity trustees (CC27)’ refresh

Early in September 2024, the Charity Commission updated its ‘Decision-making for charity trustees (CC27)’ guidance. Trustees are responsible for governing their charity and making decisions about how it should be run. However, not all trustees will agree with all decisions; constructive debate and challenge are signs of healthy governance. The Charity Commission expects trustees to make decisions in the best interests of their charity and this guidance, with its seven principles for reviewing decisions made by trustees, aims to help trustees meet these expectations.

1. Trustees must act within their powers 
   Decisions must be made to further the charitable purpose
   
2. Trustees must act in good faith 
   Decisions must be guided by good and honest intention, in the best interests of the charity
3. Trustees must be sufficiently informed 
   Decisions must be based on enough relevant information to consider risks, impacts and resources at the time of the decision.
4. Trustees must take account of all relevant factors
   Relevant factors may include costs, implications and the reputation of the charity.
5. Trustees must identify and disregard irrelevant factors 
   Decisions should not be based on personal feelings or prejudices
6. Trustees must manage conflicts of interest 
   Conflicts of interest must be manged formally and regularly reviewed, and decisions not influenced by personal interests or the influences of connected persons
7. Trustees must ensure their decisions are within the range of decisions that a reasonable trustee body could make

Decisions must be made with reasonable care and skill, and in the best interests of the charity.

Trustees should follow these decision-making principles and keep a record of how decisions have been made. This is usually done by documenting minutes of meetings which should be detailed enough to understand the issues and reasons for the decision made. Where concerns are raised with the Commission, they will review whether trustees have followed these decision-making principles.