Hundreds of community leaders came together to share their views about what is good governance. Their wisdom is now captured in one place - in a practical Code - designed to support boards and board members in what can be a tough role. Good Governance is fundamental to the success of an organisation. By getting your governance right, you will have capable, diverse, and engaged board members, a strategy about how to achieve your organisation’s ambitions and serve your community, and ensure your organisation is operating in a legal and ethical manner.

Six principles

The Good Governance Code is a set of six principles that define what is good governance for community organisations in Aotearoa.

Principle 1: Impactful, Purposeful Leadership

Principle 2: Connected Leadership

Principle 3: Diverse and Inclusive Leadership

Principle 4: Integrity and Accountability

Principle 5: Transparent and Open Leadership

Principle 6: Effective Governance Processes

These six principles are further explained in the code itself which you can download below or via the following link

https://communitygovernance.org.nz/board-resources/good-governance-code/

How the code was developed

The Good Governance code has been co-designed by Community Governance in conjunction with the community sector, via a series of workshops facilitated by Dr Jo Cribb and Rose Hiha-Agnew. These workshops brought together not-for-profits, philanthropic organisations, government, businesses, and more to create the foundational principles of the code.

They have also drawn on knowledge from overseas codes, indigenous frameworks, and te ao Māori so that it’s at the forefront of what good governance means for groups in Aotearoa, New Zealand.