What makes a good trustee?

Are you thinking about becoming a trustee or looking to have more impact in your current board role?

Trustees govern charities, helping to steer the direction, ensure legal and financial compliance and safeguard long-term purpose. Trustees also have legal responsibilities, including acting in the charity’s best interests, managing resources responsibly and complying with governing documents.

But being an effective trustee takes more than simply attending meetings. We break down five traits that will help you contribute more, lead better and support your charity with real impact.

So, what makes a good trustee?

A good trustee goes beyond just showing up to meetings to bring focus, curiosity and accountability to the boardroom. They’re present and contribute with purpose.

Here are five traits that help trustees make a real difference:

• Prepared: Reads and reflects on board materials in advance.
• Present: Fully engages during meetings, listens actively.
• Inquisitive: Asks thoughtful, strategic questions.
• Engaged: Stays connected with the charity between meetings.
• Reflective: Looks for ways to improve board dynamics and decisions.

Five traits of good trustees

Preparation: show up ready to add value

Effective trustees don’t just read board papers — they think ahead. They come to meetings with questions, ideas and a clear view of where they can contribute.

To prepare well:

• Read board materials in advance, not the night before.
• Map your input to the agenda, where will your voice add value?
• Ask questions early, and flag unclear items ahead of the meeting.
• Check your biases, and stay focused on the charity’s goals instead of personal views.

One trustee we’ve recently worked with shared that she reviews papers twice: once for facts, once for strategy. She spaces out each read-through so the content can settle in her mind. It helps her spot issues others miss and come to meetings with a sharper perspective.

Preparation shows respect for your time, your board and the people your charity serves.

Attendance: be present, not just available

Turning up early to a board meeting, whether in person or online, gives you time to connect with others. These informal conversations with fellow trustees and senior staff help build trust and create a stronger, more open board culture.

Being present means more than just logging in and half-listening while checking emails or staying on mute unless prompted. It’s about giving the meeting your full attention, showing your board that you value the time and the conversation.

When you’re fully engaged in the discussion, you’re not waiting for your turn to speak — you’re listening for ideas you can build on. A simple “yes, and…” response shows you’ve heard what someone said and are adding to it, not pushing past it, contributing to a more thoughtful, collaborative and inclusive boardroom.

Listening: what’s said, and what isn’t?

Good trustees will listen. But great trustees listen actively and respond in a way that moves the conversation forward.

Active listening enables trustees to acknowledge others’ contributions, ask insightful questions and consider differing opinions. Rather than waiting for your turn to speak, you’re absorbing what’s being said, reflecting on it and responding with thought and respect.

Active listeners often summarise a point to check understanding or ask questions that bring out a quieter voice in the room. These responses build on others’ ideas rather than repeating them. It’s a fine balance, and you’ve probably seen both styles before.

Here’s the difference:

“Yes, I agree with what Alex said about impact measurement.” This echoes without adding anything.

“Alex raised a point about impact measurement — I wonder how that ties in with the new reporting requirements?” This builds and moves the conversation forward.

In online meetings, you’ve got more tools than ever to listen well. Chat functions, reaction buttons and breakout spaces can all help people contribute in different ways. When used thoughtfully, they open up space for more voices and better ideas. But use them consciously, as they can become a hindrance – we’ve all been distracted in meetings where enthusiastic participants “react” with hearts or claps at every point.

Engagement: stay connected between meetings

It’s easy to drift in and out of your trustee role if your only touchpoint is the quarterly board pack, but real impact happens between meetings.

Great trustees stay engaged with the charity’s work, keep an eye on sector trends and notice what’s happening in the wider world that could affect the organisation. Engagement means shifting from being a passive advisor to a genuinely accountable board member. They don’t wait for updates — they ask questions, stay curious and stay close to what matters.

This can look different depending on the trustee and the charity. For example:

• Attending a project site visit to understand frontline delivery.
• Having a short check-in with the Chair between meetings.
• Following relevant policy developments or sector news.
• Supporting a fundraising event or sharing a campaign on LinkedIn.
• Offering your skills informally to support a specific challenge.

However, you must be mindful of boundaries. If you’re not the chair, regular direct contact with the CEO can become unhelpful, even if it’s well-intentioned. Too much informal involvement risks blurring roles and can dilute the value of your contributions in the boardroom. Always check what’s appropriate within your board’s structure and culture.

Some boards assign trustees to explore agenda items in advance to lighten the load and bring sharper insight into the room. When trustees stay engaged between meetings, board conversations become more focused, more honest and more useful.

Reflect: improve how your board works, not just what it does

The most effective boards don’t just focus on decisions; they reflect on how those decisions are made.

Reflection isn’t a one-off exercise. Great trustees create space for regular learning by asking what worked, what didn’t and how the board could improve next time. That might be a quick check-in at the end of a meeting or a short post-meeting survey. These small habits help build a stronger, more open board culture.

One board we spoke to now ends every meeting with a single question: What’s one thing we’d do differently next time? It’s a simple prompt, but over time, it has helped surface issues that weren’t always obvious, from meeting length to how agendas are structured, and provided trustees with a way to raise them constructively.

Reflection also means looking inward. Are meetings inclusive? Are decisions shaped by diverse perspectives? Is the board’s time being used well? These questions help trustees stay honest about their own contribution — and make the board more accountable to the people it serves.

The Charity Governance Code recommends annual reviews of board performance, with external evaluations every three years. But the best boards don’t wait for a formal process; they learn by doing and being willing to adapt.

Becoming the trustee your charity needs

What makes a good trustee? It isn’t about titles or time served. It’s about showing up prepared, present, engaged and open to learning.

Trustees who listen attentively, ask thoughtful questions, maintain connections and reflect honestly help create stronger, more confident boards. They add value not just to meetings, but to the charity’s future.

If you’re just starting out, these five traits will help you make an early impact. If you’ve been on a board for a while, they’re a useful checkpoint to reset your focus and sharpen your contribution.

Anish Patel is a Recruitment Consultant at Peridot Partners, focused on strengthening governance through inclusive and strategic board appointments. With a deep understanding of what makes boards effective, Anish supports organisations in finding leaders who drive impact and embody purpose. His insights are shaped by hands-on experience and a commitment to values-led recruitment.