Grants and contracts manager volunteer roles

Pact is seeking a values-driven finance leader to join our Board of Trustees and chair our Financial, Risk and Audit Committee (FRAC), succeeding our highly respected outgoing Chair who retires this Autumn.

About Pact

Pact is a successful, growing and highly regarded Catholic charity whose mission is to support prisoners, people with convictions and their families to make a fresh start. We operate in some of the most complex and high-risk environments in the voluntary sector, delivering critical front-line services across prisons, probation services, courts and communities, while managing public-sector contracts with the Ministry of Justice and NHS alongside philanthropic grants and donations.

About the role

As FRAC Chair, you will play a pivotal role in supporting the Board to make confident strategic financial decisions, steward resources responsibly and respond effectively to a changing commissioning landscape. Working closely with the CEO, Deputy CEO and Director of Finance & IT, you will lead Committee oversight across:

• External audit

• Financial risk management

• Internal scrutiny and control

• Statutory, tax and Charity Commission compliance

• Treasury and investment strategy

Alongside this, you will share collective responsibility with fellow Trustees for the strategic direction, governance and integrity of the charity.

About you

You are a qualified accountant with senior-level experience in finance, audit, risk or governance (for example, as a CFO, Finance Director, Finance Partner, Audit Partner or senior risk leader). You bring a strong grasp of financial management, internal control and risk, the ability to interpret complex financial information and challenge constructively, and the interpersonal skills to build positive relationships across the Board and Executive.

Experience in the charity or not-for-profit sector, knowledge of Charities SORP (FRS 102), and previous Trustee or non-executive experience would be highly welcome but are not essential.

While this role is open to people of all faiths and none, as a Catholic charity Pact seeks Trustees whose personal values are aligned with our ethos, including our commitment to ethical investment.

Practicalities

• Term: 3 or 4 years by mutual agreement, renewable up to a maximum of 10 years

• Voluntary, with reasonable expenses reimbursed

• Approximately 45 hours per annum, plus reading and keep-in-touch time

• Board meetings are held near Liverpool Street, London, with hybrid attendance permitted

Job Title: Client Support Volunteer

Location: The Gaia Centre (Lambeth, London)
Salary: Not applicable as this is a voluntary role
Contract type: Voluntary - 4 hours per week (days to be discussed)

Hours: 4 Hours per week (days to be discussed) 

We want kind and empathic people to work at Refuge, who believe in equality, diversity, and inclusion, are experts in their area of knowledge, want to make a positive difference and improve the lives of the women and children we support.

This is an opportunity to join Refuge as a Client Support Volunteer to provide additional practical and emotional support to victims and survivors who are impacted or are experiencing domestic abuse and any other strands of Violence Against Women Girls (VAWG) and are accessing specialist support provided by the Gaia team.

As a Client Support Volunteer, your role will be to provide individual support to the clients receiving support from the Gaia Centre. This will be done either on the phone or in person and with the aim of increasing the clients’’ confidence, reducing their isolation and helping them to re-build their lives. You will do this by offering our clients and the team support in a variety of ways, including:

1. Assisting clients with locating and completing applications for relevant grants, services, courses, jobs etc., providing follow-up support where necessary. These could include registering for housing or financial support, the GP or applying for a new job.
2. Accompanying clients to appointments for accommodation, medical appointments or job interviews etc.
3. Recognising when it is necessary to take steps to safeguard adults and children, escalating the situation swiftly and appropriately to the line manager, Community Engagement Lead.
4. Encouraging clients to research activities that interest them in the local area to increase their engagement in the community
5. Welcoming clients to group sessions and helping them to navigate their way safely to the correct location.
6. Participating in celebrations and events held by our service, like International Women’s Day.
7. Providing some administrative support when required e.g. taking calls and messages; updating client contact details; sharing information about the service with professionals and clients.
8. Ensuring client records are updated accurately and that the security of sensitive information is maintained. This is to protect our clients and ensure Refuge remains GDPR compliant.
9. Plus much more - please refer to our job pack for more information.

Training: You will be required to attend 3 days of training on the 14th, 15th and 16th of September from 10am-4pm each day (non-negotiable) 

Closing Date: 09:00am 24 June 2026

Interview date: 1 and 2nd July 2026

Interested in supporting victims/survivors of domestic abuse?

We are currently recruiting Trustees to help us take the charity forward into the future.

Herts Domestic Abuse Helpline is a registered charity led by a Board of Trustees.

The Trustees (all unpaid volunteers) act individually and collectively, to provide overall stewardship of the charity, in accordance with our governing document and relevant legislation. In essence we look after the staff, volunteers and the organisation, so they can support the community.

You don’t need specific qualifications or experience to be a trustee and we welcome people of all ages, backgrounds and experience.

Prospective candidates will need to:

• Have empathy with the work of the Helpline

• Be able to devote the necessary time and effort

• Have well-developed communication and interpersonal skills

• Have good judgement

• Be able to work as a team

• Have the ability, commitment and drive to take the organisation forward

Trustee Opportunities

For any charity succession planning is important and with that in mind we are currently looking for people to join our Board as Trustees.

1. Chair: Our Chair will be stepping down soon after 15 years and we are looking for someone to learn the ropes beside her before taking on the role. 

2. Treasurer: After 10 years, our Treasurer is looking to retire in the next year. The Treasurer’s role description is on our website.  

3. General Trustees: Please see the role description on our website

If you would like to apply please complete the application form on our website.  You are welcome also to email Chris Roach, Chair, at that address to arrange an informal chat.