Join Our Board of Trustees

Welcome from our Chair

Thank you for considering joining us as a trustee at Community Action Dacorum. We seek passionate individuals who represent our diverse community and are interested in making a difference through their skills and experiences in areas such as disabilities, employment, governance, and income generation.

About Community Action Dacorum

Established in 1947, our charity became an independent organization on 8th December 1976 and was awarded the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2019.

Our mission is to improve the quality of life for people in Dacorum and beyond through impactful services that support vulnerable and disadvantaged individuals.

Why Become a Trustee?

As we welcome new trustees, we aim to build on our recent successes. Following significant growth during the pandemic and an expansion of services, we are looking for individuals who can bring complementary skills to our existing board. No previous experience as a trustee is required; training and support will be provided.

Our Services

We deliver services in three key areas:

Communities

Communities in Crisis
Dacorum Volunteer Centre
Support for Groups
Minibuses for Groups
Support for Sports Clubs

Employability

Carers into Employment
Connect Dacorum
ESOL and Training Programs
Multiply Project
School Employability Days
Staying Connected (Digital Inclusion Program)

Wellbeing

Cancer Prevention Project
Community Cars
Community Buses
Day Trippers
Door2Store
Life-Long Learning
Radio Dacorum
Repair Sheds
ShopMobility

For more detailed information on our services, please visit www.communityactiondacorum.org/services

Role of a Trustee

Skills Required:

Creative & Design
Evaluating & Reviewing
Negotiating
Organizing & Planning
Communication

Desirable Skills:

Knowledge of fundraising and marketing
Experience in Human Resources and digital services
Understanding of the charity and disability sectors

Trustee Responsibilities:

Attend regular meetings (Executive and Finance & General Purposes).
Participate in at least one sub-committee.
Commitment is typically 90 minutes to 2 hours, occurring early evenings in Hemel Hempstead.

Finances

Our latest accounts can be found at
https://bit.ly/3MnyQA1

Our Strategic Vision

Our Purpose:

Community Action Dacorum makes a positive difference to the lives of people locally.

Our vision is that Community Action Dacorum will be the local leader in the provision and coordination of high quality, good value, community services, to the people of Dacorum and beyond, addressing identified social needs in the areas of Communities, Employment, and Wellbeing.

Our mission is to improve the quality of life for people in Dacorum and beyond. We achieve this by working directly and indirectly to provide impactful services that support vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

On a practical basis we:

– support local organisations to deliver their services more effectively and efficiently.

– improve the life chances of those seeking employment, developing their careers, or moving into retirement.

– improve the quality of life of local residents through our wellbeing programmes.

Our Core Beliefs

We believe that Community Organisations play a vital role in an inclusive society by:

Listening to and respecting others’ ideas and aspirations

Giving everyone the right to equality of opportunity and the chance to make a contribution

Committing to quality in all that we do and emphasising throughout our activities that quality matters

Bringing people and organisations together to deliver greater benefits

Our Strategic Aims

Communities
Employability
Wellbeing
Trading
Finance, Funding and Governance
Resources
Reputation
Impact and influence

Our strategic aims are set out in detail in our current Strategic Plan.

Your Commitment to Us:

Trustees are expected to attend regular meetings.
The key meetings are the Executive Meeting and Finance and General Purposes (F&GP) Meetings.
In addition Trustees are expected to attend the Annual General Meeting, which usually includes a Trustee and staff team event in the morning.
These meetings are typically 90mins—2h in length and held early evenings in Hemel Hempstead. Whilst we prefer trustees to attend in person, hybrid options are available for most meetings.
In addition to these all-trustee meetings, Trustees are invited to sit on at least one sub-committee. These are held up to four times per year during the day.
An annual draft meeting schedule is produced in September.

Our Commitment to You:

We cover any out of pocket expenses that you incur as a Trustee for Community Action Dacorum.
We will enrol you in our online training package CLC Learning, giving you optional access to 200 online training courses for you to dip into as you choose.
We will give you an induction into the charity and provide you with a peer buddy to support you.
You will be welcomed at any of our offices and we will provide you with a hot desk in Hemel Hempstead should you need one.
We will ensure you are covered by insurance and liability limits.
Networking opportunities with our members through events and Connect Dacorum membership.