Charity leaders should be active in their charities’ lives, the ACNC says.
An engaged board or committee is vital for a well governed charity, so its leaders should be part of the approval and submission of an annual information statement.
The ACNC expects that a charity’s responsible people – directors, trustees, board and committee members – are fully aware of the content of their organisation’s annual information statement.
Charity leaders who take their duties and obligations seriously are critical in maintaining and building the confidence upon which the entire sector relies.
To ensure high standards of integrity and common sense, the responsibilities of charity leaders are set out in the ACNC’s Governance Standard 5.
The standard requires that responsible people act honestly and fairly in the best interests of their charity and for its charitable purposes. They need to act with reasonable care and diligence, disclose conflicts of interest, and ensure that finances are well managed.
It also requires that responsible people don’t misuse their position or allow their charity to operate while it is insolvent.
To support sector transparency and accountability, the commission publishes on the register the names and positions of charities’ responsible people.
Charities must notify the commission of leadership changes, including new responsible people and those who have stepped down from their posts. Any role changes of responsible persons need to be reported.