Board Trustee

Mosaic is looking for 2 trustees. One of whom needs experience of working with young people.  The other is a generalist role. First time trustees welcome for both roles. Outstanding opportunity to transform the lives of LGBT+ young persons.

The deadline for applications is 13th November 2023 however we will process applications as they arrive, so please send us your application as soon as you are ready.

Background to Mosaic LGBT+ Young Persons’ Trust

Mosaic’s vision is to build a proud, strong and cohesive LGBT+ community that is safe from abuse, free from prejudice, healthy and making a positive contribution to society.

For more than 20 years, we have supported, educated and inspired over 7500 young persons. We offer weekly Wednesday evening and Sunday afternoon LGBT Youth Clubs – we offer two meetings because we cannot cover all those who wish to attend in one meeting. Each session attracts 20 – 30 young LGBT+ persons, aged 13 – 19, from across London. Coined by our members as ‘Mosaic’, the Youth Club has been regularly referred to as being ‘home’ or ‘like family.’ We are supported by a dedicated team of LGBT+ volunteer staff role models who run workshops and forums on a range of matters from sexual health to Queer literature.

You can find our more about Mosaic Trust on our website

What we are looking for

We have spent several years developing a firm foundation, with strong finances and clear policies. We now want to grow our services and programmes even more.

We are a small charity. We employ full time our Executive Director, Services Manager and Strategic Partnerships Manager.  We have a part time marketing officer. We also have a great group of volunteers who dedicate time to the Youth Clubs and the other activities. Our Trustees should be very keen to be involved. We want you to be passionate about improving the lives of LGBT+ young persons. We also want you to be able to commit time to getting involved in our Trustee Board, picking up some of the tasks from there and working on them between meetings. We would also expect you to want to attend the Youth Club or some of the special events we run at least a few times a year.

We need a Trustee with experience of working with young persons who has the experience to chair our Frontline Committee. This is our main services committee and we already have some experienced Trustees there but we would like to strengthen it and find someone who could chair it.

We also have space for Trustees with other skills that could benefit the organisation – and we would like to hear what you could offer. We have space on our Board for people who are not addressing specific gaps but rather bring a great attitude, an enthusiasm to get involved and a real desire to help support, educate and inspire the next generation of LGBT+ young persons.

We are aware that having a diversity of voices on our board is essential. We are keen to address current imbalances on the Board and better represent the young persons we serve.  We would especially welcome applications from women, people from the global majority population and Trans people as they are currently under-represented groups on our Board, but we would welcome applications from anyone from the LGBT+ community with the relevant skills and experience.

We don’t need you to have been a Trustee before – we are committed to providing the training and support for anyone where this is their first Trustee role. Many of our current Trustees took this on as their first role and would now be regarded as experienced Trustees with a good knowledge of what is required to make the role a success.

 

How to apply

You will find the job descriptions for each role below. Please send your CV to us along with a short note on why you wish to be a Trustee at Mosaic.  If you would like an informal chat before deciding whether to apply please contact us via the Mosaictrust web site

The deadline for applications is 13th November 2023 however we will process applications as they arrive so please send us your application as soon as you are ready.

The specific roles we have are:

·       Trustee and Chair of Frontline Services Committee

·       Generalist Trustee

These roles are both described below

 

>>>>>>>>>>Trustee and Chair of Frontline Services Committee

We need a Trustee who has experience leading a team that works with young persons.   Our Frontline Committee has oversight of all the services we offer and all our interactions with young persons who come to Mosaic. The Chair of our Frontline Committee sets the agenda for that oversight, ensuring that, through the work of the Frontline Committee, they are able to offer the Board assurance that our services are well run and young persons are safe in our care.  We already have a Trustee with specific oversight of safeguarding, and they are a key member of this Committee.

Responsibilities specific to this role

·        To Chair the Frontline subcommittee, which makes recommendations to the Board about the work we do with our young persons, and to be able to offer the Board the necessary level of assurance around our work.

·        To offer frontline, youth work and safeguarding expertise, ensuring the needs of LGBT+ young persons are always at the centre of what Mosaic does. 

·        To ensure Mosaic is well governed and has the appropriate policies and procedures around all its work with young persons.

·        To ensure that the charity manages its resources appropriately, and uses its resources exclusively in the pursuance of its objects.

·        To safeguard the good name and values of the organisation. 

As a trustee you would have responsibility which is common to all trustees which is at the end of this document to save space.

Person Specification

Essential 

·        Knowledge and understanding of LGBT+ young people and the LGBT+ community. 

·        Experience of delivering frontline services to young persons. 

