Skip to Content
TS-BGS-07 Trust & Stewardship Board Governance & Strategy CORE Compliance v2.9.7

Board diversity threshold

Assesses whether the board meets specific, measurable targets for diversity in key areas such as gender and age, ensuring a breadth of perspectives and representation in the highest level of governance. Within Islamic governance, embracing diversity reflects the principle of Ta'aruf (mutual understanding) and enriches the process of Shura (mutual consultation). By incorporating varied life experiences, the board upholds Adl (justice) and prevents insular decision-making, ultimately fostering a more equitable, comprehensive, and resilient approach to corporate stewardship.

Compliance 1
  • No single gender should exceed 70% of the board (aim for ≥40% women). Public reporting must avoid disclosure in small numbers (e.g., suppress categories where n<5) to protect individual privacy.
    Governance Essential
Good 4
  • A documented policy or commitment to board diversity that includes succession mechanisms (e.g., term limits, staggered rotation).
    Documentation Essential
  • Open and accessible recruitment: Vacancies advertised publicly for ≥21 days using at least 5 channels (including charity website, LinkedIn, and targeted networks). Role packs must state time commitments, reasonable adjustments, and reimbursement of expenses. Document candidate pool diversity and shortlisting.
    Process Essential
  • An inclusive board culture where diverse voices are actively sought and valued
    Stakeholder Engagement High
  • Term limits to enable refresh
    Governance High
Better 7
  • ≥ 30% women on the board of trustees. Gender is collected on a self-identification basis. The 'women' metric is based on respondents who self-identify as women. Monitoring forms must include: woman, man, non-binary, prefer to self-describe, prefer not to say.
    Governance Essential
  • ≥ 1 youth member (under 30 at appointment) as a voting trustee. The board must document legal eligibility based on its governing document. Where a voting youth trustee is not immediately achievable, the charity must implement a time-bound pipeline (Associate Trustee within 3 months, voting trustee within 18 months).
    Governance Essential
  • Exceeding minimum targets (e.g., 40%+ women)
    Excellence High
  • Inclusion of other diversity dimensions (ethnicity, skills, disability)
    Leadership High
  • Leadership development programs for underrepresented groups.
    Sustainability High
  • Use board apprentices/associate trustees for early‑career talent
    Talent Pipeline High
  • Transparent skills/diversity matrix published
    Transparency High
Best 2
  • Reverse mentoring
    Talent Development High
  • Independent annual board evaluation including inclusion
    Evaluation High

Related Criteria

TS-BGS-01 Trustee board meetings are scheduled, quorate, and minuted TS-BGS-02 Trustees set direction & strategy TS-BGS-03 Trustees meet statutory reporting TS-BGS-04 Finance represented in decisions TS-BGS-05 Annual board and executive skills-gap analysis conducted and actioned
Version
2.9.7 2025-11-05

Discussion (1)

Administrator 2026-03-07 11:07:40.975541

📋 **Version updated: 1.0.0 → 2.9.7** **Changes:** Updated islamic_references from mizan-297.json

Sign in to post a comment.

Back to Criteria