Charity workers are being called on to become trustees of voluntary and community organisations to boost their skills and further their careers.
The call comes as the Governance Hub, in partnership with the Charity Commission and Volunteering England, launch their Get on Board trustee recruitment campaign on 23 January. The campaign aims to tell people about the exciting and rewarding nature of trusteeship, while bringing in a new generation of trustees to manage the country’s charities and their £39 billion-worth of funds.
The campaign also highlights the benefits enjoyed by people from within the voluntary and community sector who become trustees. They can enhance the representation and reputation of their organisation whilst fast-tracking their career by developing dynamic board room skills.
Lucy Caldicott, is head of fundraising at international development charity VSO and a trustee of Vauxhall City Farm said that her charity work helped her make a difference to communities in the poorest parts of the world and her trusteeship could make a difference to where she lives.
“Becoming a trustee has given me a broader experience and more rounded involvement, and an insight towards how to run an organisation,” she said. “At the farm I get involved in strategic and financial planning issues. I bring my experience to the farm, but I also learn from my experience there and can take that learning back to VSO.”
Janice Leeming, head of membership for lone parent charity Gingerbread, is a Trustee for the Money Advice and Community Support Service (MACS), a local charity in Brighton.
Jolanta Lasota, of the Governance Hub, said that 93% of charities had between one and five vacancies. “The voluntary and community sector is crying out for people to enter their boardrooms as trustees to make decisions that will shape the future of our society. We want to encourage charity employees to use the knowledge and skills they have learnt on the job and, in return, to gain personal satisfaction, new experiences and enhanced skills.”
For more information on becoming a becoming a trustee visit www.getonboard.org.uk.
