Elizabeth Gaskell’s House is seeking a Treasurer to join their board of Trustees. Our Trustees have the ultimate responsibility for governing the house and charity and as Treasurer you would take a leading role in the financial management of the charity.
This is a voluntary role. However, expenses and access costs related to meeting the duties of the role can be covered and we will support trustees through formal and informal training and development.
Does this sound like you?
Are you someone with strong financial management experience and a passion for preserving a vital part of Manchester’s literary heritage: Elizabeth Gaskell’s House? Do you have an eye for managing and presenting financial accounts and are good at making decisions using your best judgement? Then we want to hear from you.
We welcome applications from people with a wide range of skills and experience and positively accept applications from people from all backgrounds. You don’t need to have had any former Trustee experience.
How do I apply?
Please send us your CV and a covering letter highlighting your relevant experience and why you want to be a Trustee and Treasurer for Elizabeth Gaskell’s House.
Send your application to sally@elizabethgaskellhouse.co.uk
If you have any further questions or want to discuss the role further you can contact House Director Sally Jastrzebski-Lloyd on sally@elizabethgaskellhouse.co.uk
What happens next?
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to an interview and tour of the house, either in person or on Zoom depending on your preference.
Mythbusting
There can be several misconceptions of what’s needed to be a trustee so we thought we’d bust some of those myths!
MYTH ONE – YOU HAVE TO BE INVITED TO BE A TRUSTEE: This isn’t true. We advertise our trustee roles both internally and externally and welcome applications from people we haven’t met yet.
MYTH TWO – BEING A TRUSTEE TAKES UP A LOT OF TIME: Being a trustee doesn’t need to take up a lot of time. Our main board and trading board both meet once every two months, usually on Zoom, plus an Annual General meeting and an hour or two keeping on top of emails each week. Beyond that you can give as little or as much time to the house as you want.
MYTH THREE – YOU ARE PERSONALLY LIABLE IF THINGS GO WRONG: Don’t worry – this is not true! Personal liability is limited to £1 per trustee, meaning that even if the charity were to close you would not have to personally pay for any debts. Legal responsibility requires you to act with honesty, integrity, in the best interests of the charity and without any conflicts of interest.
MYTH FOUR – I DON’T FIT THE IMAGE OF WHAT A TRUSTEE SHOULD BE: There is no right or wrong image of what a trustee is – old or young; male, female or non-binary; formal or informal, etc. Our board aims to represent the wide range of communities we serve. This means we want our trustees to be a mixture of ages, gender, ethnicity, knowledge, social background, skills and lived experiences.
MYTH FIVE – I’M NOT THE TYPE OF PERSON WHO WOULD MAKE A GOOD TRUSTEE: There are so many talented, experienced and passionate people who would make the perfect trustee, but who count themselves out because they don’t consider themselves confident or experienced enough. This is a huge loss for those boards, and your perspective could be the very thing that can change an organisation for the better. Please don’t count yourself out.
If you have any questions or concerns about your suitability please contact sally@elizabethgaskellhouse.co.uk
