A diverse set of trustees is essential for any organisation to succeed. Leap, a training provider and social enterprise helping young people and adults understand and manage conflict, works hard to ensure their board reflects both the people they work with and the wider diversity of the UK.
Leap, who were recently announced as Charity Governance Awards 2016: Board diversity and inclusivity winners, don’t operate quotas. Despite not having quotas the organisation have brought together a board where 40% of trustees are from ethnic minority backgrounds and 33% are women. Because they work with young people, Leap insists they’re fully represented on the board too. That’s why at least three places are reserved for young graduates of Leap’s conflict resolution programmes.
To fully reflect the organisation’s priorities, Leap works with trustees from a range of professional backgrounds. For example, because training young people and adults in the criminal justice sector is a priority, one board member is a prison governor.
Interested in becoming a young charity trustee? Listen to these podcast interviews with Alex Swallow and Jonathan Levy
An annual skills audit, conducted by young trustees, helps Leap target potential candidates from funding bodies, the media, central government and other professions relevant to their mission. They also use the professional networks of existing board members, and external recruitment agencies, where appropriate, to ensure the widest possible pool of candidates. Young people are involved in the rigorous interview process too, to showcase the value of true inclusivity to interviewees.
The Charity Governance Awards are organised by The Clothworkers’ Company – a City Livery company that supports trusteeship initiatives – in partnership with not-for-profit consultancy NPC (New Philanthropy Capital), volunteer matching charity Reach, and recruitment specialists Prospectus. Click here to find out more.