Governance code gets thumbs up

Seven out of ten respondents say they are aware of the Governance Code for the voluntary and community sector and eight of ten say it’s easy to understand and applicable to their organisation.

The Review and Development of the Code of Good Governance is a research report on the sector’s awareness and response to the Code and includes recommendations for its future development. The research, commissioned by the Governance Hub, was completed by nfpSynergy earlier this year.
The research shows:
• high levels of awareness of the Code (71 per cent as compared with 61 per cent in 2006).
• positive attitudes across the sector towards the Code and that there are no substantive changes needed (more than 80 per cent say its easy to understand, applicable to their organisation and useful)
• a wide range of organisations using the Code to support governance development in their organisation – although only 42 per cent of total survey respondents are using it.
The research involved both quantitative and qualitative approaches, culminating in the report and a series of 12 case studies illustrating use of the Code across a range of organisations.
“The challenge is to convert awareness figures into more Code users,” said Gill Edelman, chair of the Governance Hub, which oversaw the Code but has now closed. She stressed the importance of continued funding. Responsibility for the Code has now been transferred to the Hub’s founding group, which includes acevo, Charity Trustee Networks and NCVO.