Trustee wanted
Richmond Carers Centre is seeking to recruit Trustees to join its Board of trustees.
As a Trustee, you will be part of a group leading and governing Richmond Carers Centre, ensuring we comply with our legal obligations as a charity, meet our aims and objectives, and delivering high quality services to local unpaid carers.
Richmond Carers Centre is an award winning and forward-looking registered charity that provides information, advice and emotional support to adult and young unpaid carers in the Borough of Richmond upon Thames. For adult carers registering with Richmond Carers Centre, further services include information updates by email, regular activities (some online and some face-to-face) such as a book club, photography club, carers yoga and carers walks, coffee socials, and short trips such as to Kew Gardens. There is a full learning and workshops programme and a counselling service. The support team is a source of listening and emotional support, with support workers helping carers to find the support they need through signposting and referrals to other services.
The Young Carers Service supports young carers aged 5-18 with advice, information and emotional support, regular after school activities and a full holiday activities programme during school breaks. It also operates a mentoring service, which can take place online, in schools or out in the community.
Established in 2002, Richmond Carers Centre has a sound financial base and most of its income comes from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and local charitable institutions. Its office is located near Twickenham Green and has a staff of 14 including a CEO. The bookkeeping arrangements and financial controls are well established and work well.
There are several board meetings planned for 2025. If you are interested in volunteering with Richmond Carers Centre as a trustee, please have a look at the role description below and send a Career Profile/CV and a covering letter outlining your reasons for wanting to join Richmond Carers Centre’s Board of Trustees. Please email your documents to our CEO, Melissa.
Melissa Wilks – Chief Executive Officer Richmond Carers Centre
Telephone: 020 8867 2380
Email: melissa.wilks@richmondcarers.org
If your have any questions or concerns, please contact our Vice-chair of Trustees, Nicholas directly to discuss the opportunity in more detail.
Nicholas Rettie – Vice-chair of the Board of Trustees Richmond Carers Centre
Telephone: 07860 464170
Email: nicholasrettie@outlook.com
If your application is deemed suitable, Richmond Carers Centre will:
- Schedule an interview with the Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board to explore your suitability, skills, knowledge and areas of interest
- We will also share further information about Richmond Carers Centre, trustee time commitments and our induction process
- Please note, if your application is successful, we will ask for 2 references
What is an unpaid carer?
An unpaid carer is someone of any age who, without payment, provides care and support to a partner, friend, relative or neighbour who could not manage without their help. This may be due to a physical or learning disability, a mental health condition, long term illness, frailty, addiction or substance misuse.
Anyone can become a carer and often carers do not realise for some time that this is what they are. Many feel they are just doing their duty as a spouse, friend or family member and no more than anyone else in their situation would do. Becoming a carer is not a choice that people make, it is the outcome of a change in circumstance, and many do not realise there is support available.
Carers UK estimates there 1 in 8 (around 6.5 million) people are carers, with 1.3 million of them providing more than 50 hours care a week and 5 million juggling care and work (https://www.carersuk.org/news-and-campaigns/press-releases/facts-and-figures)