How many trustees does a charity need?

The minimum number of trustees which a charity should have must be set out in the charity’s governing document. This will also often specify an upper limit.

If you are looking to set up a charity, the number of trustees required can vary depending on the legal structure adopted and the circumstances, income and size of the charity.

The Charity Commission recommends “a minimum of three unconnected unrelated trustees with a good range of skills”., The Charity Governance Code 2025 which can be found here recommends a minimum of five and a maximum of twelve trustees as best practice.

Although there is no requirement for a charity’s governing document to contain a maximum number of trustees, in practice having too many trustees (i.e. more than twelve) can make it difficult to make decisions and hold meetings effectively.

Essentially, a charity needs to have enough charity trustees to allow for effective and efficient decision-making whilst meeting the quorum requirements in the governing document (i.e. the minimum number of trustees that must be present for any decisions to be valid). What is right for one charity may not necessarily be right for another and there is no single “correct” board size.

In addition to the amount of trustees needed we have set out some additional points to consider when looking to appoint trustees:-

• Are they eligible to act as a trustee? Check official registers to ensure an individual is not disqualified from acting as a trustee and consider whether prospective trustees should be asked to sign a declaration to confirm they are eligible to act as trustee.
• Are there any specific criteria/restrictions set out in the charity’s governing document in relation to trustee recruitment? Consider any specialist skills which would be beneficial to the charity.
• Do they meet the minimum age requirement? For unincorporated charities, trustees must be at least 18 years old whereas for incorporated charities e.g. Charitable Companies and Charitable Incorporated Organisations , a charity trustee must be at least 16 years old however this is subject to the charity’s governing document.
• Does the prospective trustee have any potential conflicts of interest which may affect their ability to act in the best interests of the charity.
• Consider whether any additional checks are required prior to recruitment. For example, a DBS check.
• What is your charity’s annual income? If under £100K, around five trustees should be sufficient to meet quorum requirements and have shared oversight of the charity without meetings becoming too unmanageable A charity with income of £1M+ will likely benefit from a board of at least 8 trustees, to allow for specialist skills (such as finance, HR, retail) and succession planning.

The above list is not exhaustive. Charity Commission guidance on finding and appointing trustees which can be found here.

If you have any questions or require any assistance in this area, please do get in contact with our charity law experts for tailored advice.