Could a Trustee role with our Trustee Board be for you?
The team's goal is to help guide and govern their local Citizens Advice.
As a new volunteer you will receive an introduction to the charity and specific training for the role along with ongoing support throughout your time with us. You will need to:
- Complete an induction for your role.
- Maintain an awareness of how Citizens Advice Warrington operates.
- Read papers for board meetings and attend a minimum of 4 meetings per year.
- Depending on your skills and experience, work on specific projects with other trustees or staff within the local Citizens Advice and the Citizens advice network to further strategic objectives.
- Take an active part in discussions during board meetings and work with other trustees to:
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- Set policy and strategy direction, set targets and evaluate the performance of the local Citizens Advice within the quality assurance frameworks set by the network.
- Monitor the financial position of the local Citizens Advice ensuring that it operates within its means and objectives.
- Ensure that all the finances and supporting financial control systems of the local Citizens Advice are in order including that full financial records are kept for all transactions, that money is only spent for the purpose given, and that proper financial controls are in place to safeguard the organisation’s resources.
- Monitor the financial position of the local Citizens Advice ensuring that it operates within its means and objectives, ensuring that there are clear lines of accountability for day to day financial management.
- Seek the views of all sections of the community and monitor how well the service meets the needs of the local community.
- Ensure that the service plans for the recruitment and turnover of staff and volunteers.
- Review its own work and how effectively it operates including action for improvement.
What’s in it for you?
- Use your experience to make a positive impact for people in your local area by ensuring the local Citizens Advice is sustainable and meeting the needs of the community.
- Meet people and build relationships with trustees, staff and other volunteers.
- Build on your governance, leadership and strategy knowledge and skills.
- Increase your employability.
And we’ll reimburse expenses too
What do you need to have?
You don’t need specific qualifications or skills, but you’ll need to:
- understand and accept the responsibilities and liabilities as trustees.
- be non-judgmental and respect views, values and cultures that are different to your own.
- have good listening, verbal and written communication skills.
- be able to exercise good independent judgement.
- have good numeracy skills to understand accounts with the support of the treasurer.
- be willing to learn about and follow the Citizens Advice aims, principles and policies, including confidentiality and data protection.
- be willing to undertake annual mandatory training in your role.
How much time do you need to give?
Trustee boards usually meet in the afternoons to accommodate the needs of trustees, and you’ll likely need to attend at least 4 meetings a year which usually last for 2 hours, plus an AGM. You may need to attend other meetings if you’re involved in specific projects or meet with volunteers and staff occasionally within the local Citizens Advice. We can be flexible about the time spent, so come and talk to us.
Valuing inclusion
At Citizens Advice, we embrace diversity and are proud to welcome volunteers from all backgrounds. We particularly encourage applications from racially minoritized people/people of colour, disabled individuals, those with physical or mental health conditions, and LGBTQ+ and non-binary people.