Become A Dudley Lodge Trustee
27 February 2018
Here at Dudley Lodge, we’re looking to fill the vacancies of two trustee positions within our team. Trustees are essential to our organisation, they perform a similar function to a school governor i.e. overseeing finances, health and safety, management of risk and reputation, and the quality of services. However, a trusteeship is more about having broader experience and skillsets than expertise in accountancy, finance and law so do not be put off if you are not familiar with these areas.
There is often a misconception that you need to be a certain age or have certain qualifications to be a trustee – this is not true. We accept applications from people of all ages and areas of work.
This is a voluntary position, but the time commitment is very reasonable, trustees attend four board meetings per year, a subcommittee which meets four times a year and the annual general meeting. Some members of the trusteeship also carry out monthly inspections during which they interview a member of staff and a family who is residing with us. This is for quality control purposes.
One of our current trustees referred to the role as ‘very interesting, and very rewarding to support a great team of staff carrying out exceptional work for such an important cause, i.e. the safeguarding of very young children.’
An Interview with one of our trustees:
Julie has been a trustee for over 3 years and is the chair of the governance sub-committee. She also chairs a Multi-Academy Trust of 5 schools in the city and works with a local charity, CRASAC, supporting victims of sexual assault.
Hi Julie, can you tell us a bit about your background?
My professional background was first as a qualified librarian in different kinds of libraries; then working as a researcher in local government, finally retiring from Warwickshire County Council having worked as a Community Safety Manager (overseeing a crime prevention team, in particular, domestic abuse and sexual assault victim support). Having worked with the police on a violence prevention initiative, I researched violence prevention which included focus on early intervention which became a major interest for me.
What made you want to be a trustee at Dudley Lodge?
When I saw the advert for Dudley Lodge, I was particularly drawn to the early intervention work it does with families, preventing children as far as possible from being affected by parenting problems and supporting parents to get the help they need. I can see how support at this stage in their life, can help children during their life, to achieve their potential and not be blighted by a poor start in life.
What does a position in the trustee committee consist of?
DL has an excellent reputation for supporting children and families to become better parents and to maintain that better parenting when they go home. But above all, we have to support and safeguard the children to enable them to go on to a home where they are loved and cherished.
To that end, trustees will always have those aims in mind when they take decisions with staff on the maintenance of our quality standards, reputation and future direction of the organisation. We have to be trained to take those decisions wisely and well and constantly strive for improvement in our services for the benefit of our families.
What would be your advice to people considering applying for a trustee position?
DL is always on the lookout for people from all walks of life, who could become trustees. We welcome anyone interested in joining us if they feel the same way about supporting troubled families.
I would say that if anyone feels that they could help us in supporting families like these, to please get in touch with DL and come and have a chat with us.
If you are interested in applying for a trustee position then please see a further description and person specification below, or submit an application form to: recruitment@dudleylodge.co.uk
Trustee Job Description & Person Specification
Trustee Application Form
Email: recruitment@dudleylodge.co.uk
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