What is the role of a charity trustee or PCC member?
Offers unique biblical guidance and perspective
Covers administrative, personal and organisational aspects
Updates on charity regulations
Relevant to other office holders
Charities and churches have had an unprecedented year as the pandemic has caused great pressures and offered new opportunities. But for PCC members and charity trustees already facing significant demands from ever-changing legislation and public expectations, knowing how to respond is not easy. So just what are a charity trustee or PCC member’s responsibilities? Is there a biblical way of thinking about their roles? How does a board balance risk and faith? Why are regulations increasing and how can trustees navigate the changes?
This readable, non-technical book helps trustees of charities and PCC members to understand their role and responsibilities. It has four sections: ‘godly tracks’, which includes chapters on vision, what does God want you to do, and risk versus faith; ‘personal tracks’, considering who should be a trustee, the role of the chair and relationships; ‘organisational tracks’, with the nitty-gritty such as how to run successful meetings and manage money; and ‘future tracks’, with succession planning, possible future trends and a just-before-printing reflection on the impact of COVID-19. Each chapter ends with questions for trustees to consider, and there are three appendices with various resources as well as a comprehensive index.
Using quotes from careful research, author Heather Wraight brings the issues alive as she reflects on them through the lives of Nehemiah and Daniel. The topic of each chapter is considered in the light of relevant biblical thinking taken especially from the lives of these two Old Testament characters, both administrators who had huge responsibilities, which they carried out faithfully in spite of serving a foreign king.
The book was written for trustees of charities – who always know they are trustees – and those, like PCC members and Deacons, who hold the same legal responsibility in a local church but often don’t realise what being a trustee involves. It is also relevant to those in similar situations, such as school or college governors. The author carefully researched what would be the most helpful content, and quotes extensively from the people she interviewed, allowing them to tell their own stories of trusteeship.
Heather says, ‘I wrote the book because while there are other resources for trustees, none have biblical reflections on the role in quite this way.’
Tracks of Trustworthiness by Heather Wraight (ISBN: 9781912726295) is published by Instant Apostle and is available on 23rd October 2020 from Christian bookshops, bookstores and online retailers. Non-fiction, paperback, 304pp, £10.99.