35 Community advocate volunteer volunteer roles in Nottingham

The BDFA is seeking a new Volunteer Treasurer/Trustee to join our passionate and dedicated Board.

As a trustee, you will play a key role in shaping the strategic direction of the BDFA, ensuring strong governance, and helping to improve the lives of children, young people, and families affected by Batten disease across the UK.

The overall role of Treasurer is to maintain an overview of the organisation’s affairs, ensure its financial viability and ensure that proper financial records and procedures are maintained.

As our Treasurer, you will:

• Oversee, approve and present budgets, accounts and financial statements
• Assure that the financial resources of the organisation meet its present and future needs
• Prepare and present financial reports to the Board
• Ensure that appropriate accounting procedures and controls are in place
• Have oversight of and give guidance to BDFA Accounting & Financial Administration Officer
• Attend board meetings
• Present financial overview at the AGM

Ideal Background:

Fully qualified chartered accountant/financial qualifications and experience. Some experience of charity finance and fundraising.

We welcome suitably qualified applicants who share our commitment to inclusion, integrity, and advocacy, and who are willing to contribute their time, skills, and experience to drive meaningful change.

Trustees meet regularly (virtually and occasionally in person) and contribute to board discussions, sub-committees, and strategic projects, including attending our in person meeting once a year.

This is a voluntary role, but the personal and social impact is immeasurable.

About us

Batten disease is a very rare genetic disorder that affects the brain and nervous system. Symptoms sometimes begin in infancy and sometimes later in childhood, after apparently normal early development. Occasionally it may start in adulthood. In individuals suffering from Batten disease, nervous system function steadily declines, causing a wide variety of neurologic problems, including loss of vision and seizures. The life expectancy of a child born with Batten disease can vary, depending on the form of the disease and the age of onset. Some children die in early childhood, while others may be able to live into their teens or twenties.

The BDFA was registered as a charity in 2001 and our mission is “to enable children and adults who are affected by Batten disease to live life to the full and to provide families with the care and support they need so that they do not walk this path alone.” The BDFA offers informed guidance and support to families and the professionals who work with them, as well as actively raising awareness, and promoting research into the management of Batten disease to improve patient care pathways and ultimately find a cure.

Work Location: Remote

Global Health Access Trust is looking for a Volunteer Campaign & Public Mobilisation Lead to help plan measured public campaigns that build understanding and support for fairer access to healthcare.

This is a leadership opportunity for someone with experience in campaigning, advocacy, public affairs or public engagement who can turn important issues into clear, responsible activity without hype or exaggeration.

Global Health Access Trust (GHAT) develops, funds and coordinates defined projects that advance health, relieve illness and preserve life for the public benefit. Our work brings together professional expertise, local knowledge, responsible technology, infrastructure, trusted relationships and accountable funding.

What you could contribute

• Plan campaign objectives, audiences and messages
• Coordinate campaign volunteers and ambassadors
• Help develop clear, accurate public-facing campaign material
• Support appropriate outreach and mobilisation activity
• Help ensure campaigns reflect GHAT’s values, evidence and public-benefit purpose
• Evaluate what worked and report honestly on outcomes

Who this could suit

This opportunity may suit people with experience in campaigning, advocacy, public affairs, public engagement or communications.

We are particularly interested in strategic, calm organisers who can build public understanding without overstating impact or using unnecessarily emotive approaches.

You should be comfortable coordinating people, developing messages for different audiences and working within agreed governance and reputational standards.

The role can usually be undertaken remotely from any country and the commitment is ongoing and flexible.

The role is voluntary and unpaid. There is no salary, fee, employment benefit or entitlement to expenses.

How to apply

Applications are handled through the Global Health Access Trust website. When you click to apply, you will be taken to GHAT’s Influence, Ambassadors & Campaigns section. There you can review this opportunity in context, explore the current opportunities within this area and select the opportunity that best matches your experience before submitting the GHAT application form.

About Care4Calais

Care4Calais is a volunteer-powered charity supporting refugees in northern France and the UK. We work alongside people seeking safety to provide daily essentials, fill the gaps state support leaves, and open up access to justice. We also press the public and policymakers to act. Our vision is an inclusive society where people seeking safety have a safe home and a bright future free from inequality.

