The Trustee Board is a team of volunteers who work together, as charity trustees, to make sure Scouts is run safely and legally. At the heart of their role is a focus on strategy, performance and assurance. Effective Trustee Board governance helps our volunteers deliver fantastic programmes that give young people skills for life.
During the transition from ‘Executive Committees’ to ‘Trustee Boards’ it will be particularly important to keep up-to-date with the latest guidelines and policy from The Scout Association website.
Trustee Boards
The following web pages from The Scout Association provide the latest information:
| Moving to Trustee Boards |
| Trustee Boards (Groups, District & County) |
| Trustee introduction |
| Guidance and support for trustees |
| Trustee Board Meetings – agenda prompts |
County resources
| County video (aimed at Chairs of Trustees) |
| Support for claiming gift aid – County web page link |
| Connecting Communities in Berkshire (Berkshire Scouts is a member) |
| Property support event – County web page link |
| Document store – policy and procedure documents |
Frequently asked questions . . .
The following table contains FAQs noted at the latest County Trustee Workshop and are still relevant for Trustee Boards.
| Transformation | |
| Transformation queries | Contact our Transformation lead (Pete Jeffreys). |
| Trustees | |
| Charitable status | Each Scout Group or Scout District is a separate charity. This is the case whether or not they are a registered charity. For Scout Groups that are not a registered charity The Scout Association can provide a letter confirming charitable status. Contact: [email protected] See sample letter |
| Will the Group Lead Volunteer be a member of the Trustee Board? | Yes, but if there are multiple Lead Volunteers, then only one of them will be able to use the ex-officio position as a trustee. |
| If a Scout Group is a registered charity they should check that their objectives on the Charity Commission website are up-to-date | It is important to keep the Charity Commission website up-to-date. Note: A Scout Group reported at one stage their objectives still referred to ‘instructing boys’! |
| Charitable objectives | It is one of the responsibilities of trustees to ensure the activities of the charity are consistent with its objectives – see above. |
| Registering trustee names (Charity Commission) | Groups that are a registered charity need to ensure they update the names of all their trustees on the Charity Commission website after their AGM. All Groups, Districts and Counties need to make sure Compass is also updated after each AGM – adding/closing roles, including DBS check for anyone not already on Compass with a disclosure check. |
| Right of attendance | The County Lead Volunteer, District Lead Volunteer, and District Chair, have the right of attendance at Group Trustee Board and sub-committee Meetings. They use this attendance as a means of support, but it doesn’t make them responsible for the actions of the Group. |
| Request for County risk register | click here for the template used by the County Trustee Board. |
| Finance | |
| Information on the OSM accountancy tool | OSM web page and video |
| External funding | County web page / HQ web page |
| Bank accounts and signatories | A reminder that all Scout related accounts must have two signatories for transactions (usually from three or more signatures) and that personal accounts must not be used. |
| Safety | |
| Scout Group Trustee Checklist | Click here for guidance provided by the County. |
| County Safety Team | See Safety web page (County). |
| Property | |
| Advice on property, eg: lease and rent agreements | Berkshire Scouts is a subscriber to Connecting Communities in Berkshire (CCB). Click here to make contact with BCC. |
| Recruitment | |
| Recruiting trustees | Recruiting trustees (County); Recruiting new trustees (HQ). |
| Support for building websites and marketing | Website support; media support |
| Diversity on Trustee Boards | Contact our Volunteer Development Officer for support. |
| Insurance | |
| Do Scout Groups have to use Unity Insurance Services? | HQ and the County use Unity Insurance Services as they have a lot of Scouting specific knowledge and experience. Unity is owned by the The Scout Association and all the profits are returned to the movement. However, Scouting insurance does not have to be done via Unity and other brokers can be used. |
| What insurance cover does The Scout Association provide? | The Scout Association provides Public Liability Insurance for claims made against members or Groups and Personal Accident and Medical Expenses insurance for all members whilst travelling to, participating or travelling home from any authorised Scouting activity. It also provides Indemnity Insurance for all Scout management committees and trustees. Districts and Groups should seriously consider obtaining additional Personal Accident and Medical Expenses Cover for their non-member adult helpers and supporters, this provides non-members with the same level of cover as members should they have an accident. From 1 December 2022, non-member children are automatically covered by The Scout Association’s Personal Accident and Medical Expenses policy, giving them the same cover as children who are members. |
For further information:
Contact Chair of County Trustees – Ian Aitken