Apply to become a Trustee

Make a difference with us!

For over 50 years Hestia has sought to provide support to those recovering from trauma, enabling them to build a life beyond crisis. We work with victims and survivors of domestic abuse, victims of modern slavery, people with mental health problems, adults leaving prison, as well as care leavers. 

Most of the work of our 750 employees and 600 volunteers is funded through partnerships with local authorities and other public bodies. We would like to diversify those partnerships and grow our philanthropic income to be able to support more people across London and the southeast.  

It is in this context that we are looking to appoint someone to our Board who will contribute broadly as a trustee and bring valuable knowledge and experience of grant-making and philanthropy. 

Our new Trustee will challenge us to be ambitious in our thinking around income-generation and add to our understanding of what it might take to elevate our fundraising to the next level. 

Together with other board colleagues, they will work with our Chief Executive, Director of Fundraising and Communications and the wider team as we look to build our capacity, reach and impact.

Candidates will need to be strategically minded and bring an understanding of the role of a Trustee and a willingness to devote the necessary time to their role. 

The Board of Hestia should reflect the ethnic diversity of the people it serves and so we warmly encourage people from ethnically diverse communities (who are currently underrepresented at Board level) to come forward for a conversation.

How to apply

Please submit your CV and cover letter with your expression of interest to Francois Ferriere at [email protected]

If you would like to have an earlier conversation with Patrick Ryan, CEO to discuss the role in more detail before making an application, please contact Francois on the same address above and he will be able to help find an agreeable date for a phone conversation.

Appointment Brief Download the full application pack here for further details about the role.

---

At Hestia we support adults and children in times of crisis.

We deliver services across London and the surrounding regions, as well as campaign and advocate nationally on the issues that affect the people we work with.

As we are a charity, Hestia must report regularly to the Charity Commission, a body established to make sure charities in England and Wales are accountable, well-run and meet their legal obligations. This body requires all charities to have in place a Board of Trustees and it asks these Trustees to take ultimate responsibility for a charity’s work.

At Hestia, our Trustees are therefore responsible to the Charity Commission for its work: in supporting service users and other members of the community, its properties, its finances, its staff and its volunteers.

Appointment Of Trustees

At any one time Hestia has between eight and twelve Trustees. Each is appointed by application and interview on the basis of their professional background and experience. The aim is to ensure the Board of Trustees has a diverse mix of people, and recruitment of new Trustees is undertaken with this in mind. Once appointed, each Trustee serves for three years and, subject to review, for a further three years (although the Chair will serve for longer) i.e. six years in total. After this, they must stand down from the Board for at least a year. A new Trustee is appointed in most years so that there is a constant mix of new and experienced Trustees. To learn about the current Trustees, please click here.

Trustees Are Volunteers Too

The work that Hestia Trustees do is unpaid and they do not benefit financially in any way from the work that Hestia does. This is important since the job that they do for Hestia requires them to review Hestia’s strategy and operations, and support the Hestia CEO and Directors in their work, from an independent and objective perspective.

How The Trustees Do Their Work

Hestia Trustees do most of their work by meeting together as a full Board, and by sitting alongside non-Trustee Members on different subcommittees (as shown below) according to their expertise, to consider issues in more detail. The CEO and Directors of Hestia attend these (and most subcommittee) meetings so that a full understanding and discussion of issues can take place.

Non-Trustee Members

Hestia has up to 36 Members (including Trustees) who can vote at the AGM. These non-Trustee Members include service user representatives and other people with useful expertise. Some non-Trustee members, including service users, are invited to sit on different Trustee Subcommittees.

Other Trustee Activities

As well as their Board and Sub-Committee work, Hestia’s Trustees also take part in a number of other activities such as visits to premises, inspections of premises, staff conferences, etc. They also try to attend as many BLF and other service user events as possible, as well as other informal activities, in order to meet staff, volunteers and service users and talk to them about their experienced. That way, the Trustees know and understand Hestia’s work, challenges and successes first-hand – something that is essential for them to help support the important work that Hestia does. 

---