Home-Start East Surrey are now looking to recruit additional Trustees and bring in people who are passionate about improving the lives of the children and families we support.
Home-Start East Surrey is a local Early Help charity, working with families with children under 11 as well as older siblings. We support parents, enabling them to give their children the best start in life, providing the practical and emotional support that vulnerable, struggling families need. This includes families experiencing difficulties such as disability, mental health, multiple births, isolation, and bereavement. Our aims are to strengthen family bonds, encourage parents to develop resilience, gain confidence and improve their mental health, to build better lives for their children.
We are the only voluntary organisation that provides home visiting and family intervention support to struggling families with young children across East Surrey, including Redhill, Reigate, Horley, Tandridge, Dorking and the surrounding areas. We receive referrals from health visitors, social workers, children's centres, and other agencies, as well as self-referrals. Services are free, confidential, and non-judgmental. Normally our carefully vetted and trained volunteers, most of whom are parents who understand how hard it can be to raise young children, visit families weekly and work alongside them in their own homes.
We are now looking to recruit additional Trustees and bring in people who are passionate about improving the lives of the children and families we support.
HSES are looking for Trustees who are committed and challenging, professionally curious, ready to speak up and ask questions, thoughtful and open to learning, and able to stand back and see the bigger picture. We welcome all applications from interested, experienced people, including younger applicants, and particularly applicants from minorities and under-represented groups who can reflect the experiences of the community.
You must take the responsibilities of a Trustee seriously. The role of the Trustee board is to ensure there is a good framework in place to support our staff and volunteers, including Safeguarding, Confidentiality, Data Protection, Financial Management and Quality Assurance. Meetings are usually held 8 times a year, in our offices in Redhill, and the duties should average a few hours per month.
You need not have been a Trustee before, but you do need to be committed to improving the lives of our families. Trustees will be required to undergo a DBS check.
Trustees serve on the governing board of the charity and are responsible for directing the management and administration of the charity. They have a wide range of duties and are responsible for making the charity effective, providing overall direction and maintaining sound management of funds. They should preferably bring varied skills and experience in areas such as:
Trustees meet around 10 times a year in the evenings in the Redhill/Reigate/Oxted areas. Each Trustee is allocated a specific role and should expect to spend at least 8-10 hours per month on their duties. It is an important role, carrying legal and financial responsibilities which will require a time commitment. Home-Start Trustees will receive a thorough induction, be invited to national training courses and events, have access to a Home-Start intranet full of knowledge and guidance on all aspects of running a local Home-Start, and have the skills and knowledge of staff, your fellow Trustees and Home-Start UK - which exists to provide information, support and guidance to local Home-Starts.
Trustees volunteer because they want to be involved in their community and improve the lives of parents and children. What they get back is the satisfaction of knowing that they have helped make a real difference to some of the most vulnerable families in their community. In many cases, being a Trustee can enhance an individual's skills and knowledge, build confidence, and provide opportunities for personal development for future employment, provide focus for an active retirement or sense that their spare time is being put to good use.
