7 Questions Every Board of Trustees Should Be Asking In 2027
Author: Roger Chapman, Head of Service at Trusted Standard
What should every Board of Trustees be asking right now? From financial sustainability and emerging risks to impact, leadership and the needs of the communities you serve, asking the right questions can help Boards identify where their organisation is strong and where greater attention may be needed. Trusted Standard, the quality standard owned by NCVO, provides a useful framework for that conversation.
Here are seven questions for trustees to consider:
1. Are we still financially sustainable for the next 12–24 months?
Many organisations are experiencing increased demand, funding uncertainty, rising employment costs and pressure on unrestricted reserves. Looking at the current financial position alone may not give trustees the full picture.
Boards should be looking ahead at expected cash flow, potential changes to income and expenditure, reliance on particular funding sources and the financial risks that could affect future delivery. Regular financial reporting is important, but so is asking what those figures mean for the organisation’s plans over the next 12–24 months.
2. What are the biggest risks to our organisation and are we actively managing them?
Organisational risk extends well beyond finance. Safeguarding, cyber security, reputation, staff wellbeing, trustee succession, dependence on key individuals and regulatory compliance can all affect an organisation’s ability to deliver.
A risk register is useful, but the more important question is whether it is actively informing decisions. Trustees should understand which risks have the greatest potential impact, what is being done to manage them and whether new risks are being identified early enough.
3. Do we genuinely understand the needs of the people and communities we exist to serve?
Needs change, and Boards should be confident that their organisation is changing with them. It is worth regularly asking:
· Are we solving today’s problems or yesterday’s?
· Who are we not reaching?
· Are barriers preventing people from accessing our services?
Good practice goes beyond collecting feedback. It means understanding how the experiences and views of the people you support influence planning, service design and improvement. This is one of the areas explored within Trusted Standard, encouraging organisations to demonstrate the connection between listening and acting.
4. Can we evidence the difference we actually make?
In a competitive funding environment, being able to describe what you do is only part of the story. Trustees also need to understand what difference those activities are making.
That means looking beyond outputs, such as how many people used a service, towards outcomes, learning and evidence of impact. Trusted Standard places emphasis on this distinction, including how monitoring and evaluation information reaches the Board and is used to inform decisions. For trustees, the important question is not simply “Are we measuring?”, but “Are we learning anything useful from what we measure?”
5. Do we have the right leadership, skills and succession plans for the future?
Trustee recruitment, Board diversity, turnover and leadership succession can all affect an organisation’s resilience. A Board may function effectively today but still be vulnerable if important knowledge, experience or leadership rests with a small number of people.
Trustees should therefore regularly consider the skills and perspectives around the table, where gaps exist and how future changes will be managed. These are also important areas of governance within Trusted Standard, which looks at practices including trustee recruitment, eligibility, induction and the ongoing renewal of Board membership.
6. Are our people supported, safe and able to perform at their best?
Staff and volunteer wellbeing is not simply an operational consideration. Recruitment difficulties, retention, burnout, safeguarding and inadequate support can ultimately affect an organisation’s ability to deliver for the people who depend on it.
Boards therefore need confidence in what sits behind their organisation’s people practices. Recruitment, induction, supervision, development, safeguarding and health and safety all contribute to that picture.
This is where looking at these areas through an established quality framework can be useful. Trusted Standard considers them as part of the organisation as a whole, helping organisations examine whether their approach to people supports safe, effective and sustainable delivery.
7. Are we learning, adapting and collaborating quickly enough?
Strong organisations do not simply collect information about performance. They use it to improve.
Trustees should consider how effectively their organisation learns from evidence, adapts services, works with partners, shares knowledge and turns what it learns into future plans. The important question is whether improvement is happening systematically, rather than only in response to individual problems.
This is one of the benefits of looking at an organisation through a framework such as Trusted Standard. It brings together areas including governance, leadership, people, partnerships, impact and continuous improvement, helping organisations consider how well those different elements work together rather than examining each in isolation.
A message for Trustees
Perhaps there is one question that brings all seven together:
“How confident are we that our organisation would stand up to independent scrutiny today?”
It can be difficult to answer from inside an organisation. Individual policies or reports may look strong, but trustees also need to understand how governance, planning, finances, people, safeguarding, service delivery, impact and improvement come together.
That is where Trusted Standard can provide a useful next step.
Owned by NCVO, Trusted Standard provides a recognised framework through which voluntary and community organisations can examine their practices and identify both strengths and opportunities for improvement. For Boards, it offers a way to move from “Are we asking the right questions?” towards “How confident are we in the answers?”
If these seven questions have prompted you to look more closely at your own organisation, download the Trusted Standard Welcome Pack to find out more about the framework and what working towards the Standard involves.
FAQS
What is Trusted Standard?
Trusted Standard is a comprehensive quality standard designed for voluntary and community organisations. It provides a structured way to review how your organisation is run, recognise what is working well and identify areas for improvement.
Which areas of an organisation does Trusted Standard look at?
Trusted Standard covers 11 quality areas, including governance, planning, leadership and management, managing people and money, working with others, and assessing outcomes and impact. This helps organisations look at how different aspects of their work come together rather than considering them in isolation.
How can Trusted Standard support a Board of Trustees?
The framework can help trustees take a structured look at important areas such as governance, financial sustainability, people, planning and organisational impact. Its governance quality area specifically looks at whether the Board has the skills and information needed to achieve the organisation's mission, determine strategy and demonstrate accountability to stakeholders.
Do we need to have everything in place before starting Trusted Standard?
No. Trusted Standard is designed to help organisations identify both where they are doing well and where improvements are needed. Organisations can work at their own pace, using self-assessment to identify priorities and plan improvements over a realistic timeframe.
Can Trusted Standard help us demonstrate our quality to funders and other stakeholders?
Yes. The Standard is designed to help organisations demonstrate that they are well run, well managed and committed to delivering effective services. The Trusted Standard website also notes that demonstrating quality can provide reassurance when applying for funding and tendering for contracts.