Trustee - Wimbledon Windmill Museum CIO

What will you be doing?

Due to recent trustee retirement, there is an opportunity to join the board of the Wimbledon Windmill Museum CIO at an exciting time in its development. The museum, which is housed in the iconic 250-year old windmill, charts the evolution of wind power in grinding cereals into flour. It is the only museum in the UK dedicated to this theme which is brought to life over two floors through a series of exceptional working models. It is particularly popular with families with the facility for children to make their own flour. It is a key destination for many school visits throughout the year and we also offer pre-booked guided tours at a nominal price.

The museum offers free entry at weekends during British Summer Time and is staffed entirely by volunteers. We are therefore dependent on revenue from donations and gift shop sales to cover our running costs. With this in mind, the Board has determined to focus on creating a strategy for the future development of the museum and formulated this work with valuable assistance from Heritage Compass. The core strategic pillars of our vision for the future are summarised graphically on page 2 of the supporting document, which also sets out the key responsibilities involved in being a trustee of the museum.

In short, we need an individual with a passion for heritage and the energy to drive the museum forward. We do not have a separate management team so, in addition to attending around 5 board meetings per year, our trustees play an active role in the various operational aspects of running the museum. These include fund-raising, recruiting and organising our volunteer teams, promoting the museum, leading education and private tours, developing a programme of external community talks, monitoring finance, or facilities management.

We are extremely keen to increase the age spread and diversity of our visitors, so would welcome candidates who would reflect this in the make-up of the CIO board. Proximity to the museum would also be ideal but not mandatory.

What are we looking for?

Key duties

The key duties of a trustee are as follows, acting as a team member in collaboration with the other trustees

• Ensuring that the organisation pursues its stated objects, as defined in its constitution, by developing and agreeing a long-term strategy
• Executing the current strategy set out below
• Ensuring that the organisation complies with its constitution, charity law, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations
• Ensuring that the organisation applies its resources exclusively in pursuance of its charitable objects for the benefit of the public
• Safeguarding the good name and values of the organisation
• Ensuring the effective and efficient administration of the organisation, including having appropriate policies and procedures in place
• Ensuring the financial stability of the organisation
• Protecting and managing the property of the charity and ensuring the proper investment of the charity’s funds

Person specification

Essential requirements

• Genuine interest in charitable institutions and social history.
• Commitment to work effectively as a member of a team
• Willingness to take responsibility for agreed tasks or projects.
• Willingness to be assessed against Charity Commission criteria, with full relevant disclosure, and undertake DBS vetting, both in strict confidence.
• Ability to devote at least 10 hours per month on average to the museum.
• At least two credible referees.
• Team worker, able to inspire others
• Political acumen in interacting with other stakeholders, for example The Wimbledon and Putney Common Conservators
• Commercial / financial management or charity trustee experience.
• Legal acumen.
• Previous experience in museums/education.
• Fundraising experience.
• Any other relevant specific skills, expertise, knowledge or experience
• Ideally local resident.
• Representative of the wider community – ethnicity/age/disability etc.

What difference will you make?

As a volunteer-run charity it is vital that every trustee plays an active role. We have already identified several initiatives that could empower us in delivering against our strategic goals - we need an individual with the passion and energy to drive these forward and help develop new ways to maximise the value the museum can bring to the community.

Anything else...

There are five 2-hour board meetings per year. Most trustees spend around 12 hours per month on museum affairs, including taking turns as Team Leader of the volunteers when the museum is open on summer weekends.