Museum Trustee - Treasurer

Overview

The Heritage and Communities Trust is seeking to recruit a Treasurer. We are looking for someone willing to work as part of a team – with the Chief Executive and the Trustee team to develop and implement the Trust’s financial policies and procedures.

The Heritage and Communities Trust is a newly formed charity, created through the merger of two established organisations: Markfield Beam Engine & Museum, and Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum. The Trust now manages both sites as distinct museums, while centralising governance, administration, and financial management. This is an important moment in the Trust’s development, as it builds shared systems and a strong financial footing to support its future. We are seeking a volunteer Treasurer to join the Board of Trustees and provide strategic oversight of the Trust’s finances during this formative period.

This role would be ideal for someone looking to get involved in a thriving community asset; whether you are starting out and keen to gain experience in the charity, education or culture sector, or looking to put your existing skills and expertise to good use.

Key Responsibilities

• Overseeing, reviewing and presenting management accounts and budgets
• Preparing and presenting clear financial reports for quarterly Board meetings
• Ensuring that the Trust’s financial resources meet current needs and future goals
• Ensuring that appropriate financial policies are in place and followed
• Advising the Board on the financial implications of strategic plans and decisions
• Ensuring that accounts are prepared and submitted in accordance with statutory requirements, including those of the Charity Commission
• Preparing the annual accounts for the Trustees’ Annual Report in line with Statement of recommended practice (SORP)
• Overseeing independent examinations or audits where required
• Supporting good financial governance and keeping trustees informed of their financial responsibilities
• Exercising honesty, integrity and creating a culture which helps to achieve the Charity’s core purpose and ensure public trust and confidence in the charity
• Contributing actively to the Trust’s strategic direction, setting overall policy and exercising judgement and scrutiny

Key Attributes

• Experience of charity finance, or willingness to learn. An understanding of good financial governance
• The ability to analyse financial information and assess financial risk and opportunity
• Confidence to make recommendations and provide advice at Board level
• Ability to adapt and explore new areas outside of existing experience
• Adhere to the Seven Nolan Principles of Public Life
• Willingness and ability to devote the necessary time and effort to the role, including six Trustee meetings per year either in person or remotely.

Desirable Attributes or Experience

• Previous experience of Charity finance management
• Working knowledge of SORP
• Knowledge or experience of accounting systems such as Xero

About the Heritage and Communities Trust

The Heritage and Communities Trust is an independent Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) operating two museums. Markfield Beam Engine & Museum, and Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum.

The Trust encourages volunteers and students under the age of eighteen to participate in order to provide a valuable learning experience. It seeks to develop its educational programme and attract young people from an early age to become interested in STEM-based subjects. The Trust sees this as essential for preserving engineering-based heritage. The Board of Trustees is the strategic decision-making body with operational and day-to-day matters being delegated to the Chief Executive and other senior staff. The Trust also has a trading subsidiary responsible for its non-primary trading activities.

We encourage candidates to visit us. The Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum is open on Sundays. Markfield Beam Engine & Museum is open only on certain dates throughout the year, check the website mbeam.org for the next open day. This should provide candidates with a feel for what both museums mean to visitors and the community.

How to Apply

Please send your CV and a 1-page cover letter outlining your experience and suitability for the role to the email below. We are also happy to answer any questions or to arrange an informal discussion about the role.