Norms For Accreditation Under Desirable Norms
To get accredited by Credibility Alliance (CA), you need to comply with the CA Norms. These Norms have been developed through in-depth research of international standards for voluntary sector. These have been discussed and passed with consensus of over 2000 grass root Voluntary Organizations in India.
The Norms are basic standards of Governance that all Voluntary Organizations should follow. It is mandatory for all members of the Alliance to comply with the Norms, which includes the following elements:
Identity
Operations
Governance
Accountability and Transparency
Vision, Aims, Objectives and Achievements
1. IDENTITY
- The organization has been functioning for a minimum of one year from the date of registration
- The physical address given by the organization is verifiable
- The organization is registered as a Trust/Society/Section 25 Company
- Registration documents of the organization are available on request
2. VISION, AIMS, OBJECTIVES AND ACHIEVEMENTS
- A vision/purpose/mandate/mission, which drives the organization, is articulated beyond the registration documents
- The organization has a defined aim and a set of objectives
- The organization is able to show performance through defined indicators against stated objectives
3. GOVERNANCE
- The organization has a Governing Board, by whatever name called
- Disclosure details of Board Members namely: Name, Age, Gender, Position and Occupation
- Not more than half of the Board Members have remunerated roles
- The Board has at least two meetings an year suitably spaced with quorum stipulated in its own Articles of Association
- Minutes of the Board meetings are documented and circulated
- The Board approves programmes, budgets, annual activity reports and audited financial statements
- The board ensures the organization’s compliance with applicable laws and statutory regulations
Composition of the Board
- At least two-third of Board members are unrelated by blood or marriage
- A Board Rotation Policy exists and is practiced
4. OPERATIONS
- Activities are in line with the Vision, Aim and Objectives of the organization
- The organization periodically reviews progress of programmes
- The organization follows consultative decision-making process
- The organization complies with applicable laws and regulations of the county
- The accounts of the organization are regularly maintained and those with an annual income above Rs. 50,000/- are audited by a Chartered Accountant
- Roles and responsibilities are defined for Personnel-Staff and Volunteers
- All personnel are issued letters of contract/appointment
- An appropriate Personnel Policy is in place
- Distribution of staff according to salary levels and gender break-up is disclosed in the Annual Report The suggested frameworks are useful to help aggregate information from the organization. An organization can use either of the following formats:
Slabs of gross monthly salary (in Rs.) plus benefits paid to staff | No. of Male Staff | No. of Female Staff | Total Staff |
< 5000 | |||
5001 – 10000 | |||
10001 – 25000 | |||
25001 – 50000 | |||
50000 < |
Slabs of gross monthly salary (in Rs.) plus benefits paid to staff | No. of Male Staff | No. of Female Staff | Total Staff |
< 2500 | |||
< 7000 | |||
< 15000 | |||
< 30000 | |||
< 50000 |
Name | Designation
| Year of joining | Years of experience | Gross monthly salary plus benefits | Remarks |
Annual Report discloses the total cost of international travel by all personnel (including Volunteers) – segregating those incurred on the organization’s expense and those that were sponsored, along with the names and designations of the persons who travelled and the purpose(s) of travel. In addition, organizations may also include details of air travel undertaken within the country
Name | Designation | Destination | Purpose | Gross Expenses (in Rs.) | Sponsored by |
5. ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY
- Signed audited statements are available: Balance Sheet, Income and Expenditure Statement, Receipts and Payments Account, Schedules to these, Notes on accounts and the Statutory Auditor’s Report
- Statement of accounts to indicate whether constructed on a cash or accrual basis
- There are no serious adverse notes on any material point
- There are no material transactions involving conflict of interest between a Board or Staff member and the organization
- The organization’s Annual Report needs to be distributed and communicated to the stakeholders and others and is made available on request every year, within eight months of the end of the organization’s financial year
- The Annual Report contains a description of the main activities, a review of the progress and results achieved in the year; and information on the Board Members’ names, position in the Board, remuneration or reimbursement and should contain brief financial details
