People: recruiting and managing staff and volunteers

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Whether it is volunteers or staff who make up your workforce, the board needs to act within the law and enable people to give of their best. The governing body needs to ensure it has appropriate policies and processes in place, for example, for the recruitment, support and management of staff, and policies for volunteers. Take care how you treat volunteers, you could inadvertently make them employees in the eyes of the law. 

Recruiting your first employee is a big milestone for which you should plan carefully. It is a big practical and cultural change from being entirely volunteer run.

In organisations that have paid staff, members of the board should  know the structure of the organisation, salary scales  and  the range of posts within your organization. You may also feel it helpful to know about salary and reward packages in the sector – especially relating to your chief officer.

Another key responsibility of the board is to ensure its own effectiveness and renewal. Make it a regular annual task to ask:

• Have we got enough trustees, with the right knowledge, experience and skills?
• Do our trustees need training or support to do their jobs effectively?
• Do we need new trustees and where will we find them? 

You can find more information on recruiting trustees through NCVO (the download is free).

Useful links

• See our Recruiting and managing staff section for further advice.
• NCVO have produced a wide range of useful resources  on personnel issues. These include factsheets on employment
• The annual Croner Reward survey is a useful source of salary information, particularly of chief officers. You may be able to see it at a local CVS. 

Have your say

Share your experience or ask questions around governance on the Governance forum.