Oxfordshire’s Lord Lieutenant (and OCF President) Tim Stevenson and his team have set up a trustee scheme to assist voluntary organisations in the county, by extending the range of potential candidates from whom they may wish to select trustees or chairs.
The Lord Lieutenant’s office has made contact with a large group of experienced people willing to volunteer as Board members for Oxfordshire-based charities. The office holds a confidential list of local people who have expressed an interest in applying for such roles in the voluntary sector, and is now encouraging charities and community groups to approach them to make the most of this new scheme.
Organisations wishing to draw on this resource should contact the Lord Lieutenant’s office and make the following details available:
- Background to the organisation: mission, objectives, constitution, current trustees, finances
- Role to be filled: skills and expertise, level of active involvement and time commitment needed
- Contact details: how to get in touch with the contact person for the role.
A representative of the Lieutenancy will contact the interested organisation if necessary to discuss their requirements in more detail. The details of the opportunity are then forwarded to all on the Lieutenancy list so that those interested can contact the organisation directly. The Lieutenancy does not undertake to set up a search facility to match potential trustees to the organisation, unless an obvious match is found. It is then the responsibility of the charitable organisation to decide on any next steps in terms of the recruitment process.
The email for all correspondence about the Lieutenancy trustee list is office@stevenson-oxford.co.uk.
Oxfordshire Community Foundation recently used the Lieutenancy scheme as part of its recruitment process for a new Chair of Trustees. OCF CEO Jayne Woodley comments: “To ensure equality and diversity, we made our opportunity available in a range of places, advertising externally in the national press and across our networks, but also consulting the Lieutenancy’s list of high profile and talented people in the county. We are delighted to have appointed our new Chair from the pool of people they shared with us, and this person promises to be absolutely key to helping us continue our upward trajectory, offering the professional expertise and strategic perspective we were looking for.” An announcement about the new Chair will be made within the coming week after the position has been ratified by OCF’s Board of Trustees.
We would recommend that any group looking to refresh its Board of Trustees consults the comprehensive guidance offered by the Charity Commission.