By Daisy Harmer and Antonia Ren

There is a relatively strong link between volunteering and wellbeing, with volunteering associated with increases in how satisfied people feel, their social connections and even their health. Our latest analysis shows how volunteering to be a charity trustee can improve people’s lives too.

A new PBE survey reveals that two-thirds of trustees report that being a trustee allowed them to ‘use their existing skills in a new context’ (66%). Similarly, around two-thirds (65%) agreed that their role allowed them ‘to feel more connected to their local community or to a movement that’s important to them’. Not only are trustees giving back, they are gaining opportunities and a personal sense of reward.

Given the benefits that trustees experience, it is unsurprising that the majority of trustees feel overwhelmingly positive about trusteeship. On a scale of nought to 10, nearly 30% of trustees reported ‘10’, meaning that they were extremely likely to recommend the role. Overall, eight in ten (80%) of trustees answered 7 or above. Only 1% said they were not at all likely to recommend being a trustee. However a trustee uses their real world experience to oversee and safeguard their charity’s mission, they find joy in the role.

One of the rewards of trusteeship is being able to see how your knowledge and expertise can make a difference, something the trustees surveyed felt strongly. Nine in ten (91%) trustees agreed or strongly agreed that their contributions to their organisation are welcome and respected by staff and volunteers. These positive working relationships and the effective knowledge exchange enable the sustainable delivery of charitable objectives.

This reward takes place at scale: there are nearly one million trustee positions (924,026) in England and Wales. That is a lot of volunteer time, skill and energy delivering charitable missions as well as benefits to trustees themselves.

But more people are needed as trustees. As set out in our first blog for Trustees’ Week yesterday, there’s a great deal of need for more people to come forward as charity trustees, particularly to help smaller charities. There could be real gains for charities if sector organisations can better highlight the tangible joys so many trustees experience from their roles.

This is just an initial flavour of upcoming research on trustees and trusteeship that PBE is undertaking with the Charity Commission for England and Wales. This research is underpinned by a survey exploring trusteeship in detail, and a full report will be published early next year. This will provide an up-to-date picture on who trustees are, the skills they have, and their experiences in post. With over 2,000 unique responses from representative of charities of all sizes and income bands, there is a lot of data on important issues like diversity and inclusion to share. Look out for the full findings in the coming months, and in the meantime, consider whether stepping into a role as a trustee could be your next impactful (and rewarding) move.