Cruse Bereavement Care Chair Appointment Brief attentive trusted authentic
Chair, Cruse Bereavement Care Contents Introductory Letter Background Organisational Structure Role Profile and Person Specification Recruitment Timetable Terms and Conditions How to Apply
Welcome letter from Chair Dear Candidate, Thank you for your interest in becoming the Chair of Cruse Bereavement Care. Founded in 1959 in Richmond upon Thames, Cruse Bereavement Care has grown over the last 50 years to become the UK s largest bereavement charity, providing telephone, email and face to face support to people all over England, Northern Ireland and Wales who are suffering following bereavement. Cruse has developed its strategy for 2013 to 2018. Our aim is to broaden Cruse s scope so that everyone has somewhere to turn when someone dies. We want to increase access to our services and reach those who are isolated. We want to raise awareness of the needs of bereaved people and improve the way they are treated. We want to strengthen the Cruse community, further developing the skills of our volunteers and staff. We want to develop our use of technology so that we are able to engage with more people in different ways. Our values; responsive, compassionate, respectful, supportive and innovative underpin everything we do. We are looking for a Chair who will work with the Chief Executive to bring this strategy to life, while maintaining the secure financial base of the organisation, continuing to develop relationships with other organisations and never forgetting the value of our 5,700 strong volunteer base, that we shall continue to develop and grow. We look forward to receiving your application. Kindest regards, Nigel Tricker Chair, Cruse Bereavement Care
Background Cruse Bereavement Care's vision is that all bereaved people have somewhere to turn when someone dies. Our mission is to offer support, advice and information to children, young people and adults when someone dies, and to enhance society's care of bereaved people. Cruse is the UK s largest bereavement charity and last year we: Gave 38,922 bereaved people one-to-one, face:face support, and supported 5,343 children and young people Enabled over 5,700 volunteers to give over 500,000 hours of their time. Cruse has Areas and Branches across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Services to bereaved clients are provided by trained and skilled volunteers, supported by a core of paid staff based at central office in Richmond upon Thames, National/Regional offices in Wales and Northern Ireland, and in Areas and Branches across the regions. Cruse offers a range of services: face-to-face including bereavement support, bereavement counselling, and facilitated and friendship groups, and website, telephone and email support. Help is provided whatever the nature of the death and regardless of the length of time elapsed. Cruse is an organisational member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists and follows its code of ethics. The backbone of Cruse is its 5,700 volunteers who receive highly acclaimed, relevant training at the start of their journey with Cruse and subsequently complete at least a further 15 hours of training every year. Cruse also provides training for external organisations and for those who may encounter bereaved people in the course of their work. Cruse provides a vital service and the majority of our referrals come via GPs. Cruse provides services free at the point of delivery but we do rely on donations, grants and service level agreements to fund our work. For a copy of our Annual Trustees Report and Accounts 2012-2013 please click here For a copy of our Strategy Document 2013-2018 please click here
Cruse in Brief Mission Statement To offer support, advice and information to children, young people and adults when someone dies and to enhance society s care of bereaved people. It is the largest organisation of its kind in the world. Cruse provides direct support services for clients information, publications, education, training and consultancy services on bereavement for anyone, both individuals and organisations resources, training and development for volunteers and staff so they can deliver these services effectively Cruse is organised to provide bereavement care through a network of volunteers in approximately 136 local service delivery points across England, Wales and Northern Ireland within nine English Regions: Eastern England, East Midlands, North East, North West, South East (including London), South, South West, West Midlands, Yorkshire & the Humber, and in Northern Ireland and Wales in accordance with powers contained in its Memorandum of Association.
Organisational Structure Committees of Council (Client Services, Training, Conference Planning) Working Parties (London Development, Equality & Diversity, Volunteer Recruitment & Retention) Cruse Council (Board of Trustees) Executive Committee (Chair, 2 Vice Chairs, Hon Treasurer, 3 members elected by Council) Chief Executive Patrons National/Regional Committees Directorate Team Central Office Area/branch Management Committees Area/branch Administration Area/branch Sub Committees Cruse is governed by a board of Trustees (the Council of Cruse Bereavement Care), with elected representatives from all regions plus co-opted members. Council has subcommittees for specific purposes and, as permitted by its Articles of Association, delegates some of its functions to National, Regional, Area and Branch Committees so that they may oversee Cruse s work within the local network.
