More transparency needed over Charity Commission chair appointment

ACEVO is extremely concerned to hear about the allegations of bullying and inappropriate behaviour made against Martin Thomas, who had recently been appointed chair of the Charity Commission. While it is appropriate that he has now withdrawn from the role, we are concerned that there seems to have been a lack of due diligence in the process. We are surprised that his appointment was allowed to proceed despite a serious incident report being submitted to the Charity Commission. Along with the wider charity sector, we have called for more transparency and accountability on appointments. The priority now must be for the appointment process to be restarted and conducted in a way that is transparent. Alongside NCVO, we have developed a set of attributes and principles for the new chair, which, if followed in the recruitment process, will help maintain trust and credibility in the important role of chair of the Charity Commission and the regulator as a whole.