Volunteer Trustees with Governance, Financial or HR experience to join Board of innovative new Foundation

What will you be doing?

If you are fascinated by the skills required to develop impactful listening, inspired by the power of music to bring people together in harmony, or simply excited to help us explore and build our mission, please read on. Listening is our USP - a skill integral to all walks of life and an activity that never sleeps. We all listen, but do we do so wisely? To define listening through the ears alone is limiting, to define it through our presence enables genuine change. Created by Dame Evelyn Glennie, the world’s first full-time solo percussionist, our Foundation builds on a lifetime of her experiences as a profoundly deaf musician, harnessing her unique understanding of the importance of listening to help others develop the ability to listen with purpose. Using Evelyn’s distinctive practices, her legacy and vast career archive, the Foundation inspires active, receptive listening, helping to create a society where communication and social cohesion are improved by the act of listening. As a new Foundation, all Trustees are expected to take an active role in its development, beyond participation in our meetings and the fulfilment of good governance and effective scrutiny. A proactive nature, strong communication skills and the ability to work well within a small but growing team are essential. We are particularly keen to hear from individuals interested in fulfilling the role of Chair (with suitable governance and leadership experience), accountancy and financial planning (Treasurer) and HR (a professional background in this area).

What are we looking for?

Applicants for the role of Chair are expected to bring significant experience of charity governance and leadership, preferably withing a 'start up' environment. Applicants for the role of Treasurer are expected to have a professional background in accountancy, charity finance or similar. Applicants for the role of HR lead will, again, be expected to bring a professional background in this area, ideally within a charity or not-for-profit environment. Whilst as is true for all Trustees the core functions of these roles are grounded in governance and scrutiny functions, as a new Foundation yetto appoint its first staff members we expect a level of 'hands on'.  Trustees are expected to take an active role in the Foundation’s development - beyond participation in our meetings and the fulfilment of good governance and effective scrutiny. This could mean providing practical or thought leadership, developing aspects of our business model, systems or infrastructure, or representing us externally.  A proactive nature, strong communication skills and the ability to work well within a small but growing team are essential. Applicants not willing to fulfil such functions should not apply.

What difference will you make?

These are all integral Trustees roles which will make an invaluable contribution towards the development of the Foundation in its earliest stages. We have widespread support and partner interest across the arts and academia, strong assets on which to build our work and an inspiring mission to guide us. These new Trustee role will support us to turn this potential into a viable and sustainable operating model, whilst ensuring our governance is of the highest standards.