Developed through discussions with community energy groups in the Greater South East and experts in community energy and governance, this guide is structured around what they considered to be key governance priorities:

• Getting set up as a group (includes choosing legal and governance structures, writing governance documents).
• Recruiting and supporting your leadership team (includes attracting a diverse and representative board, getting the right mix of skills and background, working as and with volunteers, succession planning).
• Widening participation (includes offering more inclusive membership offers and getting engagement and involvement from more and more diverse people in the local community).
• Creating effective systems and operations (includes managing tasks and files, managing data, finding the right insurance, developing your organisational policies).
• Learning from and working with others (includes working with local authorities and where to get bespoke support).

You can navigate this guide in a way that best suits your needs – whether it’s to find suggestions on dealing with a specific governance challenge, reading up on general governance principles, or looking for inspiring case studies from peers within the sector.