Secretary to the Board of Trustees

Voluntary Role – Secretary to the Herts Disability Sports Foundation (HDSF) Board of Trustees

Post: Secretary to the Board of Trustees

Salary: This is a voluntary role. HDSF will refund reasonable travel & subsistence expenses and work-related expenses.

Location: Home and meeting venue (online and usually Hatfield for in person).

Hours: A minimum commitment of 8 hours per month (inclusive of meetings).

HDSF is a relatively small charity working to support adults and children in Hertfordshire with physical and/or learning disabilities to participate in recreational sporting activities. Our mission is to “Provide and support opportunities in sports and physical activity that can be accessed by everyone, whether it be through participation, volunteering coaching or education in a supportive and non-judgmental environment.” More information on our work can be found on our website.

Role of our Secretary: The main purpose of the role is to provide a high quality professional service to ensure the effective delivery and recording of Trustee meetings. The individual will be working closely with the Chair, Board of Trustees, and Chief Operating Officer (COO) to provide secretariat support and general governance advice. The successful candidate should be an effective communicator who is good at building relationships, has excellent organisational skills and maintains high standards of governance.

The Board meets face to face on a quarterly basis and online in the intervening months (total 12 meetings). We also have two Working Groups (Governance & Finance, Risk & Safeguarding) which meet quarterly, usually online.

Main Responsibilities / Duties

1) To ensure the effective delivery of Trustee meetings, including;

• Preparing meeting agendas,
• Collating and issuing papers for meetings in a timely manner,
• Producing accurate and timely minutes of meetings,
• Tracking and following up on actions raised at meetings,
• Recording attendance in line with our standing orders.

2) To work with the COO to create the annual programme of meetings, in line with reporting cycles.

3) To maintain the archive of meeting papers and minutes and respond to requests for documentation.

4) Working with the Chief Operating Officer, ensure that accurate and up to date governance information is maintained on HDSF website and intranet.

Accountable to

The Chair and Charity Director, working closely with the Chief Operating Officer. The role supports Board members who are responsible and liable for the governance and functioning of HDSF, and accountable to a variety of stakeholders, including; service users, funders and the Charity Commission.

Person Specification

The successful candidate will have the following attributes;

• Educated to degree level or equivalent relevant experience,
• Highly proficient user of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Adobe Acrobat and ability to learn to use new tools,
• Have experience of minute taking,
• Experience of having successfully serviced boards and committees,
• Experience of maintaining systems and records in a governance or committee environment,
• Excellent organisational skills and ability to effectively prioritise work and balance competing demands,
• Excellent verbal and written skills, including ability to draft accurate and succinct emails and papers.

The following attributes are desirable, but not essential;

• Have experience of Teams,
• Experience of charity governance.

Application Process

Please contact Sine Bates, the Chief Operating Officer via Reach to discuss your interest in our vacancy. Candidates will be requested to share their CV and attend an informal meeting with the Charity Director and Chief Operating Officer. We would like to have the successful candidate in place (with full induction) before our quarterly meeting scheduled for December.

Equal Opportunities

We are committed to providing equal opportunities and our policy is to ensure that no volunteer application or employee receives less favourable treatment, particularly on the grounds of sex, race, colour, national or ethnic origin, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, religion or age.

We have designed this application process to help us select the best candidate for the role and to eliminate the possibility of discrimination.

HDSF is actively working towards certification as a Disability Confident Employer.

Statement of Commitment to Safeguarding of Children and Vulnerable Adults through safer employment practice

HDSF is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults. Safe recruitment of staff is central to this commitment, and we will ensure that our recruitment policies and practices are robust, and that selection procedures prevent unsuitable people from gaining access to children, young people and vulnerable adults.

All staff working with Children & Vulnerable Adults should be aware of and share the commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults when applying for posts at HDSF. Appointment will be subject to successful Enhanced DBS clearance and satisfactory references. All HDSF staff and volunteers are required to undertake regular safeguarding training.

This role is advertised as part of TPP's Free Giving Back Services. This volunteer advertisement copy has been supplied to TPP and applicants apply direct to the organisation. Please contact the organisation directly if you have any questions about this volunteer role.