Board Observer

Application Deadline: Wednesday 11 February, 2026

Employment Type: Voluntary, with expenses paid

Location: London

Workplace type: In-person attendance is desirable

Eligibility: Our aim is to appoint an independent candidate who can bring fresh perspective and objectivity to the role. To avoid any potential conflicts of interest, this opportunity is intended for individuals who are not senior members of partners that we currently fund, or members of partners that are intending to apply to us for funding.

Summary of the role: Guy's & St Thomas' Foundation is an independent charity working to help everyone live longer, healthier lives. To build a healthier society, we need to understand more about the causes of health inequity in urban areas – and what we, and others, can do to change them. Bringing fresh perspectives and a range of experience to every part of our work is key.

As a voluntary Board Observer, you will play an active role in Board meetings by drawing on your lived experience and offering your unique perspective. Your insights will help guide our decision-making, governance and long-term plans for Guy's & St Thomas' Foundation. This role will require a genuine interest in, and deep understanding of, health and equity issues in Lambeth and Southwark.

This role requires attendance at six Board meetings every year. Whilst these are held as hybrid meetings, in person attendance is expected where at all possible. As Board Observer, you will also be expected to attend an away day and some joint events with our partner organisations. All expenses related to this voluntary role will be paid, including travel and, where required, childcare costs.

About Guy's & St Thomas' Foundation: Guy's & St Thomas' Foundation is an independent charitable foundation. Our mission is clear – to build the foundations of a healthier society. We are deeply rooted in the heart of a global city. Our South London home is vibrant and diverse. It is also a place of inequity – where the best health outcomes sit alongside the worst. Working primarily in the London boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark, we focus on backing people and ideas to drive more equitable health.

In simple terms, this means that we are working so everyone has the same access to the resources, effective treatment and services, and life opportunities that lead to positive health outcomes. Our work is backed by our Endowment, which allows us to take a long-term view while addressing the real and urgent health issues of today. We invest, partner and engage to influence outcomes in response to big health challenges. We collaborate with our communities, partners and local hospitals and use our assets to transform lives. Across everything we do, we look to increase our impact by sharing and connecting with others working on better health – from our part of the city to cities around the world. Because a healthier society is our collective endeavour.

Key Responsibilities:

Why the role is important: Our board of Trustees oversees the organisation and how we achieve impact across all areas of our work. The Board Observer does not have the legal duties and responsibilities of a Charity Trustee. However, the Board Observer will play a critical role supporting the Board, and by extension, the Foundation, to be more transparent, accountable and responsive to the needs of our communities and those who we aim to support.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise: What we are looking for in a candidate: If you are reading this and think this isn’t the type of role that would be open to you, you might be just the person we’re looking for. Our ideal candidate is someone who lives in Lambeth or Southwark or who grew up in the area. We will also consider applications from people who have worked in our boroughs for many years with strong connections to the local community.

You will need to share our values, particularly our strong commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and support our mission to build a society which helps everyone to stay healthier for longer. You will have first-hand personal (as opposed to professional) experience of the social issues or social injustices, or a combination of these, associated with health inequity. This could mean, for example, having experience of structural racism, inequitable experience(s) of health services, poor or temporary housing, financial or employment insecurity, or living in places with particularly poor air quality.

Sound judgement, personal integrity, and analytical, problem-solving and communication skills are required for this role. Most important will be the ability to guide and inform our work using your deep understanding of how people and communities in our boroughs are affected by health inequity. Though we don’t expect candidates to disclose their personal experience or circumstances in Board discussions, you will need to be comfortable with leaning into that experience in sharing your perspectives and opinions on key issues. We respect your individual perspective and voice, and are not expecting you to be the mouthpiece for others.

How to Apply: To apply, please answer the following three questions. You can choose to answer the questions in writing or, if you prefer, you can submit a short video. Written responses should be no longer than 150 words for each question. Video responses should be no longer than 1 minute for each question.

• Why are you interested in supporting the work of the Foundation and what attracted you to this role?
• How would you use your lived experience to support the Foundation's mission?
• What do you think you would bring to the role, including any particular skills and experience you feel would be relevant?

Please click here to submit your responses (insert link to online form). If you choose, you can also upload a CV to support your application (this is optional). If you have any questions about how to submit your application, please refer to the detailed guidance below. If you are unable to find an answer to your query, please contact.

Detailed guidance:

Video submissions: Please keep in mind the file size needs to be kept to a minimum. If you are experiencing difficulty uploading your video to the portal, you can submit your application via WeTransfer to:

A few helpful filming tips are below:

• Find a quiet spot away from people and excessive background noise.
• Place your phone or laptop on a sturdy surface so it doesn’t fall during a take.
• Make sure there is plenty of natural light around you for clear visibility.
• Be distraction free.

About Guy's & St Thomas' Foundation: At Guy's and St Thomas' Foundation, our mission is clear – to build the foundations of a healthier society. As part of our team, including Impact on Urban Health and three NHS charity brands, you will work alongside talented people from a mix of personal and professional backgrounds. We are a Living Wage employer and support flexible working, part-time roles and job shares. Though our ambitions are serious, this is a friendly place to work with lots of opportunities to meet and socialise with colleagues. We believe there is immense power in diversity and aim to recruit and nurture talent who think and act differently. There is more information about working with us on our website, where you can read about: how we approach recruitment, our team, culture and values, the benefits of working with us and our approach to diversity, equity & inclusion; health & wellbeing; and learning & development.