TRUSTEES from a Southampton not-for-profit social enterprise dedicated to improving health and wellbeing are backing a national week to encourage people in the city to donate their time to charities (November 2021).
As part of national Trustees’ Week running until Friday (November 1-5, 2021), board members from Social Care in Action (SCiA) are hoping to inspire others to take similar posts and help in their communities.
Dan Freshwater, CEO at SCiA explains: “We are indebted to our trustees who are accountable for everything we do and take on a great deal of responsibility, legally, for the organisation in an unpaid capacity. Without them, we would not be able to function and support those in our community who vitally need our help. There are many other charities out there that urgently need people to come forward to become trustees for them too, so we’re hoping we can help raise awareness of these roles.”
Trustees’ Week is an annual event to showcase the great work trustees do and provides opportunities for others to get involved and make a difference.
Chairman of Trustees’ Les Judd, who has been volunteering for SCiA, across its different boards, for nearly 20 years, says: “This event is designed to raise awareness of the commitment of trustees and to help encourage others to give their time freely to become one. All our board members, and myself, volunteer as trustees to help out in our community and it’s a role that’s essential to the fabric of our society.
“We’re hoping that we can raise awareness to encourage others get involved with other charities in the city too. It’s an enjoyable role that doesn’t take up many hours each week, so is something even those in full-time work could consider doing.”
SCiA’s services are a mix of publicly commissioned ones and those directly purchased by residents in the area.
As a social enterprise, it reinvests any profit back into its services to ensure it can continue to support the communities it is involved with.
It had a number of new trustees join its board earlier this year and among those was Dr Dina Foy, a former GP who has also worked in commissioning and on public health programmes focusing on healthy lifestyles.
Dina continues to work in the Covid vaccination programme and has various roles with Southampton University including as a Personal Academic Tutor for medical students.
She says: “I decided to become a trustee with SCiA as I am now semi-retired and have the time to give back to our community.
“I’d say to anyone considering becoming a trustee that it is certainly worthwhile to go for it, but it’s really important to choose an organisation that you’re comfortable and matched with i.e., an organisation that works in an area you are interested in and one which you can offer value in terms of your skills and experience.”
Fellow trustee, Andrew Tonkin who works as a consultant specialising in Strategic Change in Financial Services joined SCiA in May 2021.
He said: “I wanted to give back to community in the area where I live and I felt I could use my skills to help the executive team consider the future strategic options for the organisation and that I could help the charity to ensure finance and risk matters are well governed. Anyone keen to have an opportunity to give back to society, bringing with them skills that charities need, I’d encourage to become a trustee. A range of skills would help for the role, like curiosity, innovation, patience and a genuine interest in the charity’s aims.”
Trustee Nick Kohn, who advises companies on strategy and branding, also joined the SCiA board in May this year.
He says: “I was attracted to SCiA as it performs an invaluable service in my area and I felt I could help with my strategic focus and ideas. I’d advise anyone thinking of becoming a trustee to be sure that they have the right skills and time to give before they start. Trustees have the same responsibilities as directors, so it is a serious commitment.”
For further details, please visit www.sciagroup.co.uk, call 023 8036 6663 or follow SCiA online via SCiA Group (facebook.com) or (1) Social Care in Action (SCiA Group): Overview | LinkedIn.
