Clements Hall History Group
Role of Trustees
Outline: Trustees will support the Chair and other members of the committee to achieve the goals of the Group and provide scrutiny, expertise and knowledge.
Responsible to: Fellow Trustees, the Chair and the membership.
The Responsibilities of a Trustee:
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Ensuring that the Group complies with its Constitution and guidance from the British Association for Local History
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Scrutinising financial control and ensure that the Group does not spend money on activities which are not appropriate, no matter how worthwhile or charitable those activities are.
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Contributing actively in Trustee meetings in giving firm strategic direction to the Group and agreeing overall policy, defining goals and setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed those targets.
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Ensuring financial stability of the organisation
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Safeguarding the good name and values of the Group and help maintain its effective performance.
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Jointly with other trustees, ensuring the Group continues to research and share the histories and stories from our defined area.
Skills of a Trustee:
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Organisational skills
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Communication skills
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Ability to work as part of a team
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Able to think creatively and solve problems
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Passionate about the local history of our area.
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Able to maintain independent and objective judgement
Please contact the Chair if you have any queries about this role
Our current Trustees:
Philip Newton (Chair)
Elaine Bradshaw (Membership Secretary)
Susan Major (Book Project Lead and Website/Social Media Manager)
Jenny Collieson
Dick Hunter
Vicki Rounding
Catherine Sotheran
Rob Stay
John Stevens
We need to recruit more Trustees to fulfil the following roles, without which we cannot carry out key elements of our programme which have made us a successful group for twelve years. Do get in touch with us if you would like to have a chat about any of these.
Clements Hall History Group – Chair
Elected by the Trustees to lead the group, ensuring that we fulfil our responsibilities outlined in the constitution.
Duties
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Chair Trustee meetings, three or four times a year, plus the AGM. These are usually held online, using our Zoom account
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Host our talks at Clements Hall (five a year), or if necessary, arrange for another Trustee to deputise
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Lead our team of Trustees in developing strategies to encourage and develop membership and local history initiatives
Clements Hall History Group – Talks Organiser
Elected by the Trustees to organise our programme of five talks each year, usually arranged a year in advance. We need someone to take on this role to book talks for 2027.
Duties
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Think broadly to source new and interesting speakers, looking at what other history groups are doing, what we and our members are doing, past speakers, any academics who are studying anything in our sphere etc - think laterally, and discuss suggestions with Chair. Discuss fees etc.
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Book the venue well in advance, a year ahead at Clements Hall
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Invite the speakers, and check about three weeks before they are due to speak that they are still available. Send our note about facilities etc and discuss AV needs.
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Have one reserve talk in hand in case of a booked speaker being unavailable.
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Liaise with our publicity officer to arrange promotion of the talks
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Arrange payment of fee
Clements Hall History Group – Treasurer
Elected by the Trustees to manage and monitor the financial activities of the Group.
Duties
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Arrange payment of invoices received, using online banking (around 12 a year)
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Prepare and present a financial report of income and expenditure to the Trustees at their meetings and at the AGM
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Lead the Trustees in budget planning and monitoring, ensuring that the Group is financially able to function.
