Trustee (Finance)

The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool

We are looking for a volunteer Trustee, with an acumen for finance, to join us at The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool.

Background

The Liverpool School for the Indigent Blind was opened in Liverpool in 1791 and, since that date, has provided continuous education and training for children and young adults with a visual impairment. Currently, as the Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool it provides a school for 90 pupils aged 4 to 19 who have visual impairment and other complex needs and also a young adult structured day service (Rushton Futures) which supports and provides life skills to young adults including some of the school's former pupils.

What is a Trustee?

Trustees are volunteers who help lead The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool and is able to contribute to making key strategic decisions about the Charity runs. Being a Trustee means that you will sit on our Committee of Management, giving your time and expertise. In return you will see how your contribution feeds in to the growth and development of this amazing Charity which supports children and young adults with a range of complex needs, enabling us to meet their needs and support them to live their life to the fullest.

What does a Trustee do?

Trustees make sure that the Charity is running in accordance with its Governance mandate meeting all its legal requirements, i.e. we are doing things by the book and remain accountable. You will also help steer the direction of the Charity, contribute to its strategic growth and development, plan for the future and support the Heads of Division to enable them to deliver the best for the children and young adults they serve.

What skills and experience is needed to be a Trustee?

Our ideal Trustee would have a background in finance, whether that is in a professional capacity such as a role with a financial background, or someone who has run their own business/enterprise or in a personal capacity. It would be desirable, but not essential, for a Trustee to have knowledge and understanding of the education and/or social care sectors. We are looking for people with passion, integrity and commitment to improve the lives of children and young adults, a person who will work collaboratively with fellow Trustees and senior leaders to achieve exactly that.

What is the time commitment to be a Trustee?

There are six Committee meetings per year, roughly every two months and these take place at our site in Wavertree, Liverpool. If you are unable to attend in person on occasion, you can join us remotely via Zoom.

Please note this in an unpaid role but we hope and expect that you will gain personally and professionally by being a crucial part of the Charity, contributing to its success and longevity and being part of a network of fellow like-minded volunteers.

How to apply

We want to make this as straightforward as possible so applications should consist of:

A supporting statement (no more than two pages in length) addressing and providing evidence of your suitability when compared against the person specification and why you would like to get involved with The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool specifically;
A comprehensive CV;
Confirmation that you are eligible to be a Charity Trustee, as per Company and Charity law.

Deadline for applications is 10th December 2024. All suitable applicants will be invited for a tour and to meet appropriate senior staff. Please note that as per our safer recruitment policy, all volunteers will be subject to an online check (as per Keeping Children Safe in Education 2024), and Enhanced DBS check with Barred List check and Section 128 check.

For any further information you can contact Karen Bibby, Head of Central Services on [email protected] or telephone 0151 733 1012

Role Description

Role: Trustee

Responsible to: Committee of Management

Key relationships:

President of the Charity (Chair)
Committee of Management
Head of School
Head of Care
Head of Rushton Futures
Head of Central Services
Senior leadership team

Role of a Trustee

Along with your fellow trustees, you’ll share responsibility for making sure The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool (hereafter called the Charity) is focused, meets its commitments on time and acts in a professionally, responsible manner. A further responsibility is monitoring that the Charity lives by its charitable objectives and our culture is supportive, warm and welcoming to all.

Responsibilities of a Trustee

1. Your responsibility is to work with your fellow trustees, heads of division and senior staff to

ensure the Charity:

Has a clear vision, mission and strategy;
Has systems in place to monitor and review progress, so we know what difference The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool is really making;
Has business plans, operational plans and any other plans we need in place to support the Charity’s objectives;
Monitors progress towards meeting its Charitable objectives;
Is always looking for ways to improve;
Encourages all its staff to promote the best interests of the Charity.

Specific responsibilities with regards to finance

2. Trustees share responsibility for the allocation of resources and performance of the Charity by:

Ensuring good use and control of the Charity's money, property and other assets
Prioritising investments to maximum benefit
Reviewing, understanding and ultimately giving approval to the Charity's annual budget, policies and annual report
Monitoring and assessing risks and ensuring systems are in place to minimise impact when they arise
Keeping updated on relevant financial reports and displaying a positive interest in the Charity's financial activities
Acting in a manner which supports the ethos and values of the Charity.

3. We need you and our other trustees to work together to make sure The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool complies with all of our legal and regulatory requirements by:

Keeping up-to-date and compliant with the ‘Instrument and articles of government’ – a document that gives all the rules for how The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool should be run;
Deciding the levels of delegated authority and making sure they’re noted and used correctly;
Recognising and dealing with conflicts of interest;
Being aware of and complying with what the Charity Commission of England and Wales needs us to do, as well as any charity legislation or company laws.

4. Working with the other trustees, you will endeavour to ensure that:

The Charity's governance is clear to everyone associated with the Charity
The membership of the Committee of Management possess the collective skills needed to make sound decisions and, when necessary, access to relevant external expertise and advice
The Committee of Management, in its operation, is compliant with the Charity's Code of Conduct
There is a fair procedure for the recruitment of trustees and members of the other governance boards of the Charity
Trustees stay up to date with governance best practice as set down by the Charity Commission and, when required, engage in relevant training.

5. We also need you to do what you can to promote our work and our culture outside of our The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool community. You will be encouraged to promote the Charity's work by possibly engaging your own networks and supporting the Charity's social media posts to extend their reach.

Person Specification

Knowledge and experience

First and foremost, we want people who live our values on our Committee. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have experience of being a trustee or even a senior leader. All we ask is that you’re willing to learn and bring your skills to our table. We also need you to have:

A “people” approach;
Great communication skills;
Lots of integrity;
The ability to do what’s fair and right;
A desire to help others;
Enthusiasm and commitment.

And if you have any of the following knowledge or experience, that’s a bonus (although, depending on the skill gap we’ve recruited you to fill, we might need you to have some or all of these):

Experience of people management, including performance management;
Experience of finance, including working within a budget and financial planning;
Experience of making a plan and following it through with reasonable care and skill;
Strong leadership skills;
Experience of working in a committee;
Experience and understanding of issues affecting people with disabilities both in the social care and/or the education sector; and
Experience of strategic thinking – seeing the bigger picture

Attributes

We want someone who:

Really ‘gets’ The Royal School for the Blind Charity, Liverpool: understands what we’re trying to achieve, how we want to do it and what our values are;
Has a good understanding of charity governance and the responsibilities of trustees;
Is able to express their own views confidently, but with tact and diplomacy ;
Is comfortable leading discussions and scrutinising documentation;
Will work collaboratively with fellow Trustees and senior leaders to make sound decisions;
Will provide advice and guidance;
Will act as a sounding board and engage in idea generation;
Will prepare and participate actively in meetings;
Is willing and able to challenge other people constructively;
Will promote the reputation of the Charity; and
Is passionate about improving the lives of, and opportunities for, young people with additional needs and believes that everyone should have a fair and equitable chance at life.

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