In northern France we operate year-round from Calais, providing warm clothing, shelter, services and assistance to people living in dangerous conditions. In the UK, our Field Operations teams distribute clothes and essentials, run language lessons, sports and music workshops, and connect people to medical, educational and specialist services; our Legal Access teams secure legal representation and make sure people are informed and empowered throughout their asylum claim.

Our work is informed by an Advisory Board of people with lived experience of seeking safety, who provide strategic input and feedback.

About the role

We're appointing more Trustees with lived experience of seeking asylum. You'll join as we begin a strategic review that will shape our priorities for the coming years - so your insight will help decide where a charity working on the front line of the hostile environment puts its energy next, and make sure those decisions reflect the realities and aspirations of the people we exist to serve.

As a member of the Board, you’ll be working to set Care4Calais' strategic direction, hold us to our governing documents and legal duties, and support and challenge the leadership team so the charity can grow and thrive.

You don't need previous governance experience. We will support you and give you what you need to do the role well.

What Trustees do

Purpose and compliance

• Ensure Care4Calais complies with its governing document, charity law and other applicable regulation

• Ensure we pursue our charitable objects, and that all activities and resources advance that purpose

• Contribute to regular reviews of our own governance

Strategy and direction

• Shape and review strategy, and advise on our purpose, vision, goals and activities

• Review what we're achieving and how effective our activities are

• Stay alert to changes in our operating environment and ensure our purpose and activities remain relevant

Risk, finance and oversight

• Ensure key and emerging risks are identified, monitored and mitigated

• Oversee financial plans and budgets, monitor progress, and review and approve financial statements

• Ensure robust processes for handling money and accurate record keeping

• Ensure income generation is on target, lawful, and doesn't expose us to undue risk

• Ensure the effective and efficient administration of the organisation

Judgement and stewardship

• Use your own judgement to make decisions that are honest, lawful and in Care4Calais' best interests

• Avoid conflicts of interest or loyalty where you can; declare and record those you can't

• Support and challenge the leadership team in exercising their delegated authority

• Promote our aims and reputation through your skills, knowledge and contacts

• Attend Board meetings prepared to contribute

Who we're looking for

• Lived experience of seeking asylum

• Willingness to understand and accept a trustee's legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities, and to act in the charity's best interests

• Strong commitment to our cause, values and strategic objectives

• A strategic, critical thinker who is comfortable asking questions, challenging assumptions and sharing views with respect and confidence

• Ability to work as part of a team, understanding that trusteeship is collective

• The time to do the role well  - attending meetings and taking an active part in discussion

Support you'll get: structured onboarding, a buddy from the Board, and external mentoring through the Experts by Experience Employment Network.

Terms of service

The role is voluntary, with reasonable expenses reimbursed. Trustees are appointed for a 3 year term which is renewable. We expect trustees to attend all scheduled Board meetings, with reasonable allowances for extenuating circumstances. 

As a small charity, there will be times we need you beyond Board meetings — scrutinising papers, advising on new initiatives, or lending expertise on a particular issue. Trustees are encouraged to visit our operations in the UK and northern France.

All appointments are subject to the standard requirement that candidates are not disqualified from acting as a charity trustee under the Charities Act; you'll be asked for the relevant declarations.

How to apply

Send a CV and a letter of interest (1–2 pages) setting out why you want the role and how you meet the person specification.

Skills and insight come from a wide range of life experiences, not only paid work -  tell us about any experiences, learnings or perspectives you think would help you thrive here.

You will never be asked to describe your lived experience at any stage of this process unless you choose to.

Want an informal chat first? Contact Wilf Sullivan, Chair of the Board wilf [@] care4calais .org

Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed online after the closing date.

We can help with digital access or a quiet space for interviews. Tell us about any reasonable adjustments you need and we'll arrange them.

Equality and safeguarding

Care4Calais is an equal opportunities employer and an anti-racist organisation. We actively encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, people from refugee and migrant backgrounds, LGBTQ+ individuals, disabled candidates, and those with lived experience of the immigration system.

