Page 26 - Demo

Ÿ Most charities have a standing delegated authority to enable any two trustees to execute documents on behalf of the charity. Consideration will need to be given as to whether this authority remains appropriate or whether it should be stipulated that one of the two charity trustees must be a member of the institute or the superior
Ÿ Given that the lay trustee will not always be on hand as readily as a member of the institute living in or easily able to get to a community house, it may be appropriate to consider making provision for the number of charity trustee meetings that will be held each year and arrangements for how notice of these meetings will be given. It may also be advisable to update the charity’s constitutions to consider making provision for meetings to be held by electronic means (conference call or audio/visual) as opposed to always having to be face-to-face meetings
It is also necessary for the institute to re ect that the lay trustees are not part of the institute and that the charity trustees are not the council. The institute will still need to have a properly constituted council in accordance with canon law and the institute’s constitutions and the council would need to be careful to avoid taking decisions on the charity’s behalf and expecting the lay trustees to follow suit.
WHAT SORT OF INDUCTION TRAINING SHOULD WE GIVE LAY TRUSTEES?
The lay person will need two types of training. Firstly, they will need to get to know the charity, the institute and its work, its values and its people. This means that they will need to devote time to visiting, talking to members etc. Secondly, they will need to understand their legal responsibilities and so a form of trustee training may be advisable. This is always a good idea for all new trustees – whether they are lay people or religious.
It might also be a sensible idea to provide a written summary of the duties of the charity trustees and what is expected of them in some form of job description. This serves to remind both religious and lay trustees what is expected of them.
It is very important to ensure that the individuals who are appointed as lay trustees understand the ethos and work of the institute. We would suggest an appropriate “welcome note” from the superior and that they be given a full
22 Chapter 2