Trustee – Finance

Be part of a local, impactful charity supporting homeless people with meaningful employment and a home. This is your opportunity to join the Board of Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney and drive impact at an exciting time of change.

Applications close on Monday 23rd October 2023
Time commitment: the equivalent of 1.5-2 days per month

Who we are

Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney is a homelessness charity that provides up to 32 people (our companions) with a home, meaningful employment, and support for as long as it’s needed. Our community is based in rural South Norfolk from our site in Ditchingham, in the former All Hallows Convent.

We are one of 29 Emmaus communities across the UK, which form part of Emmaus UK which is a federated charity and in turn, is part of the wider Emmaus International Movement.

All our Emmaus companions volunteer in one of our social enterprises on-site and in Norfolk. These include our charity shops, hospitality business, and the provision of service to the Norfolk Assistance Scheme run by Norfolk County Council that helps establish people in a new home with basic essentials such as furniture and electrical goods. Through this work in our social enterprises, companions gain hands-on valuable work experience in customer service, upcycling, retail and much more, which will support them as they work toward their long-term aspirations. All of our companions receive personalised support, which is individual and will support them whilst living in a stable, safe environment.

About the role

As our longstanding Finance Trustee comes to the end of their term later this year, we are looking for a new trustee who can join us and Chair our Finance and Capital Investment Committee. It is an exciting time to join our Board, as having successfully navigated through the pandemic, we are looking to expand and redevelop our site. We also have the opportunity to extend our hospitality offering at our Ditchingham site to include overnight accommodation and develop new social enterprises whilst working in partnership with our local community. This will allow us to increase the holistic support we provide for our companions and create further opportunities for our companions whilst successfully responding to economic challenges. We are currently developing new ways of working and embracing changing trends in retail with the use of digital marketing both to expand our social enterprises and their footfall but also to ensure future companions and people who can signpost our activities are aware of who we are and where support and advice is available.

Who we are looking for

We are looking for a qualified finance professional who is commercial, strategic, strong on risk management and governance, and can support us as we are looking to raise funds to expand and develop our site and activities. This person will be passionate about developing and supporting people to achieve their aspirations and independence. They will have good emotional intelligence and an understanding and compassion for homelessness. We are looking for someone who is a strong communicator who can support us to evaluate our strategic direction and opportunities whilst ensuring the efficacy of our financial position and maintaining our financial sustainability. This person will work closely with the Board and our executive team to support us as we horizon scan and develop new plans and partnerships. It would be helpful if this person had an understanding of charity finance.

The Board meets bi-monthly, usually during the day for 2 hours, on-site. The Finance and Capital Investment Committee meets on alternative months for 1-2 hours with the opportunity to join virtually. Our new Trustee may also wish to attend the Business Committee, which considers the performance of the social enterprises together with the Development and Funding Committee. We expect the overall time commitment — including ad hoc conversations, liaising with our bookkeepers, reading board papers, preparation for board papers and attendance at various events throughout the year and supporting the team and the finance professionals — to be the equivalent of 1.5-2 days per month.

Please click 'Apply on website’ to be redirected to the Peridot Partners website, where you can find full details of the candidate profile and register your interest to apply.

Applications for this role close on Monday 23rd October 2023.