Trustees Meeting Minutes Template
Word document + guidance notes · Instant download A structured Word template for recording trustee meetings at small UK charities. Built around Charity Commission CC48 guidance. Captures decisions, conflicts, and actions properly - so your minutes hold up when a funder, auditor, or the Commission asks to see them.
Most small charities take minutes. Most don’t realise how thin those minutes are until it matters – a funder asks how a decision was made, an auditor asks for the reasoning, the Commission asks how a conflict was managed. Weak minutes become a serious liability at the worst possible moment.
The problem it solves
Inconsistent decision records, untracked actions, missing conflict declarations, and minutes that don’t demonstrate effective governance. This template turns meeting documentation from an afterthought into a governance asset.
What’s included
Template (Word document)
- Header strip for charity name, logo, and registered number
- Meeting details, attendance by role, and quorum check
- Conflict of interest section – standing and meeting-specific declarations
- Previous minutes approval and matters arising tracker
- Agenda item blocks with discussion, resolution, reasoning, and voting outcome (one worked example included)
- Finance and operations summary
- Action tracker – owner, deadline, status
- Matters for future discussion
- Chair’s sign-off section with three signing options
Guidance notes (PDF file)
- Section-by-section commentary on the template
- How to record decisions, conflicts, and dissent properly
- “Record this, leave this out” comparison
- Retention rules by charity legal form
- Three ways the chair can sign, with trade-offs
- Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Who it’s for
Small UK charities – CIOs, charitable companies, trusts, and unincorporated associations. The template is generic across legal forms; the guidance notes flag where the rules differ.
FAQ
Will it fit our charity’s structure?
Yes. It’s built to work for CIOs, charitable companies, trusts, and unincorporated associations. The guidance notes flag where the rules differ.
Can we edit it to match our branding?
Yes. Standard Word document. Replace the placeholder logo and charity name. Change colours and fonts. Add or remove sections as needed.
Is it Charity Commission compliant?
It’s structured around CC48 guidance (updated July 2024) and the Charity Governance Code 2025. It prompts you to record what the Commission expects to see in minutes. It’s a practical template, not legal advice.
0 Reviews
Unable to load reviews. Please try again later.
No reviews yet. Be the first to write a review!
Related Products
Annual Budgeting Framework for Charities
An Excel budgeting workbook for small UK charities. Build next year's budget from the work you plan to do, see what each programme costs and check the bank balance month by month. Built-in tests tell trustees if the budget is ready to approve. Built around the Charities SORP 2026 and the Charity Governance Code 2025.
Annual Fundraising Planning Framework
An Excel workbook and step-by-step guide for small UK charities planning next year’s fundraising. It builds your target from your budget, tests each income source against your own history, links every activity to a written objective and counts the hours your people have. When something does not add up, it tells you what to change.
Charity Expenditure Tracker
An Excel tracker for recording what your charity spends each month, by fund and cost group. It keeps funders' money separate from general money, shows what each programme has left, and flags any programme that has spent more than it holds. Works alongside the Income Tracker and the Annual Budgeting Framework.
Charity Income Tracker
A structured Excel workbook for small UK charities to record income by fund and source as it reaches the bank, month by month. It separates restricted money from unrestricted as you type, keeps a running Gift Aid record, and builds an annual report and live dashboard - aligned to the fund split SORP expects.
Charity Risk Register Template
A structured Excel risk register for small and medium-sized UK charities. Built around Charity Commission CC26 (Charities and Risk Management) and aligned with the Charities SORP 2026 and the 2025 Governance Code. Identifies, assesses, and tracks the risks that matter most - without the complexity of corporate risk management systems that don't fit charity contexts.
Fundraising Campaign Tracker
A structured Excel workbook to track one fundraising appeal from launch to target: cash banked each week, progress by phase, and the pledges and grants still to land, with a dashboard showing where the appeal stands. Built for capital appeals, building funds and time-bound campaigns, and made to sit alongside your day-to-day income records.