SANDY ADIRONDACK
Training and consultancy on governance and law
for the voluntary sector
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DETAILS OF COURSES

This page summarises the content of training courses. All courses are adapted to the level of participants, and content can be changed to meet the requirements of the course organiser and/or participants. All courses can be delivered as open courses or in-house, and can be adapted for development workers, information workers, advisors etc in umbrella or infrastructure support organisations such as councils for voluntary service.

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES/TRUSTEES

LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES/TRUSTEES
An introductory course summarising:

  • the main points of the law affecting voluntary organisations (charity law, company law, employment, volunteering, equal opportunities, health and safety, data protection etc)
  • responsibilities of the governing body (management committee/board)
  • how to protect the organisation and the members of its governing body.

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE/BOARD ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Similar to the above, but with less emphasis on legal responsibilities and more on governance and management responsibilities of individual committee members/trustees.

RECRUITING AND KEEPING AN EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE/BOARD
A highly participative workshop for committee/board members and staff, covering:

  • key factors in an effective governing body
  • assessing your governing body's strengths and weaknesses
  • constitutional procedures for selecting governing body members, and how to change them
  • recruitment strategies
  • creating and maintaining an effective governing body.

GOOD GOVERNANCE: MAKING IT HAPPEN or
REVIEWING YOUR BOARD'S PERFORMANCE
Another participative workshop for management committee/board members and staff, covering:

  • the governing body's main responsibilities
  • ways to improve the governing body's performance in communication and decision-making, meetings, strategic and financial planning, monitoring performance, financial monitoring and control, good employment practice, risk assessment, and other key areas
  • creating and maintaining an effective governing body.

VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS
AND THE LAW

LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS
As for Legal responsibilities of management committees.

KEEPING UP TO DATE WITH THE LAW / LEGAL UPDATE FOR VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS
A refresher outlining recent (within the past year or so) and proposed changes in employment law, charity law and other areas of law, and what organisations need to do to keep up.

THE CHARITIES ACT 2006: What you need to know and do
An overview of the Charities Act 2006 and its impact on all charities, whether registered with the Charity Commission or not.

THE COMPANIES ACT 2006: What you need to know and do
An overview of the Companies Act 2006 and its impact on all companies limited by guarantee, both charitable and non-charitable.

THE CHARITIES AND COMPANIES ACTS 2006: A summary of what you need to know and do
An overview of the main points of the Charities Act 2006 and the Companies Act 2006, and the main actions that charities and/or companies limited by guarantee are likely to need to take.

LEGAL STRUCTURES AND CHARITABLE STATUS

  • Unincorporated organisations
  • Advantages and disadvantages of incorporation, types of incorporated organisation, and how to register as a company limited by guarantee
  • Charitable status, restrictions on charities, the process of charity registration and the role of the Charity Commission
  • The community interest company (CIC) and the new charitable incorporated organisation (CIO)
  • Duties of charity trustees and company directors
  • How to draw up a suitable governing document.

    • LEGAL STRUCTURES FOR SOCIAL ENTERPRISES

  • What is meant by social enterprise, social business, social firms, community enterprise, charity trading etc
  • Charitable status, restrictions on charities, the process of charity registration and the role of the Charity Commission
  • Charitable and non-charitable social enterprises
  • Unincorporated and incorporated social enterprises
  • Advantages and disadvantages of incorporation, types of incorporated organisation, and how to register as a company limited by guarantee, company limited by shares, community interest company and industrial and provident society
  • A detailed look at the community interest company

    • SETTING UP A VOLUNTARY ORGANISATION / SETTING UP A COMMUNITY GROUP
    Similar to Legal structures and charitable status, but with more about the setting up process, the range of registrations, employing for the first time etc.

    CONSIDERING INCORPORATION? / SETTING UP A COMPANY LIMITED BY GUARANTEE
    Similar to Legal structures and charitable status, but concentrating on the decisions that need to be made before incorporating, and the process of setting up a company limited by guarantee and other forms of incorporated body.

    DRAWING UP A GOVERNING DOCUMENT

  • Types of governing document: constitution, trust deed, memorandum and articles of association
  • The process of drawing up a governing document
  • The objects and powers clauses
  • Membership, governing body and other clauses
  • Amendment and dissolution clauses.

    • REVIEWING YOUR GOVERNING DOCUMENT /
    UNDERSTANDING YOUR GOVERNING DOCUMENT
    A workshop looking at your governing document and whether it is still appropriate for the organisation, how to amend it, and specific constitutional issues for voluntary sector companies arising from the Companies Act 2006.

    DUTIES OF COMPANY DIRECTORS AND THE COMPANY SECRETARY
    A seminar on the responsibilities of the company secretary and how to carry them out, the company law duties of company directors, and the most significant changes introduced by the Companies Act 2006.

    CHARITY LAW AND DUTIES OF CHARITY TRUSTEES
    An overview of the legal duties of committee/board members of charities, covering:

    • charitable status and charity registration
    • the Charities Acts 1992, 1993 and 2006, and related regulations
    • topical issues.

    RISK ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT
    FOR SMALL ORGANISATIONS

  • Legal duties to carry out risk assessments: Duty of care, health & safety, charity law
  • Identifying the range of risks and specific risks
  • Clarifying your organisation's risk culture
  • A framework for risk assessment
  • Reducing risk and minimising the negative impact
  • What can and cannot be insured against
  • Other ways to protect the organisation and individuals

    • EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS

    INTRODUCTION TO EMPLOYMENT LAW
    A two-day overview of the main points in employment law, covering:

    • equal opportunities in employment
    • recruitment and selection
    • contracts of employment
    • statutory and contractual employment rights
    • TUPE
    • dealing with disciplinary and grievance matters
    • dismissal and redundancy.

    VOLUNTEERS AND THE LAW:
    PAYMENTS AND PERKS
    A seminar covering:

    • tax and national insurance implications of payments to volunteers
    • volunteers and employment rights
    • volunteers and the national minimum wage
    • volunteers who are charity trustees
    • volunteers on state benefits
    • volunteers from overseas
    • volunteer agreements.

    VOLUNTEERS AND THE LAW:
    SAFETY AND SECURITY
    A workshop covering:

    • health and safety
    • volunteer drivers
    • criminal record checks
    • volunteers working with children and vulnerable adults
    • volunteers working with money
    • protecting volunteers, clients and the organisation.
    Volunteers and the law: Payments and perks and Volunteers and the law: Safety and security can be combined as a two-day course.

    GETTING READY FOR SERVICE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS
    A seminar covering:

    • why the shift to service agreements and contracts is occurring
    • legal differences between grants, contracts and service agreements
    • legal implications: charity law, VAT, tax, legal obligations and liability
    • successful contract negotiation.

     

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    SANDY ADIRONDACK
    Governance and legal training and consultancy
    for the voluntary sector
    39 Gabriel House, 10 Odessa Street, London SE16 7HQ
    Tel 020-7232 0726; fax 020-7237 8117
    Email:
    Home page: www.sandy-a.co.uk