Trustee

Would you like to contribute to CHI as a trustee? We would like you to be an "involved" Trustee, contributing to the management of the charity, concerned about children's health overseas, especially children with CF. This page describes our current trustee vacancies, and then as background gives our more formal general trustee responsibilities.

If you are interested, please email us at Tony.wolstenholme@childhealthinternational.org.

Current trustee vacancies

Who we are looking for

We are looking for two new Trustees. Ideally we would like someone who would be willing to combine the trustee role with that of a project manager. Other skillsets we would appreciate include an interest in fundraising, public relations or a legal background (Charity law, employment of staff/volunteers, etc).

CHI has a competent retired (CF) consultant paediatric specialist as Medical Adviser and a second consultant as Adviser on child cardiac issues but neither are Trustees: so a Trustee might usefully complement their skills with experience of either medical aid overseas and/or worldwide CF healthcare and/or children's health management. As CHI emphasises the importance of physiotherapy and diet in CF care, such practitioners would also be welcome.

The crux is the wish to improve the care of children with CF, whose present quality of life, notwithstanding their country's possible membership of the EU, is unacceptably poor. A Trustee with cystic fibrosis, or experience of CF in the family, would especially be most welcome. We would also welcome female trustees; by chance, we have become a male dominated Board of Trustees.

Level of involvement

We would hope for a level of involvement of perhaps up to 4 hours/week at home, preparing contributions to Board thinking or project planning. Also a Board meeting, usually an evening every two months, in the Winchester Area. If you were actively involved in a project, especially in a visit abroad, that would take a few extra days.

As our meetings and other local events are in the Winchester area, most of our trustees live within 15 or so miles of Winchester.

Trustee Job Description

Overall Responsibilities of all Board Members

• To set and review the Mission, Values and Vision of the charity
• To monitor the activities of the charity and intervene whenever necessary to ensure effective operations and to ensure that all funds raised are managed responsibly
• To see that best practice and all legal obligations to any line managers and  paid staff members as well as volunteers are observed.

Areas of Expertise for Board Members:

You will be asked to nominate one main area of expertise, although clearly candidates may have relevant experience in other areas.

Strategic Policy

• To offer personal input into the choices of healthcare activity for the charity
• Assess the countries of proposed operations for need and the likely acceptability of any healthcare project
• Keep under review the availability and skills of UK medical teams for deployment overseas and seek to maintain a balance between overseas demand and UK availability
• monitor and evaluate charity activity against strategic direction on a half-yearly basis

Legal

• ensure that Child Health International abides by its charitable objectives and operates within the constraints of the law
• ensure that the work of Child Health International is covered by appropriate insurance

Awareness

• knowledge of the activities of other UK based overseas charities operating in fields similar chi’s both avoid duplication and to find opportunities for collaboration>
• awareness of the role and relevance of UK NGO supporting agencies to CHI such as the Directory of Social Change, NCVO and ACEVO
• advising on publicity policy to enhance awareness of CHI

Financial management

• annual and project budgets
• Monitor actual spend against budget projections
• Report progress at Trustee meetings
• Provide support to the charity’s accountant

Fundraising

• Oversee the charity’s fundraising strategy and monitor its effectiveness
• potential funding sources and recommend viable new approaches to fundraising
• To the availability of funding from the European Union and other international foundations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
• Play an active role in the organisation of fundraising events
• Monitor satisfactory feedback to donors

back to top of page ...