York Conservation Trust
Trustee with accountancy expertise - Volunteer
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York Conservation Trust is seeking an experienced finance professional to join its Board
Help shape the future of a major historic property portfolio and support an ambitious ten year programme of conservation, investment and sustainable use across York and North Yorkshire.
What difference will you make?
This Trustee will have a practical influence on some of the most important decisions the Trust makes over the next decade.
Our ten year plan sets out a clear pathway for substantial investment in the historic estate. In the early years, this programme will involve significant capital expenditure and periods of planned annual deficit as we repair buildings, bring vacant and underused space back into productive use and improve the long term performance of the portfolio. As this work is completed, the resulting increase in rental income is expected to return the Trust to annual surpluses.
The new Trustee will help the Board manage this transition prudently. They will provide informed scrutiny of budgets, forecasts, cash flow and project expenditure, helping us test assumptions, assess affordability and risk, and ensure that the Trust retains sufficient financial resilience while delivering a major programme of investment.
They will also have an important role in helping the Board consider how capital not immediately required for the estate is managed. While this is not expected to be a significant issue in the initial years of the plan, towards the end of the decade the Trust expects to place greater emphasis on the prudent management of investments outside the property portfolio, seeking the best appropriate return while balancing risk, liquidity and future capital requirements.
Their expertise will therefore help the Trust make better decisions about both sides of its balance sheet - how and when we invest in our historic buildings, and how we manage other financial assets to support our long term charitable purposes.
In practical terms, this will help ensure that the Trust can complete the investment programme, strengthen its income base, return to sustainable surpluses and remain financially capable of caring for some of York and North Yorkshire’s most important historic buildings for future generations.
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What are we looking for?
We are looking for an experienced finance professional who can bring strong technical knowledge, sound judgement and constructive challenge to the Board.
The most important requirement is a recognised professional accountancy qualification, or substantial equivalent senior finance experience. The successful candidate should have a strong understanding of financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting, cash flow, internal controls and risk management, together with experience of audit and of overseeing investment, treasury or borrowing decisions.
They will need to be confident interpreting complex financial information, identifying the issues that matter and explaining their conclusions clearly to Trustees who may not have a financial background. We are therefore looking for someone who can combine technical expertise with a practical and proportionate approach to decision making.
The ability to provide constructive challenge is particularly important. The Trustee should be comfortable questioning assumptions, testing financial plans and contributing an independent perspective while maintaining effective and positive working relationships with fellow Trustees and the Executive Team. They will need good judgement, integrity and a clear understanding of the distinction between governance and day to day management.
Previous experience as a charity Trustee, company director or board member would be valuable but is not essential. We would also welcome applicants with knowledge of charity accounting and financial reporting, including the Charities SORP.
Experience of property investment, asset management, major capital projects or substantial property portfolios would be particularly relevant given the nature of the Trust and the scale of our ten year investment programme. Experience of investment management, treasury, organisational risk or senior leadership in a complex organisation would also be useful.
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Knowledge of the heritage, conservation, property or charitable sectors would be an advantage, but we are equally interested in candidates who can bring relevant experience from other sectors and apply it effectively to our work.
Above all, we are looking for someone who will engage fully with the Trust, exercise independent judgement and use their professional experience to help the Board make sound long term decisions about the stewardship of both our historic estate and our financial resources.
What will you be doing?
Our Board brings together Trustees with a range of professional skills and experience. We are looking to strengthen this further by appointing a Trustee who can provide additional financial insight and challenge as the Trust enters a significant period of investment and change.
Following a strategic review of our estate, we are delivering a ten year programme of conservation, repair and adaptation across our historic property portfolio. This will involve substantial capital investment, decisions about the future use of complex buildings and the need to ensure that rental income and financial resources are managed sustainably over the long term.
The new Trustee will play an important role in financial governance, helping the Board to scrutinise budgets, management accounts, forecasts and annual financial statements, and contributing to oversight of audit, financial controls, investment, treasury and financial risk. They will also support the Board in considering charity accounting requirements, including the Charities SORP, and in reviewing organisational risk and the Trust’s risk register.
This is a strategic, non executive role. Day to day financial management remains with the Chief Executive and Finance Manager. The value of the role lies in providing informed scrutiny, constructive challenge and sound judgement at Board level as the Trust makes major decisions about the future of some of York’s most important historic buildings.
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