Tag: Trustees Week 2021

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Trustees Week 2021 | Reflections of Cllr Liz Green

 

This Trustees’ Week, longstanding active volunteer, Cllr Liz Green shares her reflections on volunteering and becoming a trustee. 

Whilst I’ve been a volunteer in various organisations for many years, I took on my first voluntary board member role earlier this year. The organisation is St Martin of Tours, which is a housing association for people with complex mental health needs. A lot of my volunteer roles have centred around mental health, as it is an issue close to my heart, so it seemed an obvious step.

I was warmly welcomed by the other board members and officers and got stuck straight in. It was different to the more personal volunteering support I was used to, but it is just as rewarding. I’m looking at the financial sustainability of the organisation; the long term vision and goals; the quality of services; better working with stakeholders and the community; and the set of the organisation itself. Because of my skillset, I’ve joined a subcommittee looking at quality and compliance, including resident and stakeholder satisfaction. As a regulated services working with NHS and local authorities, there are multiple aspects to this work, but putting clients and service users first is a must for me. They come to us via various methods, but all of them need support and care to help them move on to more independent living and live the best life they can. Their voice is vital in the running of the service, so we take time to listen to what they want and need.

I was worried that the time element would make it difficult for me, but that hasn’t been the case. We have board meetings every other month in the early evening, then there is a few emails and papers a week to read through, some mandatory training videos and occasionally away day. I can fit this into my schedule without any problems and mostly work at a time that suits me and my family.

I know that by being a board member, I am helping shape the organisation to provide what the organisation and the clients need. The reward of joining a board comes in knowing that my work will help change their lives for the better and there is nothing more satisfying than that. I’m glad I made this step. I’m still doing personal volunteering in other organisations, but this has given me the chance to help with wholesale changes that need to be made to give the best services to this vulnerable group of our community.

Would you like to become a Trustee for a local charity? Check out some of the active roles here or speak to our team to find a role that’s right for you.

 

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Top 10 Tips for Recruiting Volunteer Trustees

Looking to recruit volunteers? Here are some top tips

  1. Brainstorm all of the possible motivations for a Trustee for your charity whether that’s giving back, career development, passion towards the cause etc.
  2. Reach out to your networks, current and former volunteers, service users and their families, supporters and anyone connected to your organisation.
  3. Have a look at Reach Volunteering’s amazing resources on Trustee recruitment.
  4. Ensure that your recruitment is accessible – especially if you are a disability charity.
  5. Keep things up to date – terms like ‘Treasurer’ may be off putting to younger volunteers. Use terms like Finance Trustee instead.
  6. Have a look at Getting on Board services and resources.
  7. Think outside the box and remember that Trustees don’t have to be ‘pale, male and stale’.
  8. Make it clear – the difference the volunteer will make by volunteering for you.
  9. Offer to have an informal chat or visit with the Trustee.
  10. Get in touch with Volunteering Kingston for a one-to-one advice session.
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‘Getting on Board’ – opening up charity boards

This Trustees’ Week, Getting on Board is trying to open up charitys’ boards. Want to know how? Then read on to find out all about it.

About Getting on Board

Getting on Board is a trustee recruitment and diversity charity. It’s our guiding belief that diversity in the board of Trustees is key to effective decision making, better delivery of a charity’s services and the broader goal of creating a more equitable society.

Getting on Board supports people to become charity trustees, particularly those who are currently under-represented on trustee boards. The aspiring trustees we support include young people, women, people of colour, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, working class people, and people with lived experience of marginalisation.

We help charities in their mission to become more representative of the communities they serve by recruiting and retaining trustees from a diversity of backgrounds and lived experiences. This is fundamental because charities need access to the broadest possible talent pool to function at the highest level. This is only possible when diversity is preserved in every aspect of the trustee recruitment and retention process – not seen as a box ticking exercise that equates to lowering the bar.

To keep up to date with our training and programmes, please sign up for our newsletter.

 

Festival of Trusteeship

Getting on Board’s online Festival of Trusteeship will take place 1st-5th November 2021 and they are offering our registered volunteers a 50% discount. The Festival is packed with exciting events for people who want to become trustees, trustees who want to keep learning and developing, and for charity leaders who want to understand best practice in trustee recruitment and diversity. Use the code LOCAL50 to receive a 50% discount. The code also works on weekly passes, bringing the ticket fare down to £12.50 and allowing you to access as many of the 24 events as you’d like. Click here to explore all the scheduled events.

 

Training and resources for aspiring trustees

Learning from experts in a supportive group of likeminded individuals can make the process towards trusteeship easier and more enjoyable. All our training is designed to be easily accessible to all aspiring trustees and all programmes are excellent value for money.

If you’re an organisation that wants to train or support a number of aspiring trustees, you can find all you need here.

✦  Our Charity Board Leadership Programme will teach you what makes an effective, strategic and responsible trustee. If you’re ready to take up a trusteeship and need help getting the process over the line, this is the programme for you. Many delegates find a position within weeks of completing the course (some even find a position while the course is still ongoing!). Our flagship six-week programme runs six cohorts a year and costs £875 per person.​

✦  If you’ve decided that you want to become a trustee, have a working knowledge of what being a trustee involves and are looking for some one-to-one help with your trusteeship position research and applications, then Board Match one-to-one is right for you. You can find out more here.

✦  Are you between 18-30 years old? Do you want to make an impact to a cause or community you’re passionate about? Getting on Board’s Future Trustees programme teaches you everything you need to know about what being a trustee involves and the steps to take so you can become a trustee too.

✦  There is also our regular, one-hour ‘What is a trustee and how do I become one?’ webinar, giving you an introduction to what trustees are, what they do, and top tips on how to become one.

 

As well as support from Getting On Board, you can always speak to Volunteering Kingston about all aspects of getting involved in volunteering and trusteeship.

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Getting on Board – Festival of Trusteeship

Trustees’ week is an annual event to showcase the great work Trustees do and provide opportunities for everyone to get involved and make a difference. This year, we want to thank all the Trustees for playing a vital role, volunteering their time and for coming together to make important decisions in local communities through the causes and charities they believe in.

 

What is Festival of Trusteeship?

Getting on Board’s online Festival of Trusteeship will take place 1st-5th November 2021 and they are offering our registered volunteers a 50% discount. The Festival is packed with exciting events for people who want to become trustees, trustees who want to keep learning and developing, and for charity leaders who want to understand best practices in trustee recruitment and diversity. Use the code LOCAL50 to receive a 50% discount. The code also works on weekly passes, bringing the ticket fare down to £12.50 and allowing you to access as many of the 24 events as you’d like. Click here to explore all the scheduled events.

 

About Getting on Board

Getting on Board is a trustee recruitment and diversity charity. Its guiding belief is that diversity in the board of Trustees is key to effective decision making, better delivery of a charity’s services and the broader goal of creating a more equitable society.

Getting on Board supports people to become charity trustees, particularly those who are currently under-represented on trustee boards. The aspiring trustees they support include young people, women, people of colour, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, working class people, and people with lived experience of marginalisation.

Getting on Board’s objective to recruit and retain trustees from a diverse range of backgrounds and lived experiences is fundamental to its vision because charities need access to the broadest possible talent pool to function at the highest level. This is only possible when diversity is preserved in every aspect of the trustee recruitment and retention process as against a box ticking exercise that can equate to lowering the bar.

To receive regular updates on training and programmes straight to your inbox, you can sign up to receive newsletters from Getting on Board.