Help Shape the Future of Social Work – Become a Trustee
Help Shape the Future of Social Work – Become a Trustee
We are looking for someone with previous trustee or leadership experience and who is passionate about celebrating and raising the profile of outstanding social work.
The Role
Trustees of the Social Work Awards Ltd, the charity behind the annual Social Worker of the Year Awards, play a pivotal role in overseeing the Social Worker of the Year Awards annual event cycle and steering the charity’s strategic direction.
Trustees attend bi-monthly virtual meetings online and are expected to attend the annual awards event (held in the autumn), annual trustee strategy and planning day (January/February) and Parliamentary Reception (March) in person. It is expected Trustees will attend 70% of scheduled meetings.
We seek to build and maintain a Board of Trustees which is diverse, representative of the social work community and has the skills and personal attributes to successfully carry out the work if the board. We welcome voices from all levels and types of social work to ensure our work remains relevant and impactful and that our charity purpose is met.
Responsibilities
The aims of the charity are to:
- Give recognition to the challenging work of qualified social workers
- Promote best practice in the profession and celebrate success
- Improve understanding of the range of work which social workers undertake
- Celebrate and promote diversity and equal opportunities in social care
Trustees are appointed to:
- Trustees make key decisions about the direction of the charity and how its charitable purpose will be delivered.
- Trustees make sure that the charity has the resources and policies it needs to do this well and to comply with legal requirements.
- Trustees are individually responsible for their contribution to the charity’s governance and overall effectiveness. Their opinions all have equal weight. But decisions are made collectively as a group.
- Trustees are expected to treat their role with seriousness and commitment.
Term of service
Trustees serve a three-year term and may serve two consecutive terms.
Board Diversity
The Social Work Awards Ltd is committed to Board diversity and seeks Trustees from all areas of Social Work who can give voice to different perspectives and experiences.
We aim to make our charity and our annual awards cycle inclusive and accessible. We positively encourage people from all backgrounds to apply and this includes candidates from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds, those who are younger than the average age of charity Trustees, people who have a disability and people from under-represented ethnic groups or backgrounds.
Person specification:
- Commitment to the aims, values, and purpose of Social Work Awards
- Effective communication skills and strong interpersonal skills, with a willingness to participate actively in discussion, challenging where appropriate, summarising, and reflecting
- Experience of working in social work/social care or with lived experience of support
- Experience operating strategically
- Able to think creatively and problem solve
- Able to exercise good judgement in decision-making
- Able to work effectively in a team, contributing an independent perspective
- Able to display integrity, objectivity, accountability and honesty
- Previous Trustee or leadership experience is desirable.
Additional information:
Reasonable travel expenses are payable.
How to apply
To apply, please email a CV, details of two referees, and a covering letter stating why you would like to become a Trustee of The Social Worker of the Year Awards to awards@socialworkawards.com.
Please apply by 27 April 2025.
We anticipate interviews will be held week commencing 12 May 2025.
If you have any questions, please email the team awards@socialworkawards.com