Trustee and Audit and Finance Committee member

Concern Worldwide (UK) is seeking a new trustee and Audit and Finance Committee (AFC) member.

For over 50 years, Concern has been working to make its vision a reality. Today, a global team of over 3,900 highly skilled and dedicated professionals work with more than 30 million people living in the most difficult situations across 25 of the world’s poorest countries. Often these are humanitarian crises arising because of people fleeing conflict or natural disasters, increasingly related to climate change. In these settings, Concern works to rebuild lives, livelihoods and communities.

The global organisation was founded in 1968 in response to the devastating famine in war-torn Biafra. In 2004, the UK operation was formally established, with an office in Belfast and a base in London. Concern (UK) is an integral part of Concern Worldwide, operates as its subsidiary and plays a vital role by providing funding, advocacy and technical assistance, as well as by raising awareness of its work and the voices and stories of those it supports. Concern (UK) does not directly implement programmes overseas but supports Concern Worldwide to do so.

We are looking for an individual who is ready to join us to tackle extreme poverty head-on and oversee the work the charity does in the UK and around the world. This work is vital at a time when conflict, food insecurity and the climate crisis is affecting millions of people. A charity trustee plays a vital role in the governance and leadership of the charity, ensuring that it operates effectively, ethically, and in accordance with its mission, values and legal obligations. This individual will also serve as an independent and objective member of the Audit and Finance Committee, contributing expertise and skills to help the Board of Trustees discharge its responsibility for effective scrutiny and oversight of the charity. The AFC Trustee is responsible for overseeing the organisation’s financial integrity, internal controls, risk management and compliance processes.

We are currently seeking to appoint a new trustee with the expertise to ensure the strategic oversight of Concern’s finances and to support appropriate decisions and good governance by the board. The Audit and Finance Committee assists the Board of Trustees in its oversight of:

• The integrity of the charity’s financial statements and its financial reporting and disclosure practices
• The soundness of the charity’s systems of internal control and risk management
• The effectiveness of the charity’s internal audit arrangements
• The independence and performance of the charity’s external auditors

We are seeking a trustee who has the skills to help Concern Worldwide (UK) fulfil its ambitions and navigate this rapidly changing context. Trustees should have an interest or background in international development and, through strong strategic vision and leadership coupled with excellent financial expertise, will work with Concern’s management team to maximise the organisation’s impact.

Condition of Appointment:

• Tenure: Each Trustee may serve a maximum period of nine years.
• Location: Four board meetings are held each year – at least two are virtual and two are planned as face-to-face, although being conscious of our carbon footprint, there will be an opportunity to join remotely. There is an annual away day which would be in a central London location.
• Time Commitment: Board meetings - held four times per year and lasting approximately two hours. These are usually scheduled on weekday evenings. AFC meetings - held five times per year and lasting 90 minutes. These are usually scheduled on a weekday within UK working hours. Annual away day/strategy day - participation in an annual planning or strategy session, usually in London for a full day.

No remuneration will be payable. Trustees may be paid reasonable expenses incurred in attending and returning from meetings of the board or any committee or in connection with the affairs of Concern.

Concern Worldwide (UK) is deeply committed to addressing inequality. Not only would we like to see greater representation of people from diverse groups within our office, we want to ensure that all staff and board members, regardless of identity and background, are welcomed, respected for who they are, and supported to thrive. This is fundamental to our core value of equality. Concern is taking a strategic approach to workplace equality, diversity and inclusion, in order to ensure coherence and co-ordination in addressing barriers and changing practices to address inequality in the workplace.