Work with us to create a brilliant future for people who need extra help to live, learn, and work independently, be healthy and well, and enjoy life to the full.
We're looking for volunteer Trustees for our Board, and in particular for a new Chair and Treasurer.
Welcome to Share
We're a happy, creative and dynamic charity based in Wandsworth. We've been making a difference to disabled adults since 1972 through accredited learning, employment, and personal development programmes. We're an especially popular choice for people with learning disabilities, many of whom also have autism. We are implementing a new Theory of Change which gives us greater focus and relevance.
As well as our range of training and activity programmes, we're growing two social enterprises – catering and horticulture – which are still young, but set to become more and more important over the next few years.
Some of our work also involves partners: we believe that working together often adds value to our ventures, and have many past and current partner success stories.
Our stakeholder surveys and the recent high scores on our Investors in People assessment provide evidence that being involved with Share is a joy for everyone because our warm, positive culture is in our DNA and shines through in everything we do.
Getting to know us
We have a staff of 32 and annual turnover of around £1m. Currently, our funding comes from local authority spot purchase contracts, other public sector contracts, income generated through social enterprise, and grants and donations.
We're an Investor in People, hold Matrix accreditation, and will be assessed as a Centre of Excellence for people with autism in May. Oh, and we've got 5 stars from the environmental health inspector for our kitchen.
Share is a registered charity (264894) and company limited by guarantee (1081030).
Our Board of Trustees
Our trustees have a wide range of skills and experience relevant to governing a charity. They specialise in key areas including finance, charity law, HR, and learning disabilities. Our Chair, Bill Morgan, has been leading Share along with the Board and senior managers since 2013, prior to which he spent 2 years as our Treasurer. He's stepping down in June 2018 to pursue new opportunities, and we are looking to recruit his successor.
Richard Callaghan has been Treasurer since 2014, but is relocating to the USA in the summer. Bill and Richard have greatly strengthened Share, making it sustainable and one of the most respected charities in the area.
What we are looking for
We are therefore seeking two exceptional people to take on these roles and lead our Board of Trustees, which has reached a level of maturity that ensures the highest standards of governance. The Chair will have significant experience of governance in the charity, public, or business sector, and will have strong facilitating, mentoring, networking, and ambassadorial skills. Our new Treasurer needs to be a qualified accountant with up to date knowledge of charity accounting and the wider compliance issues affecting charities. Both candidates need to have a firm commitment to working within Share's values framework along with a passion for championing the social and economic inclusion of disabled people.
Trustees meet every two months at our Board meetings. This usually takes place on the last Monday of the month between 6.30pm and 8.30pm. There are also sub-committees for finance; governance, HR and staffing; and for fundraising and business development. Every Trustee sits on at least one sub-committee, with the Chair attending all sub-committee meetings, and the Treasurer chairing the Finance and Operations Committee.
Once a year, we hold an 'Away Day' for strategic planning, which trustees are strongly encouraged to attend. We're in a healthy place right now, but the challenge is to rise to new opportunities, meet changing needs, and remain sustainable for the long term.
Please get in touch if you'd like to find out more and to arrange a preliminary visit.
Contact for further details
Annie McDowall – Chief Executive
0207 801 9817 anniem@sharecommunity.org.uk