Imagine being invited to join the leadership of a well-respected UK charity. You picture shaping funding decisions, supporting meaningful projects, and seeing the difference your organisation makes in people’s lives. Then, as the first meeting agenda lands in your inbox, you realise there’s much more to this than signing cheques and attending events.
Whether you’re involved with a private family foundation, a local community funder, or overseeing grants for not-for-profit organisations in the UK, understanding your trustee responsibilities in 2025 is essential.
The role demands a careful balance between meeting legal requirements, providing ethical leadership, and ensuring your organisation’s resources create the greatest possible impact.
Pro tip: Curious how other funders frame their work across the country? This overview of UK grant programmes is a useful scene setter, especially if you are refining priorities for the year ahead.
What does it mean to be a trustee in 2025?
Trustees today are hands‑on decision‑makers, not just figureheads. You safeguard your organisation’s assets, uphold its reputation, and make choices that benefit communities. A recent UK government study found that 46 per cent of trustees use Charity Commission guidance at least once a year, and those who do are consistently more confident in their decisions and compliance efforts.
Take trustees in private family foundations as an example. They often juggle long-standing funding traditions with the need to respond to urgent, modern priorities such as climate action or digital inclusion.
For those overseeing grant programmes, knowing the grant review process inside and out, from reviewing the first application to signing off on final reports, is crucial for ensuring funds are used effectively.
Legal responsibilities of trustees
Trustees must operate within frameworks set by relevant regulatory bodies, including the Charity Commission for England and Wales, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR), and 360Giving.
These six duties apply to all trustees:
- Act within your charity’s governing document and the law: Follow your organisation’s constitution, trust deed, or articles, and comply with charity law and other relevant legislation.
- Act in your charity’s best interests: Avoid conflicts of interest and make decisions that further your charity’s purpose.
- Manage your charity’s resources responsibly: Protect assets, ensure sound financial management, and consider sustainability.
- Ensure your charity is accountable: Keep transparent records and report accurately to regulators, funders, and stakeholders.
- Act with reasonable care and skill: Use your skills effectively and seek advice where needed (Charity Commission guidance CC3).
- Ensure your charity delivers its purposes: Activities and funding must align with the charity’s aims and achieve meaningful impact.
Part of this legal duty includes managing the grant review process effectively. It’s not only about approving grants, it’s also about verifying compliance, safeguarding funds, and ensuring all necessary documentation is in place for audits.
Strategic and ethical oversight
Beyond the legal requirements, trustee responsibilities include providing clear strategic direction and setting ethical standards for your organisation. This means thinking about the bigger picture, not just this year’s results, but the long-term difference your grants will make.
For those in family foundations, the challenge is often how to respect the founder’s original focus while also addressing today’s pressing issues. This might mean expanding your funding priorities or supporting new types of projects to ensure your resources remain relevant and impactful.
Here’s a scenario to consider: your panel is reviewing two strong proposals. One reaches fewer people but addresses a significant inequality gap; the other has higher numbers but unclear depth of change. Trustees can set scoring that weights equity and learning, not just scale, so your portfolio balances breadth with depth.
Ethical oversight also includes championing diversity, equity, and inclusion in funding decisions. That means looking beyond familiar networks to ensure underrepresented communities have fair access to funding.
For a deeper dive into the UK context for family giving, this overview of UK family foundations offers valuable insights when you are aligning values with current priorities.
Operational oversight and risk management
Trustees are also responsible for making sure the charity runs smoothly on a day-to-day level. That doesn’t mean doing everything yourself. Many organisations rely on extensive staff teams or specialist partners; however, you must still set clear expectations, review performance, and ensure that proper systems are in place.
Risk management is another important part of the role. This involves keeping an eye on financial controls, safeguarding measures, and potential reputational risks.
One proven way to maximise grantmaking outcomes is to carry out annual impact reviews and regular financial audits. These reviews provide trustees with the evidence to back up funding decisions and help direct resources towards the programmes that deliver the strongest results.
Transparency, reporting, and demonstrating impact
Stakeholders today expect openness. That means more than just publishing financial accounts; they want to see the real-world difference your grants are making. This is where impact reporting comes in. A well-prepared impact report will combine data with human stories to show how funding is improving lives.
