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Small Charity Governance is concerned with the control and direction of charitable organisations established for the public benefit in the United Kingdom. The majority of charities in England and Wales (totaling about 190,000) have an income under £10,000, and only about 22% of charities have any staff at all.〔2012 Civil Society Almanac 〕 Many community groups and small voluntary organisations are not registered charities, because either their turnover is below the threshold for registration or their purpose does not fall within the definition of charitable activity. Much literature about governance is written from the perspective of the minority of larger charities; this article attempts to address the topic by focusing on the experience and concerns of the majority. ''Governance'' is the process through which a group of people make decisions which direct their collective efforts. This typically features ''delegation'' to a smaller group, which is in turn accountable to the stakeholders or owners of the organisation. == Role == In small voluntary organisations, those entrusted with the governance function (the governing body or board of trustees) are expected to carry out both governance functions and to also perform other roles within the organisation.〔Selznick (1992) "To govern is to accept responsibility for the whole life of the institution. This is a burden quite different from the rational coordination of specialized activities (i.e. management). Governance takes account of all the interests that affect the viability, competence and moral character of an enterprise”. 〕 Core functions are: *To ensure that the charity remains true to its mission and values *To determine its strategy *To act as the point of final accountability for its actions and those of its representatives and staff *To safeguard its assets When the organisation employs staff, the governing body undertakes the management role of hiring, firing and holding the head of staff accountable.〔Carver (1997: p16): “…acting on behalf of an identifiable ownership, ensure that the organisation achieves what it should while avoiding what is unacceptable.”〕 Another role is as liaison between the organisation and the outside world: providing a conduit for information and ideas, representing it and acting as an ambassador for it. In addition to these governance functions, trustees of small charities may also be expected to: *Act as a pool of expertise and advice, making this available to staff and volunteers *Manage one (or more) staff, volunteers or projects (for instance, managing the work of the coordinator or production of the newsletter)〔Adirondack (1999: p6) adds that “Governance is not necessarily about doing; it is about ensuring things are done.”〕 *Carrying out the work of the organisation: staffing a helpline, answering correspondence and so on〔The Charity Act 1993: s.97(1): “The charity trustees are the people responsible … for controlling the management and administration of the charity.”〕 The literature typically restricts its coverage to “pure” governance functions; it does not pay attention to these other functions which are carried out by the trustees of small charities, seen by staff, volunteers and committee members as the contribution made by them to the organisation. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Small Charity Governance」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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