 She served on the Committee on Standards in Public Life (Nolan Committee) from 2001 until 2007, briefly as Chair after Sir Alistair Graham's three-year term ended.She was a member of the Low Pay Commission and the Employment Tribunal Taskforce
and chaired the TUC Disabilities Forum.In 2009, Donaghy was invited to chair an enquiry into work-related deaths in the construction industry, whose report published in 2010 contained many recommendations for improving safety in the industry.