We are a proud member of the Experts by Experience Employment Network (EBE), which works towards a charitable sector led by people with lived experience of the asylum system. We've moved away from one-size-fits-all recruitment to make our process fair, supportive and accessible. Applicants are welcome to use the guidance at ebeemployment .com and to contact the EBE support team for help with your application and, where available, one-to-one interview preparation.

We are committed to safeguarding. Our selection process includes rigorous background checks and assessments to ensure post holders demonstrate attitudes and values aligned with a culture that promotes safeguarding.

Who We Are

Tell My Truth and Shame the Devil C.I.C. (TMTSD) is a survivor-led organisation being established to create a platform for truth-telling, accountability, community healing and meaningful social change.

Our work centres the voices and experiences of people who have historically been ignored, silenced or left behind by existing systems.

TMTSD is a developing podcast and documentary storytelling platform designed to create space for real human experiences — particularly stories connected to childhood sexual abuse, adverse childhood experiences, survival, resilience and social neglect.

However, TMTSD is intended to become more than a storytelling organisation.

It is being developed as one of the organisations through which a much broader vision can be explored, developed and ultimately brought into reality.

TMTSD is a sister organisation of The SHG Family Group Corp, which is being established as a long-term innovation, creativity and closed-membership ecosystem focused on addressing significant social and economic challenges through technology, education, social infrastructure, sustainable enterprise and international collaboration.

SHG's long-term vision includes the development of interconnected initiatives across areas such as:

• Renewable Energy
• AI/Social/Community Housing
• Artificial Intelligence
• Education
• Cybersecurity
• Healthcare & Family Wellness
• Economic Development
• International Development
• Social Infrastructure
• Public-Private Partnerships
• Emerging Technologies
• Other strategically important sectors

The ambition is not simply to create individual projects.

It is to develop interconnected systems, organisations and initiatives capable of creating sustainable economic and social opportunity while improving quality of life — particularly for young people and communities across the Global South.

The Opportunity

We are seeking an exceptional Founding Director / Political Affairs Strategist to establish and lead the Political Intelligence Strategic Relations and Partnerships function within Tell My Truth and Shame the Devil C.I.C.

This is one of the most strategically important founding positions within the organisation.

The purpose of this department is to help move the SHG vision from concept to reality.

Many of the initiatives being contemplated within the SHG ecosystem will ultimately require relationships with:

• National governments
• Government ministries
• Local and regional authorities
• Public bodies
• Regulators
• International organisations
• Development institutions
• Universities and research institutions
• Major corporations
• Foundations
• Strategic investors
• Public-private partnership bodies
• International development organisations
• Other major institutional stakeholders

The Political Affairs function will therefore serve as a strategic bridge between SHG's ambitions and the institutions capable of helping those ambitions become real-world programmes, partnerships and infrastructure.

We are looking for someone capable of building that bridge.

Your Mission

Your central mission will be:

Build the Political Intelligence Strategic Relations and Partnerships (P.I.S.R.P) function within TMTSD into a capability that helps turn SHG's strategic initiatives and long-term vision into credible government, institutional and international partnerships.

You will help establish the relationships, strategies, structures and institutional pathways required for SHG's initiatives to progress from ideas and concepts into viable programmes, organisations, partnerships and real-world projects.

This means understanding not only how governments work, but also:

who needs to be involved, why they would become involved, what value SHG can provide, what conditions need to exist for collaboration, and how an initial relationship can develop into a meaningful long-term institutional partnership.

Your Role as Founding Director

You will become the founding architect of TMTSD's P.I.S.R.P function.

Your role will include determining:

• Which countries should be prioritised.
• Which government sectors are strategically relevant.
• Which ministries, departments and public bodies should be engaged.
• Which international institutions should be approached.
• Which SHG initiatives are ready for government engagement.
• Which initiatives require further development before approaching government.
• What SHG's government proposition should be.
• What value SHG can credibly offer governments and institutions.
• Which relationships should be developed.
• Which relationships should be escalated to senior leadership.
• What constitutes a qualified government opportunity.
• How government engagement should be structured.
• How government relationships should be maintained.
• How government intelligence should flow through SHG.
• What future international Political Affairs offices should look like.
• What type of people should eventually represent SHG in different countries and regions.

