Trustee with Business/Commercial Management or Opthalmic Experience

Help OpenSight achieve its Mission – join us as a Trustee

We enable visually impaired people to live independently, stay connected, and fully participate in their communities with confidence.  We are looking for proactive, enthusiastic and motivated people to add to the experience and knowledge of our existing Board and would particularly welcome your application if you have business management and commercial experience or if you are an Optical professional providing Ophthalmic Services in Hampshire.

Prior Trustee experience would be ideal but is not essential; we can offer guidance and support where needed. This is a great opportunity to gain valuable experience in organisational governance within the non-profit sector and make a meaningful impact on the lives of vision-impaired people.

OpenSight is a leading charity in Hampshire, focused on reducing isolation, encouraging independence, and providing access to a wide range of social and practical support for individuals with visual impairment. Our services include offering tailored support to all age groups to help overcome social, educational, and mobility barriers.  Our services empower people with a vision impairment to engage fully in their communities and live with greater confidence.

 It’s an exciting time to join us - we are implementing a new strategy which will increase our reach and impact across Hampshire.

We are looking for business/commercial expertise on our team; someone to act as deputy to our Chair in supporting senior management and ensure that we manage our resources effectively. 

 We also hope to find an optical professional working in our local community to help to bring innovation to our services, so that we can meet the needs of our service-users whilst remaining committed to quality provision and person-centred support.

Your potential impact is significant; you will attend monthly board meetings (a mix of in person and online) providing constructive challenge and guidance that will help shape the direction of our organisation.  In addition, you may choose to participate in sub-committees and/or champion outreach and fundraising activities.  We are looking for a minimum commitment of around five hours per month. 

 In return, we can offer the opportunity to work with a professional, friendly, and diverse team in an inspiring environment. You will gain valuable insights into the charitable sector, and personal satisfaction from using your knowledge and skills to shape our charity and make a difference to our staff and our service-users.

As a Trustee you will need to comply with the Statutory Duties of the role, these are:

To ensure that the organisation complies with its governing document, charity law, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations.

To ensure that the organisation pursues its objects as defined in its governing document.

To ensure the organisation uses its resources exclusively in pursuance of its objects. The charity must not spend money on activities which are not included in its own objects, no matter how worthwhile or charitable those activities are.

To contribute actively to the Board of Trustees’ role in giving firm strategic direction to the organisation, setting overall policy, defining goals and setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed targets.

To safeguard the good name and values of the organisation.

To ensure the effective and efficient administration of the whole organisation.

To ensure the financial stability of the organisation.

To protect and manage the property of the charity and to ensure the proper investment of the charity’s funds.

To appoint the Chief Executive Officer and monitor his/her performance.

In addition to the above statutory duties, each Trustee should use any specific skills, knowledge or experience they have to help the Board of Trustees reach sound decisions. This may involve:

·        Scrutinising Board papers

·        Leading discussions

·        Focusing on key issues

·        Providing guidance on new initiatives

·        Other issues in which the Trustee has special expertise

·        Commitment to the organisation

·        Willingness to devote the necessary time and effort.

If you have good communication and teamwork skills we’d love to hear from you.  For more information, see our website: http://www.opensight.org.uk/. 

This is a voluntary role.  We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and are committed to inclusive recruitment.

We have an induction process and can offer guidance and support where needed.

Skills

We are looking for business/commercial expertise on our team; someone to act as deputy to our Chair in supporting senior management and ensure that we manage our resources effectively. 

We also hope to find an optical professional working in our local community to help to bring innovation to our services, so that we can meet the needs of our service-users whilst remaining committed to quality provision and person-centred support.  

• Strategic Vision
• Good independent judgement.
• Ability to think creatively.
• Willingness to speak their mind.
• Understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of Trusteeship. 
• Ability to work effectively as a member of a team.
•  Nolan’s seven principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
• An open declaration of other interests and memberships such as Trusteeships, elected public office or membership of other bodies which might cause a potential conflict         of interest.