Become a Trustee
Being a trustee is a fantastic way to
contribute to our work, make a difference
in the lives of families and support your
local area or community.
As a Home-Start Dudley trustee you are part of a committed team working towards a shared goal. It’s an important and valued role in our charity: your expertise, professional skills and lived experience help provide essential leadership, guidance and governance to help the charity successfully fulfil its’ purpose so we can be here to support families now and in the future.
As an independent charity, we require trustees to serve on our governing board. Board meetings take place bi-monthly at our offices. Our trustees commit a few hours on a regular basis to attend meetings, engage in discussions and help promote and support our work.
Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world Margaret Mead
Trustees come from all walks of life, bringing a wealth of diverse skills and life experiences.
Our board members serve as a Home-Start Dudley trustee because they believe in and care about our valuable and important work with parents, children, families and the communities we serve.
If you’d like to find out more about becoming a trustee, you’re very welcome to get in touch for an informal no-obligation chat. To request an initial conversation…
please email
manager@home-startdudley.org.uk
Becoming a Home-Start trustee is one of the most powerful ways you can contribute to your local community and make a meaningful difference.
In this short film, Laura, a young mum, shares her experience of being a local Home-Start trustee. She explains how she got involved, what the role means to her, what she has gained from her involvement and the difference she feels she is making.
Trustee boards benefit from a diverse range of skills, experience and perspectives. The insight, knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm individuals bring help to create a strong and effective team with the appropriate balance of skills, experience, backgrounds and knowledge to make informed decisions.
How to apply
If you want to be part of helping us support local families with young children and are committed to contributing to a small team in steering and sustaining our charity, please apply: download a trustee application pack, application form and monitoring form.
Skills and experience in particular specialist areas are useful. Personal qualities, individual skills and life experience are valuable too.
We are committed to building a team that reflects Dudley borough’s rich diversity and represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, lived experience and skills. If you want to join our team, we encourage you to apply.
FAQs
Am I eligible?
Anyone can be a trustee, regardless of how junior or senior you are in your career, whether you’re in paid employment or not, regardless of your ethnicity, class, gender orientation, sexuality or any other difference.
Charity boards benefit from the involvement of people with a diversity of skills, knowledge, age and experience.
To serve as a trustee you must:
- Be over 18
- Not disqualified due to bankruptcy, unspent criminal convictions for offences of deception or dishonesty, or a legal order for removal / disqualification as a Trustee or company director.
- Agree to a DBS check at an enhanced level
Do I need any qualifications?
All our trustees have a genuine interest in and commitment to Home-Start Dudley’s work with families and local communities.
We value ‘soft skills’ such as team working, interpersonal communication, negotiation, critical thinking, creative thinking,
decision-making, knowledge of the communities we work in and/or services we provide, personal lived experience connected to our charity’s cause or first-hand experience of the issues we focus on.
Being a trustee is also a great way to utilise your existing professional skills, expertise and experience.
We may look for specific professional skills and expertise at times (for example finance, human resources, fundraising, marketing and communications) or for professional experience related to a specific field of work (for example early years, education, health).
Trustees are not expected to be experts in every area but they are expected to use reasonable care in applying their skills and experience.
What does the role involve?
Trustees are an essential part of
Home-Start Dudley’s team of people committed to making a real and positive difference to the lives of parents, children, families and a meaningful contribution to the local communities in which the charity operates.
Charity trustees are the body of people who have ultimate responsibility for a charity. It is their responsibility to govern the charity, to oversee everything it does, to ensure it fulfils its’ purpose and to make decisions about the charity’s policies, objectives and strategies.
As a charity trustee you must:
- ensure the charity is carrying out its’ purpose for the public benefit
- always act in the best interests of the charity
- act reasonably and responsibly in all matters relating to the charity
- ensure the charity is fiscally responsible and manages its’ resources responsibly
- make decisions in line with good practice and the rules set by the charity’s governing document
- contribute to and support the effective function of the trustee board
Our trustees are required to attend
bi-monthly board meetings which are usually held at our offices but may on occasion take place virtually. These meetings are typically 2-3 hours duration and held during office hours.
Outside of regular board meetings, trustees may support the charity by sitting on a sub-committee for specific pieces of work, undertaking specific project activity, attending events the charity is holding or completing any required training.
Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.
Helen Keller
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