Accommodation Search Volunteer Volunteer Roles

The Chester Bluecoat Charity, the longest standing charity in Chester, is currently searching for inspirational individuals to join our board as a volunteer trustee to help steer the charity as it strives to raise the bar on the positive impact it has in the city and surrounding areas.

Under new leadership, 2024 is set to be a particularly exciting year as we develop and implement a new strategy to support more people than ever before and help the charity reach its full potential. In order to achieve this, we are recruiting new trustees who can help drive this transformation by bringing additional expertise to our dedicated team, specifically in the charity, community, social housing and legal sectors.

About the Charity

The Chester Bluecoat Charity helps to tackle the causes of poverty, disadvantage, and inequality across the city. As the city’s longest standing charity, we are proud to have been helping the people of Chester and surrounding areas for more than 800 years.

Based in the historic Bluecoat Building, in the heart of the City of Chester, we work to change the lives of people in need in three distinct ways:

• Grant Giving – We award grants to organisations that use education and community development to improve peoples’ lives.
• Rentable office and meeting room space at our Bluecoat Building – We offer third sector office space to local charities and voluntary organisations, as well as meeting rooms for hire to businesses throughout the city.
• Almshouses – We provide Almshouse accommodation for people in need in the 16 Almshouses that we own and maintain which are situated at rear of the Bluecoat Building.

At its core, the charity owns several properties in Chester which enables us to generate a rental income, and subsequently provide Almshouse accommodation and office space to Third Sector organisations. These funds also allow the charity to provide grants and support to organisations such as Blacon Beacon, Koala, KidsBank and Platform for Life, to name but a few…

Why should you become a trustee?

Are you passionate about Chester? Do you want to make a real difference in the lives of those in our community who need our help? Do you want to be part of a team trying to do some good by making lasting change?

By becoming a trustee of The Chester Bluecoat Charity, you can do just that! In this role, you can shape and steer the city’s oldest charity and help it reach its full potential. This is an opportunity for you to give back to the city of Chester in a meaningful, rewarding role, whilst making new connections during an exciting time of transformational change in the charity.

What skills should I have?

The Chester Bluecoat Charity are looking for trustees with the following skills in particular:

• Charity and community experience.
• Social housing/housing association experience (Almshouses)
• Legal

In addition, trustees should be able to offer:

• Great communication skills
• Be able to contribute to strategic planning
• Independent, sound judgement
• Willingness to provide opinion and reasons for the conclusions drawn
• Ability to think creatively and problem solve
• Capable of working effectively as a member of a team

As we are focused on Chester and its’ surrounds, we expect our trustees to either be resident in Chester or have strong links with the city.

How will I make a difference?

As part of our trustee board, you will shape the work of The Chester Bluecoat Charity and provide support to the team to achieve our charitable aims. You will be part a charity that tackles the causes of poverty, inequality, and disadvantage in and around Chester by using our resources effectively to provide grants to other organisations and charities, amongst other work.

Our trustees dedicate around 5-10 hours a month to The Chester Bluecoat Charity by attending internal meetings and assisting the team in delivering our strategy.

When would I participate in trustee meetings?

The main board meet 6 times a year. Trustees are appointed for an initial term of three years, with the possibility of two further terms.

Trustee meetings are usually held at The Bluecoat on Upper Northgate Street, Chester, however these may also be joined virtually.