1. Quality Students’ Unions:
Good Governance Session

2. In this session
Take a look at why good governance is important and a hot topic
Briefly introduce the Good Governance framework and self assessment
Explore some key questions which arise in relation to the Good Governance code and consider how unions should respond
Share good practice and new ideas 2

3. A clear narrative around governance
Over the past few years a clear narrative has emerged around charity governance – With negative headlines relating to;
Governance producers
High salaries of CEO
Fundraising tactics
Spending
Political involvement
What ever you make of these and other stories - This narrative resulted in;
New powers to the Charities Commission - move towards becoming a more robust regulator in late 2015
As well as other measures such as the Lobbying Act
This has focused attention on charity governance and the role of trustees
New powers to commission include:
- Extending trusteeship disqualification to include senior management positions.
- More detail and stronger safeguards on the commission's new power to issue official warnings.
- The introduction of a new power for the commission to direct a person not to take or to stop taking an action while a statutory inquiry is under way.
- Requiring the commission to give public notice, inviting responses, of its intention to use its new power to direct the winding-up of a charity. 3

4. Governance in the news…
The Guardian newspaper editorial wrote in August 2015…
“The fall of Kids Company shows us that charitable boards need to up their game” …. “The position of trustee requires something more than a desire to be seen to be a good egg. The work demands time, commitment and ability.”
Boards need those who can accurately understand a charity’s financial workings.
They also require people whose minds are subtle enough to understand that charities and arts organisations are different from profit-making organisations.
Diversity is critical. Without it, the skills, outlook and assumptions of boards are curtailed. 4

5. In the news
The editorial went on to suggest the following interventions;
More training for trustees as part of their roles… 
There could be more ways of sharing common problems between boards
Workplaces could better support and give a little time off
Too often trustees tend to be drawn from a narrow sliver of society – white, male, of a certain class and bearing and type.
There is more work to do in widening the pool of talent from which boards are drawn.
The work of trustees needs to be better celebrated and valued… as a public-service endeavour to which any skilled person, wherever they stand in society, should be welcome to contribute. 5

6. The HE green paper 2015
Teaching Excellence, Social Mobility and Student Choice Green Paper November 2015
Students’ unions play an important role representing student views and promoting the provision of academic and other services
The Government is currently taking steps through trade union reforms to ‘improve’ union practices and increase transparency around how funds are spent
What steps could be taken to increase the transparency of student unions and strengthen unions’ accountability to their student members?

7. Developing good governance

8. NUS Good Governance code
Developed and launched in 2011 as part of a project funded by HEFCE
Now forms part of QSU – under the Governance strand
Democracy
 Openness and Accountability
Clarity over the role of the board
Effective trustees and board  
Delivering Organisational purpose
Exercising Control
Behaving with integrity
4) Fully Achieved
3) Acceptable standard
2) Minimum standard.
Below minimum
Unions are also asked to issue a priority level
Low Level Priority
Medium Level Priority
High Level Priority

9. Some key questions

10. Feedback

11. Quality Students’ Unions: http://qualitystudentsunions.org.uk
Good Governance Code: