Trustee Roles

Thank you for your interest in joining Hft as a Trustee. As Chair of the Board, I’m delighted that you are considering lending your expertise to our mission.

At Hft, we believe in a better world for learning disabled people. A world where they have the choice, support, and independence to live the lives they want. Hft has been supporting learning disabled adults for more than 60 years. From our beginnings as a small family-led charity, to our position today as a leading national provider of learning disability services, we’ve remained dedicated to ensuring that learning disabled adults can thrive.

We provide a broad range of person-centred support, from supported living and residential care to employment, friendship, and advocacy services. As a sector-leading voice, we’re committed to influencing the national agenda on social care. Our annual Sector Pulse Check report has become an essential barometer of the pressures facing providers and the people we support. Through this work, we advocate for sustainable funding, better workforce conditions, and policies that prioritise the rights and well-being of people with a learning disability.

Our ambition is clear: to be at the forefront of high-quality, sustainable support that empowers individuals and shapes a more inclusive society. To achieve this, we must continue to evolve, strengthening our partnerships, innovating our services, and ensuring that our voice is heard where it matters most. To learn more about our hopes and ambitions for the future, click here.

We’re looking for Trustees who share our passion and commitment to making a difference. Whether your experience has been gained in the private, public or charitable sectors, you will bring knowledge and ability to assess risk and compliance. Having operated at a senior level, you will understand the importance of governance and scrutiny. Your leadership will help shape the future of HFT and will have a direct impact on the quality of life of the people we support.

I hope you will consider joining us on this journey. Together, we can create a society where learning disabled people are valued and included, with the support they need to live their best lives.

Best wishes,

Amanda Bunce

Chair of the Board of Trustees

The Roles

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  • Closing Date: Sunday 25th January

    Longlist Meeting (no candidate involvement): w/c 2nd February

    Preliminary Interviews (via Teams): w/c 9th and w/c 16th February

    Shortlist Meeting (no candidate involvement): w/c 23rd February

    Final Interviews (in-person): w/c 9th March

Working with us as a Trustee

    • Experience in working with one of the largest, and longest running, learning disability charities in the UK.

    • Regular appraisals and support to develop your experience, skills and expertise.

    • A genuine opportunity to improve the lives of learning disabled people.

    • Strategic days with sector experts and leaders.

    • Shaping the direction of a leading charity.

    • Opportunity to drive change in the sector, working with sector leaders and influential decision makers.

    • Ensure that the Charity complies with its governing documents, charity and company law and any other relevant legislation.

    • Ensure that the Charity pursues its objectives.

    • Ensure that the Charity uses its resources exclusively in pursuance of its objectives.

    • As a Trustee ensure you act in the best interests of the Charity and its beneficiaries at all times.

    • Set overall strategy, defining goals and objectives and evaluating performance against agreed targets.

    • Keep under review the long-term development of the Charity.

    • Safeguard the good name and the values of the Charity.

    • Ensuring the financial stability of the Charity.

    • Approving the annual budget and accounts.

    • To appoint (and, if necessary, remove) the Chief Executive Officer.

    • To join at least one of our committees

    • The Hft Board meets a minimum of four times per year in addition to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and annual Trustee away days. In person meetings are usually held in Bristol and are a full day.

    • There are a number of Board sub-committees that are held four times per year, The committees are currently Finance, Audit and Risk, Operational Delivery and People. Each trustee is a member of at least one committee. These meetings are online and normally last a couple of hours.

    • Meetings are ordinarily held on Thursdays, so any applicant will need to have availability to meet on Thursdays over the course of the year.

    • In addition to attending meetings, Trustees will be expected to undertake prereading for meetings and participate in ad hoc discussions.

    • Total time commitment will be on average 1 day a month, which will be a mixture of in person and virtual meetings with the expectation of visiting services at least once a year too

    • Trustees are appointed for an initial 3 years, renewable for a further 2 terms to a maximum of 9 years.

    • This is a voluntary position, but reasonable expenses will be reimbursed.