Governance
A board is expected to keep certain papers: its policies, who its trustees are, the risks it knows about, what went wrong, and when its insurance runs out. Kept in drawers and heads, they are found too late. Governance keeps them in one place and tells you before something runs out. (Governance is a module: see Modules.)
- Open Governance in your organisation's menu. The first page, At a glance, shows each area with a word: In order, Coming up or Needs attention, and below it the list of what is not in order, the most pressing first.
- Policies: press New policy, type or paste the words (or add the file), and say by when it should be looked at again. Tick Members are asked to read it if they should. Press Put it in force.
- Members find it under My memberships, on the Policies tab, and press I have read it. On the policy you see who has read it and who has not.
- The registers: Trustees, Conflicts of interest, Risks, Incidents and accidents. Open one and press Add. Each asks only for what it needs.
- Things that run out: insurance, background checks, training, licences. Add each with the day it runs out. When it is renewed, choose Actions, then Renew: the old line is kept and a new one runs until the new day.
A policy for some members only: under Who is asked to read it? choose every member, the people on a committee (tick which), or the members of a branch. Only they see it and are counted.
Those who have not read it: after 14 days they are reminded by themselves, once for each version (change the days, or type 0 for never, under Reminders on the first page). To remind them now, open the policy and press Remind those who have not read it.
A new version of a policy: when the words change in a way that matters, tick This is a new version before you save. Everyone is then asked to read it again. For a small correction, leave it unticked.
Risks: say how likely it is and how bad it would be, each from 1 to 5. Azonation multiplies the two: from 15 it is a high risk and needs attention; from 8 it is a medium one. The Risks page shows them on a grid of five by five: press a square to see its risks. Open a risk to see how its score changed over time.
Trustees from a committee: on the Trustees page press Add the people of a committee. Everyone serving on it is added with their role; someone already on the list is left as they are. Leave Keep the list in step with this committee ticked and the list follows the committee from then on: someone who joins is added, a changed role or day is changed, and when someone leaves their line is closed (kept, never deleted). Such a line says "Follows" and the committee's name; change its role and days in the committee. Lines you typed yourself, and lines you closed yourself, are left alone; a line you delete does not come back by itself (press the button again to bring everyone back). To stop, press the same button and then Stop following: the lines stay and are yours to keep from then on.
With branches: a line of any register, and a policy, can belong to one branch (Belongs to). Someone who works for one branch only sees and keeps what belongs to their branch, is told about their branch only, and a policy they write is for their branch's members. The days of the reminders stay the whole organisation's choice. The four Governance reports can be read for one branch.
Files on a line: open a line of any register (Actions, then Change) and add files at the foot: the insurance certificate, a quote, an incident form.
Certificates that run out: a certificate with a "Good until" day (see Certificates) is shown with the things that run out and counts on the first page. It is looked after in Certificates.
Reminders: the people who look after governance are told 30 days before something runs out, a policy or a risk is due for a look, and 90 days before a trustee's term ends. Change the 30 days under Reminders at the foot of the first page. A member whose own check or training runs out is told too.
For your trustees: under Reports there are four to print: Governance at a glance, Risk register, Things that run out, Incidents and accidents.
Background checks: keep only that a check was done, when, and when it is due again. Do not write down what it found. Which checks you need, and how often, depends on the law where you are: ask someone who knows it.
Incidents: only the people who look after governance see this register. Write only what is needed; for a child, initials are enough. Some incidents must be reported by law.
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