Central Services Structure Chief Executive Director, NI* Director, Wales* Director of Services PA Bereavement Care Editor Director of Finance and Administration Service and Development Team: S & D Manager (Helplines and Online Support) S & D Manager (Operations) CYP S &D Manager (England) Helpline Development Manager (Early Intervention Project) Area Support Manager Finance Officers Fundraising & Communications Officer Admin Assistant *The Wales and NI Directors manage staff in their Regional/National Offices and local Areas/Branches Cruse is managed by the Chief Executive and her Directorate Management Team supported by a small Central Office team based primarily in Richmond Surrey and administrative staff within some parts of the local network and National/Regional and Area/Branch management committees of volunteers
Role Specification Chair, Cruse Bereavement Care Job Purpose The Chair will provide strategic leadership to the Board of Trustees, driving the implementation of Cruse s strategy for 2013-18. The Chair will work with the Chief Executive to help grow Cruse s profile and broaden the organisation s impact and reach. The Chair will focus on developing the board, maintaining financial stability and ensuring that the needs of bereaved people are at the heart of everything it does. Main responsibilities To formally chair all council meetings (typically 4 or 5 per year) and executive committee meetings (typically 6 per year) and drive the strategic direction of Cruse To support and engage trustees in the development of the board, ensuring it is effective and fit for purpose To support the Chief Executive and their team in leading the organisation in accordance with Cruse s vision and values To maintain appropriate governance arrangements for Cruse In consultation with the Chief Executive develop relevant and appropriate agendas for meetings, ensuring and that decisions taken at meetings are implemented To represent Cruse internally and externally and actively promote the work of the organisation To hold the Chief Executive and top team to account for the overall performance and delivery of Cruse s short, medium and long term plans To act as a sounding board, mentor and coach to the Chief Executive To chair meetings of the Trustee Appointments Committee (TAC) and to make recommendations on the composition of Council, the appointment of Officers and the appointment of Chairs of Council, including succession planning for key roles
Working with the Treasurer to provide appropriate scrutiny to ensure that Cruse s finances remain sound and ensure it complies with all of its regulatory requirements To take steps to ensure the organisation s trading, operational and other risks are adequately reviewed and managed To ensure that Cruse has a satisfactory system for holding in trust for the beneficiaries of the charity monies or property and to ensure that where appropriate monies are invested to the greatest benefit of the organisation within the constraints of the law and ethical investment practices To ensure that Cruse complies with its governing documents, charity law, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations To ensure that Cruse pursues its objects as defined in its governing documents Note: Some of the duties listed above may be delegated to other trustees.
Person Specification You should be able to demonstrate and provide evidence of the criteria in part one within your written application. These will be further explored at various stages throughout the selection process: The successful Chair will be able to give evidence of the following: Part One A proven track record of strategic leadership as a non-executive, ideally a chair, gained within a successful organization A strong track record of chairing and developing a board A sophisticated understanding of leadership, management and governance and the respective roles of the Chair, Trustees and the Executive Successful experience of organisational development and change Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to inspire, inform and engage a wide range of audiences Demonstrable success in developing and maintaining successful relationships An empathy and understanding with the not for profit sector and Cruse s mission and values An understanding of the needs of volunteers Part Two High levels of emotional intelligence, with an understanding of the work of Cruse s volunteers Independence of thought and judgement Intellectually robust with the ability quickly to assimilate and prioritise complex information An entrepreneurial outlook with ability to manage risks and take decisions
Resilient with the ability to handle tensions, conflicts and reach consensus An understanding of, and commitment to, the values of accountability, equality, probity and openness Timetable for Candidates Action Date Closing date Preliminary interviews. All candidates will be interviewed by David Fielding at attenti. Taking verbal references, visits and informal meetings with key staff TBC Final panel interview Sunday 9 th June w/c Monday 24 th June w/c Monday 1 st July w/c 15 th July w/c 22 nd July Terms and Conditions The role is unremunerated Reasonable expenses are reimbursed
How to Apply If you are interested in applying for this role, please do so via the attenti website: www.attenti.co.uk/cbcc Please ensure you provide the following: A supporting statement. This should clearly set out how you meet each of the criteria set out in the person specification. You should provide evidence in your statement; and not simply a broad claim to have done it - give us examples and dimensions; tell us what this achieved and how it helped meet your organisations' goals. A comprehensive CV including details of your achievements in each role. Details of two referees, one of whom should be your current or most recent employer, and let us know whether you would be happy for us to contact them as part of the process. Referees will not, of course, be contacted without your prior consent. Please also download and complete the equal opportunities form, saving it to your computer and then uploading it with the other documents as above as part of your application. Please ensure that you indicate in your application any dates when you will not be available, or where we might have difficulty in contacting you, which coincide with the appointments timetable. All applications will be acknowledged. attenti will respect the privacy of any initial approach or expression of interest in this role, whether formal or informal. Closing date for applications: 9 th June 2013 For an informal and confidential discussion, please contact our advising consultants Jim Banks, Hayley Clark or David Fielding at attenti on 020 7422 0620