Our trustees are volunteers who use their skills, knowledge and experience to help guide and govern their local Citizens Advice. They work with the Chief Officer and other staff to shape strategy and give direction to Citizens Advice Charnwood.
This includes making sure that Citizens Advice Charnwood is:
- doing what it was set-up to do, such as offering high quality advice services to the local community
- complying with the law, including upkeep of premises, insurance, recruitment and equipment
- securing money to meet current and new demands and that all funds are used responsibly
- recognised and valued by local organisations, funders and people, who are aware of the vital service their local Citizens Advice provides
How much time is involved in volunteering as a trustee?
Trustee boards usually meet in the evenings and you'll likely need to give a minimum of 8 hours per month. Since lockdown meetings have been conducted via Zoom.
Attendance at regular meetings is expected by all trustees. Sometimes trustees will get involved in additional governance projects, such as supporting fundraising, developing strategy or overseeing HR procedures.
Also some trustees will have a specific role, such as being the Chair, Treasurer or Secretary. These positions have defined responsibilities, such as chairing and facilitating meetings (Chair), overseeing the budget (Treasurer) and taking and circulating minutes (Secretary).
You may need to attend other meetings if you're involved in specific projects, or meet with volunteers and staff occasionally within Citizens Advice Charnwood. We can be flexible about the time spent and how often you volunteer, so come and talk to us.
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 judgment
- 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 training in your role
We welcome volunteers from all backgrounds
And we particularly welcome applications from people from Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities, disabled people, people with physical or mental health conditions, LGBT+ and non-binary people.
If you are interested in becoming a trustee and would like to discuss all or any aspect of the above, please initially contact our Administrator by email at: admin@charnwoodcab.co.uk