Free Policy Templates for Charities: A Curated Resource List
Why good policies matter before you start fundraising
Before you approach major donors, trusts or corporate partners, most funders will want to see that your charity has the right policies and governance frameworks in place. This page collects the best free policy templates and resources available online for UK charities, covering everything from safeguarding and HR to communications and trustee governance.
You WILL need to adapt and edit templates to make them appropriate for your organisation, and make sure that you actually deliver and agree with the policy’s components before you put it in place at your organisation.
Money Tree Fundraising is not endorsing any of these sites and by sharing these links with you we are not providing advice.
We always recommend any organisation seeks appropriate and qualified advice in all areas of its work.
General governance and policy resources
Policies, Resources and Toolkits – Voluntary Action Islington
https://vai.org.uk/services/policies-resources-and-toolkits/
NCVO’s Knowledge Bank (National Council of Voluntary Organisations) – Governance, tools and resources on a variety of subjects. You may need to dig around a bit to find the exact resource you need, but it is well categorised
Merton Voluntary Service Council – advice and support documents for organisations
https://www.mertonconnected.co.uk/organisations/help-to-grow
Small Charity Support
https://www.smallcharitysupport.uk/index.php/example-policies
SCVO’s Jargon Buster – not a list of policy documents, but a very useful dictionary of fundraising and charity governance terminology that may help with your policy development and adoption process. (SCVO > Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations)
https://scvo.org.uk/running-your-organisation/governance/jargon-buster
WCVA (Wales Council for Voluntary Action) – a variety of resources and advice for organisations working in the third sector and with volunteers
Safeguarding and legal compliance
BOND (British Overseas NGOS for Development) – safeguarding policy templates – may be particularly useful for International Non-Governmental Organisations (INGOs)
https://www.bond.org.uk/resources/safeguarding-policy-templates
UK Government (applicable to England and Wales legally, and going beyond safeguarding, this is a great list and reminder for charities across the UK of the governance protections you need to have in place for your organisation and the people you support. (The information on this page
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/safeguarding-duties-for-charity-trustees
Communications and marketing policy templates
Resource Centre – a variety of sample and template policies along with useful discussion points to ensure your organisation has reasoned through its policies before fully creating and adopting them.
https://www.resourcecentre.org.uk/information/equality-and-diversity-policies-for-small-groups/
CharityComms – a list of templates based on real examples and policies specifically for use with third sector communications and marketing
https://www.charitycomms.org.uk/article-type/templates
* External links updated and correct on 21st May 2026
Talk to us about building a stronger fundraising programme
If your policies are in order and you are ready to build your income, we can help. Book a free conversation to discuss your major donor, trust or capital appeal fundraising.