Governance

The third sector relies hugely on the commitment of the thousands of people who serve as Trustees. But increased regulatory scrutiny, rising demand for services and tightening finances are all adding pressure on charity Boards.

We can help support you in your governance duties and challenges. db associates undertakes training for individual boards and for members of Hospice UK. We also run workshops on how Trustees and senior staff can operate in partnership and we facilitate strategic planning sessions. 

In addition, we are an approved consultant with Digi-Board, the digital review tool which uses custom analytics to provide unique analysis into a charity’s governance.

Digi-Board is an on-line tool that provides detailed insights into a charity’s governance practices and performance. Participants answer questions based not only on the eight principles of the Charity Governance Code, but also other important areas such as income generation, CQC readiness, board culture and safeguarding. Respondents can rate present performance, identify areas of improvement and add their own specific comments.

The results provide rich, detailed assessment of your current performance and show areas of strength and weakness to help you plan future board development activities. You can also see any contrast in the perspectives of trustees and directors. Moreover, you can benchmark your results against those of the other charities who have used the tool - and against the twenty plus hospices who have also done so. 

We also now have benchmarking around the make up of the Board in terms of how a participating charity compares to the whole universe in factors such as age, sex, duration of service, ethnic background, etc. 

“‘As the incoming Chair, I found Digi-Board a valuable and insightful tool. Our results were very positive, but the recommendations gave us a really helpful framework for further improvements to our practice and processes.’’  Shaun O'Leary, Chair, St Wilfrid’s Hospice (Eastbourne)

To discuss the use of Digi-Board further, contact me. 

db associates led an away day for the Trustees, Directors and Senior Managers of Oakhaven Hospice. This gave them the chance to come together to reflect upon their achievements, but also talk about the future. Andrew Ryde, CEO said; 

 ‘Oakhaven, like many hospices, has been looking to refine its strategy in view of the numerous challenges we are facing now and in the years ahead. 

We asked David to lead an away day for our Trustees, Directors and Senior Managers to help us discuss these challenges and how we can respond to them. David’s knowledge and engaging facilitation skills ensured that the day fully met the brief and we now have a whole host of ideas to take forward and build into our future plans.’  

Like many charities, East Cheshire Hospice faced significant governance challenges in recent years. They approached db associates to help them connect and develop as a group, build a shared purpose and understand what good governance looks like in their context. 

‘Coming out of the pandemic we wanted to review and refresh our approach to governance and how Trustees and the Executive work together. David ran three workshops, one for each group and then a combined one. His sector knowledge together with an enthusiastic style made all the sessions enjoyable, as well as resulting in a large number of really positive actions we can now take forward.’  Geraldine Crawford, Trustee

With a growing sense that the worst of the pandemic is behind us, many organisations are now looking at their longer term strategy. db associates recently worked with St Catherine’s Hospice, Preston on their board away day.

‘The Trustees were keen to understand how our new strategy related to the challenges facing the hospice sector in these unpredictable times. With several new additions, they also wanted to be updated on their duties and responsibilities. David was an excellent lead facilitator. His knowledge and experience of the hospice sector and charitable governance proved of real benefit and really helped ensure the success of our time together.‘  Lynn Kelly, CEO        

db associates advised the Salford Foundation how to resolve a challenging governance issue relating to a subsidiary and the nature of its relationship with the parent charity. 

'David provided us with expert support around some complex governance issues which were difficult to navigate. He demonstrated that he was very knowledgeable; perceptive; solution focused; and sensitive to the human and interpersonal dimension of difficult issues. I would highly recommend David to other charities who need an objective and external view of affairs, delivered with professionalism and discretion. '  Phil East, CEO, Salford Foundation