Guide to risk management and developing risk registers for UK charities. Identify, assess, and manage risks effectively.
Effective risk management helps charities achieve their objectives while protecting beneficiaries, staff, assets, and reputation. Trustees have a duty to identify and manage risks.
A risk register is a tool for recording and managing risks. It should identify potential risks, assess their likelihood and impact, and set out how each risk will be managed.
Risk management should be ongoing, not a one-off exercise. Review the risk register regularly and update it as circumstances change.
Identify risks across all areas - strategic, operational, financial, compliance, and reputational. Involve staff and trustees in identifying risks.
Assess each risk for likelihood and impact. Use a simple scoring system (high, medium, low) to prioritise which risks need most attention.
Decide how to manage each risk - avoid, reduce, transfer, or accept. Document the actions taken and who is responsible.
Review the risk register regularly (at least annually). Update it when new risks emerge or circumstances change significantly.
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