Governance expert Lindsay Driscoll has mooted whether the UK should explore the US model for trustees, where they are expected to fundraise, find contacts who would give and donate to their charity.

Driscoll, who made the comments this week in a panel debate at the NCVO Trustee Conference, said she did not necessarily agree with the model, but added: “If you as a trustee don’t give to your charity, why would anyone else? I don’t necessarily agree with the US model. I have sat on the board of a US charity and I was surprised to get a letter from it saying I had not yet donated this year.

“But I’m interesting in exploring the idea that trustees should play a role in fundraising. Should we aim for this or any other different demands on trustees?” she asked.

Driscoll, a a consultant at Bates Wells and Braithwaite, added that US trustee charity boards follow a model called "the 3-Gs approach – give, get or get off".

"Also, the idea that donating time is the equivalent of giving money is being increasingly considered a myth by many US charities."