Trustee Vacancy

WPF Therapy has been supporting the psychological well-being and mental health of adults and young adults for over forty years. The charity has built up substantial experience as a clinic and a training centre and its reputation in the psychotherapy field is strong. The charitable objectives of providing counselling and psychotherapy, largely to clients who self-refer, on training people to provide this support, and on researching methods of treatment remain as pertinent today as in the past, however in 2014 the Trustees recognised that there was a need to update the organisation’s constitution to ensure that the objectives fully reflected the work and aspirations of the organisation.

Vision

Our vision is to promote and protect mental and emotional wellbeing by using innovation and evidence to shape our development and the delivery of needs led services and trainings.

WPF Therapy’s mission is the advancement of mental and emotional wellbeing, which we aim to achieve by:

Providing services to promote mental and emotional wellbeing
Providing training and educational opportunities to ensure a skilled workforce is available to provide effective treatments that promote mental and emotional wellbeing.
To support, promote and engage in research into mental health and its treatment
To raise awareness of mental health and how to promote mental and emotional wellbeing.

(Please note the charity objects are currently in the process of change with the Charity Commission, so will soon be updated to reflect the above mission.)

Key duties of Trustees of WPF Therapy

We need new Trustees who are willing to make full use of their skills, knowledge and experience to help the charity to develop its operational activities, build its profile and grow its services.

Key duties are:

Ensuring that WPF Therapy (‘the charity’) complies with its governing document
Contributing actively to the Board of Trustees' role in giving strategic direction to the charity, setting overall policy, defining goals and setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed targets
Ensuring that the charity has a clear vision, mission and strategic direction and is focused on achieving these
Being responsible for the performance of the charity and ensuring that the charity complies with all legal and regulatory requirements
Acting as guardians of the charity’s assets, both tangible and intangible, taking all due care over their security, deployment and proper application
Ensuring that the charity’s governance is of the highest possible standard
In consultation with the Chief Executive, to ensure that the Board has on it the skills it requires to govern the charity well, and that the Board has access to, and considers, relevant external professional advice and expertise

Application process

Application is by submission of cv, followed by interview for those shortlisted. If you have skills, experience and knowledge in one or more of the areas sought, please send your cv and a brief cover letter stating why you would like to be a Trustee of WPF Therapy to the email address below.

The application and interview should show examples of how the applicant Trustee meets the essential and desirable criteria below:

Experience
Essential / Desirable
An understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship / Understanding of the voluntary sector
Significant experience in at least one of the following areas:

Business development and networking
Communications, marketing and PR
Human resources
Strategy and organisational development
Charity Law
Clinical and/or Training Quality Programmes

/ Understanding of charity governance
Experience of board-level strategic planning and policy-making
Identification and implementation of best practice
Experience of influencing at government or other senior level
Personal qualities and attributes
Essential / Desirable
A commitment to the aims of WPF Therapy and willingness to devote the required time and effort to the role of Trustee of the charity / Experience at assessing and dealing with potential conflicts of interest
Ability to communicate clearly and sensitively and to take an active part in discussions
A commitment to upholding the seven principles of public life: selflessness; integrity; objectivity; accountability; openness; honesty and leadership. / A problem-solving, ‘can-do’ approach
Ability to think and apply knowledge strategically / Knowledge of legal and statutory requirements of Trustees and charities
Ability to analyse and evaluate management information and other evidence
Ability to work effectively in a group
Ability to maintain confidentiality on confidential or sensitive information

Time Commitment

Trustee Board meetings are held approximately bi monthly in London. Communication between meetings takes place via email, telephone and in person. It is hoped that Trustees will be willing to serve initially for three years, with the potential for a further three years.

Expenses

WPF therapy’s Trustees are not paid, but the charity will pay expenses for the costs of attending Trustee Board meetings and events according to our volunteer policy. All expenses claims must be supported by receipts or similar evidence.

Contact details and further information

Please send your cv and covering letterby email to by the 17th April 2015.

If you would like further information, or to talk about the Trustee vacancies, please email the above address or call 07944866937 to speak to Stuart Holland, Chair of Trustees.