Charity Commission for England and Wales - Chair

The Secretary of State for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport wishes to appoint a new Chair to the Charity Commission for England and Wales. DCMS is committed to eliminating discrimination and advancing equality of opportunity in its public appointments. We particularly encourage applicants from underrepresented groups, those based outside London and the South-East and applicants who have achieved success through non-traditional educational routes. This ensures that boards of public bodies benefit from a full range of diverse perspectives and are representative of the people they serve.

Appointment description

The Board provides leadership for the Commission’s business and sets the strategic direction of the organisation. It operates collectively, advising on strategic matters, as well as scrutinising and challenging Commission policy and performance, with a view to the long-term health and success of the organisation. The Chair leads and ensures the effective operation of the Board and its sub-committees.

The Chair is responsible for:

• ensuring that the Commission fulfils its statutory objectives, general functions and duties and appropriately exercises its legal powers
• ensuring delivery of the Commission’s 2024-2029 strategy
• developing the organisation’s key relationships with DCMS, Ministers, wider government, sector bodies and other major stakeholders
• setting the Board’s agenda, focusing primarily on strategy, performance, accountability and risk
• promoting constructive board debate and effective decision making
• ensuring that Board members operate in accordance with governance best practice and the Nolan principles of standards in public life
• keeping the composition of the Board under review and making timely recommendations to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the appointment of new members and reappointment of existing members
• establishing, monitoring and reviewing governance structures, systems and processes jointly with the Chief Executive
• communicating the organisation’s strategy, plans and achievements to stakeholders, including charities and their users, the organisation’s staff, the government and the public
• supporting and performance managing the Chief Executive, including agreeing objectives and undertaking an annual appraisal, following consultation with other Commission members
• establishing a good relationship with the Chief Executive and Executive Directors, providing advice and support while respecting their responsibilities
• jointly with the Chief Executive, promoting effective relationships and communications between Commission Members and the Executive Directors and other members of staff

As per paragraph 1.2 of the Charity Commission’s Governance Framework, on appointment, in order to preserve their complete independence on all charity matters, the chair will relinquish all trusteeships in charities.

Organisation description

The Charity Commission is the independent registrar and regulator of charities in England and Wales. Its role is to register and regulate the charities in England and Wales, and to ensure that the public can support charities with confidence. It regulates over 170,000 registered charities and £102bn of charitable income. A non-Ministerial Department, it is based across four sites, employing approximately 457 staff and in 2024-2025 had a budget of £32.1m. As registrar, the Commission is responsible for maintaining an accurate and up-to-date register of charities. This includes determining whether organisations are charitable and therefore should be registered. It also removes charities that are no longer considered to be charities, have ceased to exist or do not operate. As regulator, the Commission has both compliance and enablement functions. It is responsible for investigating and monitoring charities’ compliance with charity law and regulation; it takes enforcement action when there is malpractice or misconduct. It also provides online services and guidance to help charities run as effectively as possible, ensuring charities meet their legal requirements, and makes appropriate information about each registered charity widely available.

In February 2024, the Commission launched its Strategy 2024-2029. This strategy sets out the ambition to be the expert Charity Commission that is fair, balanced, and independent so that charity can thrive. The strategy identifies five priorities that the Commission will seek to deliver against over the course of this strategy in order to achieve its ambition:

• We will be fair and proportionate in our work and clear about our role.
• We will support charities to get it right but take robust action where we see wrongdoing and harm.
• We will speak with authority and credibility, free from the influence of others.
• We will embrace technological innovation and strengthen how we use our data.
• We will be the expert Commission, where our people are empowered and enabled to deliver excellence in regulation.

Board composition

Regulation of appointment

This post is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. For more information, please refer to the Commissioner’s website.

Person specification

Essential criteria Candidates must be able to demonstrate the following:

• Leadership: the ability to set strategic vision and drive forward priorities of the Charity Commission with a strong track record in relevant senior leadership roles.
• Knowledge: a clear understanding of the work and priorities of the Charity Commission and the context within which it operates, including an awareness of the challenges it faces resulting from changing social and economic circumstances, and support for philanthropic giving.
• Experience: a strong track record of delivery on significant policy issues within the private, public or voluntary sectors.
• Relationship: ability to build strong stakeholder relationships, including with Ministers, Senior Government Officials, Parliament and external stakeholders.
• Communication: strong communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to listen, accept challenges and constructively challenge others in discussions with clarity and respect.
• Judgement: effective decision-making skills with the ability to critically analyse a wide range of information to make clear and objective evidence-based recommendations to support the delivery of the Charity Commission’s objectives.
• Collaboration: ability to work closely with the executive board and other key stakeholders, providing support, constructive challenge and assurance as appropriate.
• Independence: a commitment to the charity sector fair, balanced and independent regulation and to ensuring charities remain focused on delivering their charitable purposes and ensuring that trustees understand their legal duties.