·        Trained in safeguarding young people.

·        Commitment to Mosaic’s vision and mission.

·        Experience leading a team working with young people 

·        Understanding of the legal responsibilities and liabilities of a Trustee; or a willingness to get that understanding very early in the role 

·        Good communication skills and creative thinking 

·        Sound, independent judgment and strategic vision 

·        A willingness to speak their mind persuasively but diplomatically

·        Confidence to take decisions for the good of the organisation  

·        Willingness to devote the necessary time and effort to the duties of a Trustee 

 

Desirable

·        Experience chairing meetings

·        Experience managing a team

 

 

>>>>>>>>>>>>Generalist Trustee

What we are looking for

We are looking for Trustees with specific knowledge of communities not well represented on our Board - like the trans community, women, and people from the Global Majority population.  That does not mean others are not welcome - we welcome applications from anyone from the LGBT+ community who can add value to our Board. We are looking for a Trustee with more general skills and who will enhance our Board through a combination of skills that are relevant to working with young LGBT+ people and a willingness to volunteer to do “whatever needs doing”.   We are not sure what those tasks will be, but they might include:-

●      helping us think through how we can increase our fundraising in the community and then organising volunteers to do the work;

●      joining other volunteers to accompany a group of young persons on a cultural trip such as to the theatre or to an LGBT+ arts event;

●      helping the events team set up for one of our major events, like Homoween or Pride Prom, and/or being available during the event to pick up tasks (cloak room, door staff, catering, helping a young person who requires assistance);

●      writing an article for the web site;

●      reviewing the draft of a grant application to ensure we are making our best case

We don’t need you to have been a Trustee before – we are committed to providing the training and support for those for whom this is their first Trustee role. 

The critical requirement here is a willingness to pick up tasks and the time to devote to doing them in a timely way.  There is an expectation that you will have time to help Mosaic improve what it does.

 

Person Specification 

Successful candidates should be able to demonstrate the following skills, qualities and experience: 

 

Essential 

●       Excellent and understanding of LGBT+ young persons and the LGBT+ community 

●       Commitment to Mosaic LGBT+ Young Persons’ Trust’s vision and mission 

●       Understanding of the legal responsibilities and liabilities of a Trustee; or a willingness to get that understanding very early in the role

●       Strong communication skills and creative thinking 

●       Sound, independent judgment and strategic vision 

●       A willingness to speak their mind whilst doing so persuasively yet diplomatically 

●       Confidence to take decisions for the good of the organisation 

●       Willingness to devote the necessary time and effort to the duties of a Trustee 

●       A skill or experience that is directly beneficial to Mosaic and a willingness to share that with us.

As a trustee you would have responsibility which is common to all trustees 

 

 

Role purpose (common to all Trustees)

As a member of Mosaic LGBT+ Young Person’s Trust Centre’s Trustee board (the “Board”) you help provide overall direction and leadership for the organisation’s strategy, with accountability for the organisation: sound management; financial health and quality of programme delivery.

 

General responsibilities

In carrying out the collective responsibilities of the Board, individual Trustees should:

●      Be an active participant, making relevant skills, experience and knowledge available to the organisation. This includes sitting on the Board and one of the Board subcommittees, occasionally attending the Youth Club and any special events we are holding, and using personal networks to develop connections for the organisation

●      Regularly attend Board meetings and prepare fully for those meetings including reading papers in advance, identifying key issues for discussion and providing advice and guidance on areas of expertise.   Board meetings are held twice a quarter, in the evening.   Preparation should generally take no more than an hour

●      Regularly attend the meetings of any subcommittee of which you are a member.   Subcommittee meetings are held once or twice a quarter in the evening and preparation should generally take no more than an hour. It is expected you will join one subcommittee

●      Have prior knowledge of, or take time to familiarise themselves with, best practices of Charity governance and operations including financial management.   (We will provide guidance and training on this)

●      Develop and maintain a sound and up-to-date knowledge of the organisation’s activities and any wider issues that affect its work

●      Actively contribute towards the effectiveness of the Trustee Board, engaging in discussion, debate and voting in a considered and constructive way, participating in induction and training as required, and sharing ideas for how the Board can be improved

●      Act in the best interests of Mosaic including contributing to fundraising efforts, e.g. through personal contributions, introductions to potential supports and attending fundraising events

●      Undertake an annual performance self-assessment, which will be reviewed in discussion with the Chair and Executive Director

●      Act as brand ambassador when talking to other professionals raising profile and need for LGBT+ young persons’ services and placing Mosaic as a key provider of such services.

 

Thanks for your interest in Mosaic