Trustees’ Week (7-11 November) is a chance for the sector to come together and mark the amazing achievements of the 700,000 volunteer trustees who run charities in England and Wales.  NUS Charity’s board is made up of Charity members, NUS officers, students and externals. You can find out about them on NUS Connect. As we approach trustees’ week, we would like to say thank you to our trustees for volunteering their time. Trustees are vital to the running of charities; they look after many aspects from risk management and financial oversight to strategic development and ambassadorial roles

All NUS Charity Members automatically have associate membership of NCVO and their sister organisations SCVO, WCVA and NICVA across the UK too. NCVO are running a webinar series throughout the week to help trustees lead through changing times.

If you are already a trustee or are interested in learning more about what they do, we also recommend looking to the Charity Commission’s 5-minute guides for Trustees. In addition, you can explore the most important topics that any trustee needs to know by watching our session with AZETS, where you will learn all about financial management as a trustee.

We’ve helped over 25 Students’ Unions promote trustee roles since the beginning of the year. If you are looking for a trustee that cares about the movement and wants to collaborate to ensure good governance, advertise your role on our Careers in SU website. Create an account today and start advertising your vacancies! Don’t forget that advertising trustee positions is free for members on SU.Careers.

My experience as a Trustee

Furrkh Aslam from Coventry University Students’ Union started his role as a trustee back in 2019. Furrkh is a member of the Board of Trustees in addition to being a member of the University Board of Governors.

What attracted Furrkh to start a journey as a trustee was his interest in helping students to attain their maximum potential. Furrkh stated “the Students’ Union is run for the students, by the students.  It is a ‘home’ for the huge diversity of students that join Coventry University Group. I feel privileged to be part of the evolution of the SU as it develops and adapts to a dynamic environment in Higher Education”.

Becoming a trustee can be an incredibly rewarding experience, as Furrkh highlighted “my special affection goes to all the community engagement projects that we are involved where a real and lasting impact is made to the life of the City of Coventry”.

Moreover, as a trustee you can inspire others to get involved and work together to make positive change. Furrkh explained “there are many exciting projects and opportunities ongoing, and I urge all of our students to seek out and become active members”.

Students’ Unions are a great place to start your journey as a trustee. Students’ Unions look for trustees that can represent their audience, are diverse, can bring new ideas, offer new perspectives, and want to ensure good governance in the movement. A trustee in our movement is not just a “board member” it’s so much more!

If you are interested in becoming a trustee, look at our Careers in students’ Unions website!

#HappyTrusteesWeek!