The Arts Council of England has improved its induction process for trustees after making a grant to a trustee without proper authorisation.

In 2008 a trustee was awarded a grant of just over £10,000 by the arts grantmaker, which informed the Charity Commission of the violation of its governing document when it became aware of what had happened.

The Council board has asked the trustee return the money in full, despite recognising that they had applied for the grant in good faith and included the fact of their trusteeship in a CV attached to the grant application.

As a result of the Commission inquiry, the Arts Council has amended its induction process for its trustees to ensure they are aware of the conflict of interest policy which applies to their trusteeship.