Safeguarding Trustee - The Autism Group

What will you be doing?

The Autism Group, based in Maidenhead and covering East Berkshire, is a charity creating safe, inclusive spaces where autistic people can connect, build friendships, and grow in confidence, through a focus on reducing isolation and improving wellbeing, with tailored social opportunities and informed, compassionate support.

Set up in 2016, now with an income of £89k p.a., our trustees strategically support our team of volunteers and employees.

Our Lead Trustee for Safeguarding is not the Designated Safeguarding Lead and is not responsible for managing individual safeguarding cases. Operational responsibility for safeguarding concerns, referrals and case management rests with the Charity Manager and the organisation's Designated Safeguarding Leads. 

If you can think strategically and plan long-term, you have the primary skills needed by our Board. 
We expect new trustees to have an empathy with autistic people, families and carers.

You will have a clear commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk, with an ability to understand and maintain clear boundaries between your governance responsibilities and operational safeguarding responsibilities.

You may have experience of safeguarding within education, health, social care, charity, community or related sectors, knowledge of safeguarding legislation, statutory guidance and best practice or experience of safeguarding governance, quality assurance, audit or inspection frameworks.

You don’t need prior experience of charity trusteeship, as support from local charity-support organisations is always available.  Full induction to our organisation is provided, plus specialist support as a new trustee including access to external training. 

We are a charity not a business, but we apply business principles to governing our organisation. We are looking for people from a variety of backgrounds to join our charity and want to expand the diversity of our Board, strongly welcoming applications from people from less-represented groups. 

We ask for about ten hours per month, flexibly, which includes all meetings, discussions. You will need access to digital communications, as much of our charity’s business is run that way.

What are we looking for?

Here are some of the skills, abilities, experience and knowledge that the organisation would expect from our Lead Trustee for Safeguarding. It is acknowledged that some of these may be stronger than others and that training and support from our organisation will be forthcoming to help you build on them.

Essential

• Good communication, interpersonal, collaborative and relationship-building skills.
• Clear commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.
• Commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, valuing differences to make better decisions and deliver better outcomes.
• Ability to review information critically and provide constructive challenge.
• Strategic thinking and good independent judgement.
• Ability to understand and maintain clear boundaries between governance responsibilities and operational safeguarding responsibilities.
• Ability to work cooperatively as part of a team.
• Secure personal access to digital resources and ability to competently use those.
• Commitment to the organisation; willingness to devote the necessary time and effort.
• Willingness to undertake safeguarding and trustee training appropriate to the role.

Desirable

• Experience of safeguarding within education, health, social care, charity, community or related sectors.
• Knowledge of safeguarding legislation, statutory guidance and best practice.
• Experience of governance, committee work or trusteeship.
• Experience of safeguarding governance, quality assurance, audit or inspection frameworks.
• Understanding of the needs of autistic people is desirable; empathy with autistic people, families and carers is essential.
• Experience of risk management, policy development or organisational assurance processes.

What difference will you make?

What do YOU get as a volunteer trustee with our organisation?   

• An opportunity to exercise your strategic understanding of safeguarding and your organisational planning skills, probably in a different environment or context 
• An opportunity to influence and collectively-lead an organisation supporting autistic children, young people and their families
• A chance to expand and implement your understanding of our work
• A chance to augment your experience of charities 
• A boost to your career and CV, if needed 
• Satisfaction of helping an organisation that supports autistic people, thus giving something back to your community 

What do we get?   

• Your strategic skills, knowledge, understanding or experience, focused on your oversight of safeguarding
• Your abilities to influence plans for our charity’s operational future 
• Enhancement to our overall governance and the Board of trustees; improvement in our charity governance and operational growth   
• Your participation in our collective decision-making, contributing to all areas of our charity work   
• Your enthusiasm   

What do our beneficiaries get?   

• The ability to continue our support for autistic children, young people and their families
• A forward-looking and agile organisation, with a well-informed and well-governed Board of trustees  

Anything else...

Trustees are asked to offer about 10 hours flexibly per month, including preparation & attendance at meetings, liaison with other trustees & staff, and training.