Your Strategic Mandate

You will be given the following founding mandate:

"Establish the P.I.S.R.P function within Tell My Truth and Shame the Devil C.I.C. and build the institutional pathways through which SHG's strategic initiatives can become reality."

The objective is to create a department capable of looking at an SHG initiative and asking:

What would it take to make this real?

Then determining:

• Which country?
• Which government?
• Which ministry?
• Which public institution?
• Which strategic partners?
• Which policy environment?
• Which regulatory requirements?
• Which funding mechanisms?
• Which institutional relationships?
• Which political and governmental stakeholders?
• Which sequence of engagement?
• Which leadership involvement?
• Which risks?
• Which opportunities?

The department should ultimately become the function that can say:

"This is how we take an SHG initiative from concept to institutional reality."

Core Responsibilities

The Founding Director will be responsible for building the function from the ground up, including:

Government Strategy

• Develop TMTSD/SHG's government-affairs strategy.
• Establish government-engagement principles and protocols.
• Develop country and jurisdiction prioritisation frameworks.
• Identify government sectors relevant to SHG initiatives.
• Monitor political, governmental, policy and regulatory developments.
• Provide strategic government-affairs intelligence to SHG leadership.

What We Are Looking For

We are not primarily looking for someone with a political science degree.

We are looking for someone who has actually operated around government, institutions and senior decision-makers.

Ideally, your career will include experience across combinations of:

• Government Affairs
• Public Affairs
• Government Relations
• Public Policy
• International Development
• Public-Sector Partnerships
• Diplomacy
• Government Contracting
• Ministerial or Government Offices
• International Organisations
• Regulatory Affairs
• Institutional Partnerships
• Major Corporations dealing with Government
• Strategic Stakeholder Engagement

Experience operating across multiple countries, jurisdictions or political systems would be particularly valuable.

Qualifications / Experience

Ideally, you will have:

• 5+ years' experience in government affairs, public affairs, government relations, policy, diplomacy, international development, public-sector partnerships or a closely related field.
• Demonstrable experience engaging with government departments, ministries, public bodies, senior officials or institutional decision-makers.
• Strong understanding of political and governmental systems.
• Strong stakeholder-management capabilities.
• Strong strategic-thinking ability.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience developing senior institutional relationships.
• Strong political and institutional judgement.
• Understanding of ethical government engagement and compliance boundaries.
• Ability to operate across cultures and jurisdictions.
• Ability to work independently and build a new function from the ground up.

Exceptional candidates may be considered with a different combination of experience where they demonstrate significant government, institutional or strategic capability.

The Person We Are Looking For

You understand that government affairs is not simply about knowing politicians.

It is about understanding systems.

You understand the difference between:

an introduction → a relationship → an opportunity → a partnership → an institutional programme.

You know how to navigate complex organisations. You know how to identify who actually matters within an institution. You can build credibility with senior stakeholders. You are politically aware without being politically partisan. You understand discretion, integrity and confidentiality. You are diplomatic without being passive. You are strategic without losing sight of execution.

You can take an ambitious idea and begin asking the practical institutional questions required to make it real.

You are comfortable with uncertainty. You enjoy building things that do not yet exist.

You think internationally. You think in decades rather than months. You care about creating meaningful social and economic impact. And importantly:

You want to build a function, not simply occupy a position.

The Founding Leadership Opportunity

This position is initially offered as an unpaid volunteer/member founding leadership opportunity during Phase 1.

The intention is to build the function alongside the organisation rather than create a permanent unpaid executive position.

As TMTSD and the wider SHG ecosystem develop, secure funding, establish operational entities and generate sustainable economic activity, appropriate paid executive positions will be created subject to organisational growth, governance, funding and operational requirements.

The successful Founding Director will therefore have the opportunity to help design the function they may ultimately lead.

To Apply

Please send:

• Your CV, portfolio or LinkedIn profile, if available.
• A short introduction about yourself.
• A summary of your government, public-affairs, policy or institutional experience.

We are particularly interested in understanding what you have actually done, the environments in which you have operated, the complexity of the relationships you have managed, and how you think strategically.