Volunteer Trustee

What will you be doing?

Prestwood Nature is a community group and a registered charity that champions nature in the Prestwood, Great Missenden and Kingshill area. We organise events about nature; manage several nature sites to ensure greater biodiversity; monitor wildlife; and have an active membership many of whom volunteer their time for nature. We have a friendly, experienced and energetic group of trustees (or Council members, as we call them) from the local community. They are passionate about nature and enjoy using their varied knowledge and experience to help steer the organisation. Given that we are a volunteer-run organisation, each Trustee also is a part of at least one of our four practical work teams (communications, events, sites and biorecords) and will attend meetings and do practical work related to the Team they are on. We will soon be recruiting up to 3 new Trustees to join us from November 2023.  We are interested in hearing from people who:

Live in Prestwood, Great Missenden, Kingshill or the surrounding areas; Have a passion for nature and the local community; Are committed to the mission and values of Prestwood Nature; Have skills or experience they feel would benefit the charity; Are able to spend at least six hours a month on supporting us; Show integrity and good judgement; Can think creatively and work effectively in a team; Accept the legal duties and responsibilities of being a Trustee.

Time commitment Being a Trustee is a commitment and we aim to be upfront about what it involves. We have four Council meetings per year, each lasting about two hours, usually on Zoom. There’s also an in person AGM which lasts an entire evening. The practical teams meet as required, but usually at least four times per year. Each Council and Team meeting will require reading the papers and carrying out some follow up actions after the meeting. Teams will require some administrative and practical work. In total, hours will probably start at around six hours per month. Trustees are elected for three years, renewable (if desired) once. Expenses This is a voluntary, unpaid position. Small reasonable expenses can be reimbursed.

What are we looking for?

Live in Prestwood, Great Missenden, Kingshill or the surrounding areas; Have a passion for nature and the local community; Are committed to the mission and values of Prestwood Nature; Have skills or experience they feel would benefit the charity; we are particularly interested in people with experience in communications, nature and conservation, charity management, or legal and financial experience.  Are able to spend at least six hours a month on supporting us; Show integrity and good judgement; Can think creatively and work effectively in a team; Accept the legal duties and responsibilities of being a Trustee.

What difference will you make?

As a Trustee of a small, volunteer-run nature organisation, you can make a real impact on our direction, activities and effectiveness and the positive change we make for nature, which is so very important given the huge challenges nature is facing.