Setting up a new group

Setting up a community group can be a hugely impactful and enjoyable experience, but you have to be prepared to put the work in. It takes time and effort to set up and generally, this is done in a voluntary capacity with other people involved. 

This document is specifically aimed at those who have decided to start a community group. At the bottom of this guidance you’ll find a link to a new group starter planning template and guidance that can be used to help develop your ideas and understand what resources or support you may need to run your group. Throughout this guidance there are links to additional reading and resources.

We are here to provide support and guidance at every step of your journey. If this is the first time you've been involved in setting up a group it can seem daunting so if there's anything you're not sure about just get in touch. There are no silly questions!

Why set up a community group?

There are many reasons for setting up a community group - they usually start with an individual or group of people who share similar concerns and are aiming to solve a particular problem, meet a certain need or feel there is a lack of something in their community. New groups start up all the time by like-minded individuals with a common interest.

Setting the scene

Once the idea is formed, there are various factors that need to be considered and good planning at the beginning stages can save a lot of wasted time and effort further down the line. Here are some points to consider if you're thinking of starting your own community group;

• what do we want to do or achieve?
• where do we want to do it?
• do we have the time, energy and commitment to do the work?
• how do we know there is a need for what we want to do?
• what will be the benefits of running our activities?
• is there anything similar that already exists?

It can help to do some research to find out if anyone else is doing what you do. It’s not necessarily a bad thing if they are, it’s just useful to know what else is around as it can help to avoid duplication and provide some insight into the pros and cons.

Structuring the group

There are many different types of group structures, from a simple unincorporated group* through to CiC’s (Community Interest Companies) and Charities. Deciding what legal structure to set as will help to provide some structure to how you can operate. Also known as governance, here you’ll create guidelines or rules that set out the structure and purpose of your group.

For a community group all you’ll need is a constitution, bank account and some policies, more to demonstrate good practice and to ensure what you do is transparent, safe and inclusive. Read more about legal structures.

*An unincorporated organisation is, in legal terms, a collection of individuals and often does not employ staff. Many small organisations actually have very few financial and legal obligations.

Constitution

Simply put, a constitution sets out the aims and rules of your group. It’s a statement of what your group is going to do and how it is going to do it. It is important because;

• Without a written understanding then people can easily find themselves at sticking points when it comes to running the group
• It will serve as a reference, and help to resolve problems in times of controversy
• Outsiders, especially potential funders, will want to see that your group is democratic and accountable. This involves having a clear procedure by which decisions are made.

if you want a simple, uncomplicated structure to guide your group then a constitution is perfect. It’s not legally binding in any way but certainly holds the people involved to task.

Read more about governing documents

What you will be doing?

Your constitution will set out what you plan to do. This is referred to as your ‘object’ but is also known as a mission statement. This is a short statement that describes your group’s purpose. Having a mission statement in place means that any activities or decisions made can be referred back to the mission to ensure you’re meeting our aims. 

Read more about creating a mission, vision and values statement

Who will be involved in running the group?

Referred to as a committee, this is the group of people who will be responsible for organising, running and maintaining your group.

Your governing documents will set out how you create a committee, how many people can be on the committee and what roles you can assign to people, such as a Chairperson, Treasurer and Secretary.

There are many reasons why a committee makes for a stronger more sustainable group, here are just a few;

• Voting by committee means that it is democratic and not just one voice
• Decisions and transactions are transparent
• There’s some accountability and responsibility at the feet of those involved
• Forms a process for resolving disputes and dealing with conflicts or complaints

Read more about committee roles

How to run meetings

To function as a committee you should have meetings to discuss and agree on the running of your group. By creating an agenda you will be able to ensure every meeting follows a standardised structure so that only the relevant topics are covered. These are unique to each group but generally feature an update on the finances, what the group have been doing, any issues/concerns raised/dealt with, new members/members leaving. Meetings should be recorded and minutes taken as a written account.

As stipulated in your constitution, once a year you are required to hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM).  This is when you inform your group’s members about the work the group has done, share financial information, and approve your annual accounts. Many groups use this as an opportunity to involve their members in a celebration of their achievements.

You will also elect your committee (if you have one) and can make changes to the constitution.

Read more about running meetings

Running your group and things to consider

Opening a group Bank Account

Having a group bank account is the best way to make sure the group’s money is kept safely. You will need to have at least two members of the group willing to act as signatories. Funders usually require (and it’s a sensible precaution in any case) that you have a bank account where each cheque has to be signed by two people.

Lloyds, NatWest and HSBC all do community accounts. They all require applying online, you can't go into the branch. You also don't need to hold a personal account as you'll be a new customer. You will need 3 people minimum to register and you will need to know some personal details of those applying so it could be best to do the application together. 

Here are the links - in some cases, you'll need to scroll to the bottom of the page to find the link to the community/charity account:

Treasurer’s Account | Business | Lloyds Bank

Community bank account | NatWest Business

Charitable Bank Account | HSBC

Financing your group activities

Your group will undoubtedly have some overheads to cover. This could be room hire, purchasing equipment, buying refreshments, the list is endless. It doesn’t have to be a major expense and some group activities will be fairly low-cost (Park running groups for example) but there may come a time when you need to raise more funds to cover additional activities or fund specific projects. We have a wide range of resources as well as a funding opportunities page that has links to available grants.

Read more about funding resources

Policies and procedures

Policies and procedures help to ensure the people involved in your group have the best experience that is safe and accessible. Policies also help enable your group to run consistently, smoothly and fairly, being a point of reference should there be any issues that arise. They’re also needed to meet some legal, contractual and funding requirements. As a community-based group there are some policies you should have regardless of what you do. It's not an exhaustive list but policies like safeguarding (you can have both adult and children and young people policies - these policies need some additional context and training to make sure they are implemented properly). and health and safety are a requirement to protect everyone involved. Making the group inclusive requires an equity (equality and diversity) policy and you'll want to make sure you are storing people's personal data securely with a data protection (UKGDPR) policy. 

• A policy is a principle or a rule that will help to guide your organisation toward a particular outcome - it generally outlines an organisation's approach to a particular issue
• A procedure usually follows on from a policy and can be a separate document or part of a policy - it looks at how you will put your policy into practice.

WVA has a raft of policy templates you can download. In many cases, it's not one-size fits all approach and you may need some support making the policy or procedure relevant to your activity.

View our policy templates (scroll to the bottom of the group support page)

Additional Support and guidance from WVA

It can seem like there’s a lot to do and it can be difficult to know what you will need (and this will undoubtedly change over time). The relevance of this guidance will be based on the experience and knowledge of those involved in setting up your group. Here’s a quick list of some of the other support services and guidance notes we can provide.

Digital support – Get Connected provides bespoke support packages of digital skills, tools and resources. Get Connected will help sustain the future of your group by reducing the digital divide and allowing more people to be connected to your group's services and information. 

If you’re setting up a food security/poverty group then it would be beneficial to find out more about WVA's Warrington food network.

Insurance, licences and permits – Depending on what activity you do your group may need certain permissions. There’s also some guidance on gambling and raffles if your group may be doing fundraising events. 

Volunteering – we can help you to link up with new volunteers as well as understand how to support and nurture those who are involved in your group. 

New group Starter Questionnaire - We have created a quick form (optional) that can help you focus on some of the things you may need to consider before starting the more formal process of setting up the group. 

One page business plan template - For those looking to develop an idea further then this is a great template to help you start to get down on paper what you need.