What do David Beckham, Lenny Henry, Meera Syal and Elton John have in common?

Along with Judi Dench, Tim Henman, Alan Titchmarsh and Esther Rantzen they’re all trustees – just some of the one million people helping run charities, voluntary organisations and community groups in England and Wales today. However, half of all organisations claim to have problems recruiting new trustees, as there are common misconceptions surrounding the type of person that would be ‘suitable’ for trusteeship.

As voluntary and community groups serve a wide range of different people it’s important that trustees reflect the diversity of their communities with objectivity and commitment among the essential qualities that organisations look for.  It is also important to have good interpersonal skills and a practical approach to working with people. Anyone over the age of 18 can become a trustee and while some organisations do require specific skills, new trustees will receive a thorough induction, so no one has to be an expert.

As a trustee, you will have the chance to influence the direction of the organisation, and the opportunity for personal development, through training and experience.  As well as making a difference to your community, trusteeship can help you use your everyday skills and knowledge to help and also gain new skills and improve career prospects.  It is a flexible way of volunteering and needn’t take up too much of your time, as the average organisation holds six meetings a year, often in the evenings.

Why not join the celebrities and make the first step by considering becoming a trustee in your community?  Behind the scenes of each of our local voluntary organisations and community groups there is a team of trustees, who are responsible for making their organisation effective, providing overall direction and maintaining good control of funds.  The Volunteer Centre has a wide variety of trustee opportunities of which the following are just a small selection.

Do you want to improve the quality of life for local residents in your community?  The Leighton Linslade Public Transport Users Committee works to improve the quality of all passengers’ public transport journeys by acting as a public transport passenger consumer organisation, securing improvements to services, providing passengers with help and advice on how to get the best from the public transport network, explaining their rights and helping them when things go wrong.  The Committee is looking for local people who want to help shape the development of the policies, procedures and regulation of matters that effect public transport passengers in Leighton Buzzard.

Being parent can be tough. Many parents say that they sometimes long for someone who understands the pressures, to talk to, to confide in or just to share a coffee and a chat with. Home-Start provide trained volunteers to offer just this kind of support to local families.  If you have experience of the voluntary sector, or financial and/or business skills, you may want to consider becoming a member of this active committee. By volunteering as a trustee for Home-Start you too could make a difference for families in your local area.

Around 85,000 people in the UK have Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  MS is the most common disabling neurological condition affecting young adults.  For some people, MS is characterised by periods of relapse and remission while for others it has a progressive pattern. For everyone, it makes life unpredictable.  The Leighton Buzzard Branch provide welfare support (e.g. home visits, shopping), the provision of grants, loans, advice, counselling, contacts and general support to local people whose lives are affected by MS. The Committee are keen to recruit new members to their board, especially individuals who have chairperson experience.

If you are already involved in a local voluntary organisation or community group you may want to consider becoming a trustee for Voluntary and Community Action South Bedfordshire.  As a local development agency, they provide a range of services to strengthen, support and develop local voluntary and community groups. They are keen to recruit trustees in order to increase the quality and diversity of their trustee board.   This role is an ideal opportunity to gain a broad knowledge of the sector whilst allowing you to specialise in areas that most interest you.

If you are interested in any of the featured opportunities, or would like to find out what other trustee roles are available, contact Georgina or Rebecca at the Volunteer Centre at Voluntary and Community Action on 01525 850559 or email volunteer@action-southbeds.org.uk  If you would like to explore other volunteering opportunities that are available in South Bedfordshire please contact the Volunteer Centre for a Volunteering Directory or to arrange an informal chat.