goodmoves

Venture Trust is a personal development charity supporting people, aged 16 years and over who are struggling with many and complex circumstances to overcome these barriers and realise their potential. Our strengths lie in the trust and relationships we forge, our developmental approach and in harnessing the transformational benefit of being outdoors and amongst nature.

Working in communities, in greenspaces and journeying through some of Scotland’s most wild places, we actively support people by focusing on individual’s strengths, equipping them with essential life-skills and building confidence. We want everyone to succeed and to continue to do so throughout their lives. We need a CEO to lead Venture Trust on an exciting journey that makes our vision a reality. We believe that with our partners we can beat the challenge of inequality in Scottish society.

The successful candidate will be responsible to the Venture Trust Board for providing strategic and operational leadership to secure the achievement of the organisation’s vision, strategic plans, impact and sustainability goals as set by the Venture Trust Board. You will play a crucial role in nurturing strategic partnerships, securing resources and shaping services and programmes to meet the charity’s objects, reflecting Venture Trust’s mission and values.

You will ensure that Venture Trust develops its position and reputation as the ‘go to’ partner for supporting young people in realising their full potential. You will ensure that the charity is managed effectively, demonstrating sound governance, financial and HR leadership and compliance with relevant legislation. It is important that you naturally lead with a style that reflects our Charity’s values.

To be considered for the role, you will have experience at a leadership level in devising and executing strategy, senior relationship management, securing resources and shaping services and programmes to meet the charity’s objects, reflecting Venture Trust’s mission and values. Experience of senior leadership in a charity and charity governance would be advantageous. We are looking for someone who shares our values and believes in the potential of people.

About the Trust

The Maitri Trust is an independent, privately-funded grant-making foundation. Our mantra is ‘a good quality education for all’. Access to education in low and middle income countries is not the problem it once was, but quality remains a huge issue, with large numbers of children leaving school without even the most basic of skills; a situation exacerbated by the current Covid-19 global pandemic. Maitri works to improve the quality of mainly state education primarily in South Africa, India and Mexico by funding locally-run organisations who train and develop teachers, headteachers and education department staff to prepare children better to achieve their potential and to become skilled and thoughtful members of society, ready to lead productive and fulfilling lives.

Our Theory of Change is that, with our support, both financial and non-financial, our partner organisations and their programmes can become stronger and more effective, enabling them to better serve their beneficiaries and have more chance of creating lasting change. We award multi-year grants and build long-term relationships based on mutual trust. We strive to listen and understand our partners, their beneficiaries and their work. Our aim is to help partners identify where they can improve and then to fund those improvements.

We believe we can achieve more by working with our peers and other stakeholders in the sector. We belong to several networks where we share knowledge and learning and seek opportunities to collaborate and co-fund where we find common ground.

Maitri has evolved considerably since its inception but still has enormous potential. Over the coming year or so the team will be developing their capacity to be a more effective partner by refining the Trust’s systems and processes to provide more time to focus more on identifying and analysing key issues in the sector, and on working more closely with partners to address those issues, supporting them to grow stronger and more effective in the process.

About the role

This is an exciting opportunity to lead and shape the future of this ambitious Trust by working closely with its small, passionate team, its engaged and committed trustee board, and its donor.

You will be a thoughtful leader, with a desire and ability to inspire and develop the Trust’s Edinburgh-based team of seven (5.5 FTE). You will value working in a relatively flat structure and as part of a small, close-knit team where everyone’s voice matters. You will be prepared to turn your hand to being actively involved in and overseeing all areas of the Trust’s operations. You will be responsible for driving the Trust’s strategy; working closely with the Head of Programmes on all grant-making activities; for nurturing the team and its collegiate and collaborative style of working; for communicating effectively with the board and the Trust’s donor organisation which has staff in Edinburgh, London, Singapore and Sydney; for all HR issues; and for working closely with the Administration & Finance Manager to manage the Trust’s finances, systems, and legal and regulatory affairs.

You will travel several times a year to see and understand the work of the Trust’s partners on the ground and the context in which they operate, to meet with their staff, their beneficiaries and other stakeholders in the sector and to attend conferences and meetings of the various networks to which the Trust belongs.

You will be both passionate and pragmatic about international development, about the value of diversity, equity and inclusion, about tackling issues of power imbalances in the funding sector, and you will believe in the power of a good quality education for all to create equitable, sustainable and peaceful societies.

The successful candidate will have leadership and management experience gained in a senior role within the development sector.

Positive Childhoods, Empowered Parents, Dynamic Communities.

CALA is a leading third sector charity based in the Highlands and high-quality early learning and childcare services lie at the heart of our work. Through innovation and partnership with local authorities, social enterprises and other third sector organisations, CALA promotes an inclusive culture of `getting it right for every child`, helping to make Scotland the best place to grow up.

We are seeking an ambitious and inspiring Depute Chief Executive who will support and lead CALA’s future as we move into a new phase of our history and adapt to the coming challenges and opportunities.

Accountable to the Board, the Depute Chief Executive will work closely with the Chief Executive and the Senior Management Team to ensure CALA delivers quality sustainable services at a local and national level in an inclusive and joined up way.

They will be significantly involved in the leadership of the organisation, the finance and human resource management, collaboration and supporting quality practice, and in robust governance.

As Depute Chief Executive of CALA, you will provide strategic Financial & HR leadership in CALA and so must hold a management accountancy qualification and be able to evidence producing budgetary reports, modelling, scenario planning, and providing financial advice that enable management teams and/or boards to take decisions.

The Deputy Chief Executive post is currently home based and will involve regular travel into our Inverness office, throughout Highland, Moray and occasionally to the Central Belt.