Home-Start UK
Trustee
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Trustee Role Profile
Strategic Leadership
- Contribute as a member of the Board to the scrutiny, development and approval of Home Start UK’s strategic direction, providing constructive challenge and drawing on individual skills and experience to support effective Board decision making.
- Maintain a strategic focus, supporting and challenging the executive team while respecting the distinction between the Board’s governance responsibilities and the executive team’s responsibility for leading and managing the organisation.
- Help to ensure Home-Start UK is a prominent part of the landscape of support for family and children and is at the forefront of policy and practice affecting families, children and young people.
- Understand and promote equity, equality, diversity and inclusion and help advance our commitment to progress further.
- Build effective relationships with other trustees and staff to provide challenge, support and counsel to the charity in achieving the organisation’s mission.
Governance
- Work with the Chair of Trustees and other trustees to support the Board to fulfil its duties and responsibilities to ensure the sound health of the charity, with robust systems in place to ensure financial accountability and integrity.
- Contribute to a healthy culture of challenge, scrutiny and support among the Board, that governance arrangements and meetings are working effectively.
- Support the Board in regular review of major risks and associated opportunities and ensure that robust systems are in place including in relation to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.
Relationships
- Act as a trusted ambassador for the charity, with external stakeholders and influencers including representing the charity at events and in generating income as required.
- Build strong and trusted relationships with the wider Home-Start network and with strategic partners and funders that can support greater impact for families.
- Be prepared to act as a spokesperson for the charity and to act as senior point of referral for problem-solving and disputes.
Person specification
In addition to the core Trustee responsibilities, candidates should bring expertise in at least one of the following areas:
- The specialist expertise to act as our Safeguarding Lead Trustee. The successful candidate will bring substantial safeguarding experience, ideally gained within children’s services, family support, or early years settings. They will have a strong understanding of safeguarding governance, assurance, and organisational culture, enabling them to provide effective support and constructive challenge to both the Board and senior leadership team. Knowledge of safeguarding policy and practice across the four nations of the UK would be an advantage.
- Expertise in fundraising and marketing.
- Experience in digitalisation of services and in use of data and impact measurement.
- Financial and commercial expertise with a view to succession planning to replace trustees on our Finance Committee who will leave us at the end of 2027, including a Treasurer designate who should be financially qualified.
- Experience of leading a federated charity.
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We value the voice of lived experience on our Board and would welcome applications from people with direct experience of receiving Home Start support or being a volunteer delivering it. We welcome applications from people who have not previously served as a trustee. We will provide induction, training and ongoing support to help Trustees develop their governance knowledge, but candidates should be able to demonstrate at application and interview that they understand the purpose and responsibilities of a Trustee Board. Trustees will be required to have a basic DBS check and must not be disqualified to act as a trustee under the Charity Commission’s requirements.
Skills and attributes
Whatever their specialist skills and knowledge, all candidates should be able to demonstrate the following attributes:
- Sound judgement and integrity; demonstrates capacity for self-reflection and is a clear and independent thinker.
- Highly effective relationship and alliance building abilities, comfortable in an ambassadorial role - with the ability to inspire and motivate staff, volunteers and stakeholders and bring people together.
- Outstanding interpersonal skills with high emotional intelligence and the personal impact, influence and credibility to represent a significant, national organisation.
- Insightful on and committed to inclusion; someone who can act as an ambassador for diversity across the network and a deep personal commitment to supporting families of every kind in all communities with the different issues they face.
- Team player who enjoys working with others and fosters a collaborative culture.
- A commitment to good governance and the ability to operate effectively at Board level, maintaining appropriate boundaries between strategic oversight and operational management.
- The ability to participate effectively in Board decision making, providing appropriate support and constructive challenge to the executive, contributing to collective Board accountability, and balancing conflicting factors and reach objective decisions.
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Time Commitment
Approximately two days per month spread across the year.
This includes in person quarterly Board meetings and an annual strategy day that includes an overnight stay and dinner. Board Meetings will typically be held in London although some meetings will be held in Leicester where the HSUK offices are located.
Trustees will usually be a member of at least one sub-committee (Finance, People & Impact) which meets quarterly on-line in the weeks before each board meeting.
Trustees hold office for a term of three years but shall be eligible for re-election for a further term of three years. In exceptional circumstances, with the agreement of the Board of Trustees, a trustee may be elected for a third and final term.
How to Apply
We hope you will consider making an application. If you have questions about the appointment and would find it helpful to have an informal conversation, please contact recruitment@home-start.org.uk and we will be happy to arrange a call. To make an application, please provide:
- Your CV – Please provide a summary of your relevant experiences
- Supporting Statement – Please prepare a statement that sets out (a) why you are interested in this role and (b) how you think your skills, experiences and qualities will add value to the HSUK Board and (c) your understanding of the role and responsibilities of a charity Trustee, including how you would contribute effectively to strategic oversight, collective Board accountability and constructive challenge (no more than two sides of A4)
*Closing date: Monday 19th October 2026. This vacancy will remain open until this date, and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis as they are received. *
Interviews are expected to be conducted online in the second half of October.
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