Trustee Duties: A Reminder For Students' Union Trustees

• Published date: 21 September 2022
• Subject Matter: Corporate/Commercial Law, Consumer Protection, Charities & Non-Profits , Education
• Law Firm: Wrigleys Solicitors
• Author: Ms Laura Moss

With students' unions welcoming many new trustees at this time of year, this article is a reminder of what the role entails.

Eligibility

A person must be eligible to be a charity trustee:

• They must be at least 16 years old to be a trustee of a charity that is a company or CIO, or at least 18 years old to be a trustee of another type of charity.
• They must be appointed following the procedures in the SU's governing document. If they are not properly appointed, their decisions or actions may be invalid.
• A person must not have been disqualified from acting as a charity trustee, for example due to being bankrupt, having an unspent conviction for certain offences, being on the sex offenders' register or having been disqualified from being a charity trustee by the Charity Commission. Your SU's governing document may set out further disqualification criteria, so check it.
• Trustees should be 'fit and proper persons' (HMRC has detailed guidance on this here). You should ask new trustees to sign a form declaring they are a fit and proper person - you can find a model declaration form here.

Information for new trustees

Once a trustee has been appointed, help them settle into their new role by giving them all the information they need to do their job properly. This might include:

• A copy of the SU's governing document and bye-laws.
• A copy of the trustee role description, if you have one including any details of committees which trustees may, or may be expected to, join.
• Confirmation of their start date and term of office.
• A copy of the Charity Commission guidance 'The Essential Trustee: What you need to know, what you need to do' (CC3), along with information about any trustee training opportunities which may be be available.
• The SU's most recent annual report and accounts, with any accompanying commentary.
• Information about meeting dates, agendas and timings.
• Information about the SU's conflicts of interest policy including a conflicts of interest declaration form for trustees to sign and return, if you have one.
• Information about the fit and proper persons test, including a copy of the declaration form for trustees to sign and return.
• Any other policies and procedures relevant to trustees.

This information might be contained in a welcome letter for new trustees, although you may need to give some of this information to all trustees, on an annual basis.

You might also consider a mentoring programme for new trustees, where they are paired with more experienced...