Many organisations now use impact measurement tools for charities to gather accurate data, track results, and share findings with funders and beneficiaries. Trustees who prioritise transparency not only meet regulatory expectations but also build trust, which can lead to stronger relationships with donors and partners.
Using technology to support your responsibilities
The increasing complexity of grantmaking has made technology an invaluable tool for trustees. Platforms like grant management software UK for foundations centralise application tracking, reporting, and communication in one place.
Adopting grant management software can save time, reduce admin, and improve accuracy. For example, a mid-sized foundation managing dozens of grants at once can quickly identify which projects are on track, which reports are overdue, and how funds are being spent. This not only supports good governance but also helps trustees make informed, timely decisions.
Reflective questions for today’s trustees
It’s worth taking a step back now and again to check whether your organisation is on the right track.
Useful questions to ask include:
- Are we meeting all current legal and reporting obligations?
- Ask whether your processes are up to date with the latest guidance from relevant regulatory bodies such as the Charity Commission, OSCR, and 360Giving. For example, if you introduced a new grant stream this year, have you reviewed whether your monitoring and reporting processes meet these bodies’ expectations?
- How confident are we in the transparency and effectiveness of our grant management process?
- Transparency builds trust both internally with your staff and externally with stakeholders. Think about whether your grant review process is consistent, well-documented, and easy for reviewers, panels, or decision-makers to follow. Could someone new to the organisation understand how decisions are made and why certain grants were approved or declined? If not, it may be time to map the process and agree on clear criteria.
- Are we using the right tools to reduce administrative work and make better decisions?
- Review whether technology, such as grant management software, could free up staff and trustees to focus on strategic discussions rather than chasing paperwork. The right tools can also help track outcomes, spot trends across your portfolio, and improve overall grantmaking effectiveness.
These conversations, whether in trustee meetings or with senior staff, help ensure your organisation is continuously improving.
If you are refreshing priorities this year, the round-up of UK grant programmes can help frame the landscape before you set criteria.
Leading responsibly in a new era of governance
Being a trustee in 2025 is about far more than compliance. It’s about blending ethical leadership with strategic thinking and leveraging technology to achieve the best outcomes for the communities you serve.
Whether you’re part of a large grantmaker or a small family foundation, the decisions you make will shape the future impact of your organisation.
By understanding your trustee responsibilities, committing to transparency, and adopting tools that make your work more efficient, you can help your organisation not only meet its obligations but also thrive.
Want to reduce admin and improve trustee oversight? See how our grant management solutions can help your foundation operate more transparently and effectively.
Or contact us today to discover how Foundant can enable you to focus on driving real change.
FAQs: Trustee responsibilities in the UK
Trustees often have practical questions about their roles and responsibilities. To make things easier, we’ve pulled together answers to some of the most common queries UK trustees face today.
What are the mandatory duties of a trustee?
Mandatory duties include acting in the charity’s best interests, complying with the law and the governing document, ensuring the charity is accountable and transparent, and managing resources responsibly. Trustees must also make sure risks are properly assessed and decisions are made collectively.
What is the role of a trustee in the UK?
The role of a trustee is to provide governance and oversight. Trustees set direction, approve key decisions, and make sure the charity delivers its mission legally, ethically, and sustainably. They are not involved in day-to-day operations, but they ensure staff and volunteers have the guidance and support needed to succeed.
Do trustees have any power?
Yes. Trustees hold significant power because they make the key decisions about how a charity is run. They set the organisation’s strategy, approve budgets, and ensure funds are used in line with the charity’s purpose. While day-to-day tasks may sit with staff, trustees have the final say on direction and governance.
Can trustees be held personally liable in the UK?
Usually not. If trustees act sensibly, follow the rules, and make decisions in good faith, they’re protected. But if they act dishonestly, misuse funds, or are negligent, they can be held personally responsible.
Who cannot act as a trustee?
In the UK, some people are not allowed to be charity trustees. This includes anyone who has been disqualified by the Charity Commission, is bankrupt, has certain criminal convictions, or is barred from managing a company.