Strengthening Governance with Kyogle Together

Kyogle Together Inc. is a local community development organisation that nurtures community leadership and holistically works towards a connected and inclusive community. They provide key community services and activities via innovative programs, including Kyogle Youth Action, inclusive of the Village Youth Program, Kyogle Community Gym, The Fair. Share. Kitchen and the Kyogle Resources Innovation Collective (KRIC). They committed to listening to and working with the community and promoting openness and respect.

As a relatively small not-for-profit community organisation based in regional NSW, it can be difficult to attract and retain Board members. The leadership of Kyogle Together Inc. saw a need and opportunity to engage the Board and build capacity with greater strategic focus and clarity of processes and roles.

Through the Social Sector Transformation Fund program, a consultant from the Social Impact Hub’s Professional Impact Network was able to provide expertise and an external perspective with practical governance advice. The consultant worked with Kyogle Together Inc. to understand their current governance framework and areas for improvement including reviewing governance policies. The organisation then worked with the consultant to clarify the role of the Committee members including how the Association and Committee works and Constitutional rules and regulations. They also developed practical governance templates guides including a Committee charter and treasurer guide.

As a result of this work, Kyogle Together Inc.’s board has received training and ongoing support in the development of board requirements and more specifically the role of the treasurer. The training provided can also be adapted to be utilised as an onboarding document/process for new and or interested board members and a document was also created to support the work and functions of the role of treasurer. The support offered was practical and offered immediate application and opportunities for future development.

Throughout this process we faced challenges such as time constraints however our support person managed this by being flexible and understanding and supported me to achieve the best out of this amazing opportunity.