The making of a high-performing board
21 October 2025
Dr Andy Wood, OBE, chair of East Coast Community Healthcare, says his organisation’s journey from good to great is a discipline, not a destination
At East Coast Community Healthcare (ECCH), we’ve learned that good governance isn’t about paperwork — it’s about purpose.
When GGi completed our board effectiveness review, the conclusion was clear: ECCH already personified many of the characteristics of a high-performing board. The challenge now is to move from good to great.
A good board is competent, cohesive and compliant. A great board is curious, connected and courageous. It creates the conditions for people to thrive, not just perform. It understands that governance is a living system — a set of relationships, not just reports.
Purpose and values: the North Star
GGi found that ECCH’s values of compassion, openness and community are not slogans; they are lived behaviours. Staff consistently say they feel seen and heard, and the development of our new 2030 strategy has been genuinely inclusive, shaped by staff shareholders, service users and local partners.
Yet the review challenged us to make more of our identity as a community interest company. We exist to deliver public value, reinvest surpluses and remain accountable to our community. Great boards tell that story clearly and repeatedly, turning structure into purpose and purpose into pride.
Leadership and culture
The report described the board as cohesive and respectful, with exemplary relationships between executives, staff directors and non-executives. That is the foundation of any high-performing board — psychological safety and constructive challenge. But GGi also reminded us that leadership visibility, diversity and succession planning are the hallmarks of greatness. A great board is seen, not just heard; it renews itself with fresh perspectives and develops its own pipeline of future leaders.
From assurance to insight
Over the past two years our governance has matured. Committees are focused, papers are improving and the board assurance framework is a genuine tool for learning. But ‘good’ assurance isn’t enough. Great boards move from reassurance to insight. They ask ‘so what?’ and ‘what next?’. They expect data to be timely, visual and used for improvement, not compliance. They understand that risk and innovation are partners, not opposites.
Community, social value and system influence
One of the strongest messages in the GGi report is that ECCH’s future depends on its external relationships. As a staff-owned social enterprise delivering NHS services, we have a distinctive story to tell about local accountability, reinvestment and trust. Great boards don’t wait to be invited to the table; they help to shape it. They build reciprocal relationships with the VCSE sector, system partners and the communities they serve.
Social value, equality and sustainability are not side projects; they are the essence of modern governance. Our task is to make them visible in every decision, report and partnership.
The hallmarks of greatness
Across sectors, high-performing boards share six characteristics:
- Purpose-driven – clear on why they exist and who they serve.
- Values-led – ethical in tone and consistent in behaviour.
- Inclusive – diverse in membership and thought.
- Learning-orientated – curious, data-literate and reflective.
- Externally connected – shaping systems, not just surviving in them.
- Self-aware – willing to evaluate their own impact and evolve.
A closing reflection
Boards become great when they see governance as a human enterprise, an act of service, not self-protection. The Nolan Principles remain our compass: honesty, integrity, objectivity, accountability, selflessness, openness and leadership.
At ECCH we say 'Better Never Stops' because the journey from good to great is not a destination but a discipline.
