Non-Executive Director information pack January 2020

Thank you for your interest in becoming a Non-Executive Director with us here at Noise Solution. As the organisation begins to scale significantly, we are looking for people to provide scrutiny and strategic oversight to help us reach many more people.
As an organisation we have already celebrated a number of significant milestones. We turned 10 years old in 2019, were identified as one of the top 100 performing social enterprises in the UK (Natwest SE100) and were highly commended for awards with both PWC and Social Enterprise UK for our work around impact. Over the last ten years we have remained consistently financially sustainable and have taken our proven impacts to hundreds of people across the East of England. We are now entering a phase of ambitious growth, and are looking for people to join us on that journey.
Whilst we present as a music organisation, our focus is on positively impacting on wellbeing and intrinsic motivation amongst a population of ‘labelled youth’. Our referrals come from the NHS, education/alternative education and local authority teams such as social services, family focus and youth justice. The individuals that are referred to us are people that these services have been unable to engage with, and are usually surrounded by complex and challenging circumstances. Our aim is to improve their sense of wellbeing, with a view to creating the conditions within which these people can choose to flourish.
We have conducted a lot of academic research to understand how we can intentionally impact on well-being; what needs to be in place, how we can embed these needs in a programme of delivery and crucially how we can measure our impacts to understand where we are most impactful. This has resulted in an evidence-based delivery pedagogy which is highly statistically significant in positively impacting on well-being amongst a population labelled ‘hardest to reach’.
We now want to take these proven impacts to as many people as possible, so we can effect change amongst people facing really challenging times. We know through our quantitative and qualitative evidence that Noise Solution frequently has transformative impacts amongst its participants, and we want to grow the organisation in order to grow our impacts.
Thank you for your interest in helping us achieve this aim, and I look forward to hearing from you.
Simon Glenister MEd, CEO
CURRENT PERFORMANCE Noise Solution measures its performance from both financial and impact perspectives; both financial and impact dashboards are given equal scrutiny by the Senior Management Team and by Board.
FINANCIAL As an organisation we have been financially sustainable since our inception. The only exception to this is in the 2017/18 FY where we made a small forecast loss due to our investment in our central operating platform. This loss was smaller than we forecast.
Turnover
Surplus/Loss
300000 225000 ÂŁ
150000 75000 0 -75000
2016/17
2017/18
2018/19
Our income streams are changing; historically, all of our income has been traded income. More recently (over the last three years or so) our income streams have become more diverse and are now made up of traded income on spot-purchase and small block contract bases combined with grant income either to deliver bigger block contracts, test new ways of working or invest in our central infrastructure.
As the organisation scales we anticipate a blended income model of traded income, grants and donations. This is more challenging for us to manage from cashflow and financial planning perspectives and we are seeking professional advice around modelling our financial systems and reporting structures to allow us to maintain the same levels of financial prudence which have seen us remain financially sustainable for the last ten years.
IMPACT Noise Solution measures its impact using the Shortened Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS). SWEMWBS was developed by Warwick and Edinburgh Universities and the NHS and has been used multiple times at scale (there is currently a sample of n60,000+ for us to draw from). SWEMWBS gives us a tested, validated and accurate indication of our impacts at population levels.
Participants complete the SWEMWBS questionnaire before and after a Noise Solution programme. Noise Solution then measures distance travelled at population level. Our current dataset (n146) shows:
79
99
81
44 21
4 Low
Moderate
High
Low
Moderate
High
The charts above show:
• A 21.34% decrease in low well-being, • A 10.98% increase in moderate well-being, and • A 10.36% increase in high well-being.
Because SWEMWBS has been used at scale multiple times, we can extrapolate a national well-being average. At the end of a ten-week intervention we see 61% at, above or within a meaningful range (2 points) of this national average.
38%
With this dataset we see a high level of statistical significance (p<0.0001) with a high range of change (r>.5).
These data demonstrate Noise Solutions ability to act as a catalyst for change in a short space of time.
40%
23%
No
Meaningful range
Yes
ROLE DESCRIPTION - Non-Executive Director Role Title
Non-Executive Director.
Appointed by
Current Board, in accordance with our Memorandum and Articles of Association.
Location
Board meetings usually take place at Noise Solution HQ in Bury St Edmunds during the working day on a quarterly basis.
Remuneration
Noise Solution is a social enterprise and therefore would expect its Non-Executive Directors to be engaged on a voluntary basis.
Expenses
All reasonable expenses can be reimbursed in accordance with our Expenses Policy
Time commitment
Whilst we would estimate a time commitment of around 6 days per annum there is no fixed time commitment for the role. This would include Board meetings and representing Noise Solution at various events and meetings with key stakeholders.
Term
Three year term, subject to review, with no exclusion from being reelected.
Probation
There will be a three month probationary period where the appointment will be reviewed by a panel drawn from the Board.
How to apply To apply, please send the following:
- An up-to-date copy of your CV
- A letter containing a brief personal statement (no more than two sides of A4) detailing why you are interested in the position and what you feel you can bring to the role
- The names, addresses and contact details of two independent referees
Please send your application to Damien Ribbans, Operations Director at damien@noisesolution.org.
Timeline All applications must be received by 5pm on 28th February 2020. Applications will be reviewed by the Board, and shortlisted applicants will be invited to an informal discussion with Board members sometime during the week of 23rd March 2020. A decision will be made shortly after.
Further information For further information please contact Simon Glenister (CEO) or Damien Ribbans (Operations Director) on (01284) 771156.
ROLE PURPOSE: • To ensure the effective governance of Noise Solution, in line with its purpose and aims, specifically including regulatory and legal compliance.
• As a Director of Noise Solution you will be responsible for the strategic management of the company.
• In addition we are currently seeking people with experience in marketing, finance, software development and scaling social businesses.
STATUTORY DUTIES: • To ensure that Noise Solution complies with its Articles of Association, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations • To contribute actively to the board’s role in giving firm strategic direction to the organisation, setting overall policy, defining goals and setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed targets
• To safeguard the good name and values of Noise Solution
• To ensure the financial stability of the company
• To monitor the performance of and support the Senior Management Team
• To permit Noise Solution to carry out an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
OTHER DUTIES: In addition to the above statutory duties, each Director should use any specific skills, knowledge or experience they have to help the board of Noise Solution reach sound decisions.
This may involve:
• Scrutinising board papers
• Leading discussions
• Focusing on key issues
• Providing guidance on new initiatives
• Leveraging their networks
• Other issues in which the Director has special expertise
KEY COMPETENCIES Strategic Orientation - Makes a significant contribution to the creation of a compelling vision for the future and implementation of measurable strategies necessary for success.
Leading for Performance - Demonstrates clarity of purpose and direction inspiring and motivating professional staff and volunteers to exceed performance expectations in line with Noise Solution’s strategic and operational objectives.
Making things happen - Takes a dynamic results based approach to the work of Noise Solution concentrating on achieving outcomes that support strategy and operational objectives.
Communicates with Purpose - Purposely and persuasively communicates with others to achieve support, buy-in and enhance effective business relationships.
Decisive Judgements - Makes intelligent timely decisions and judgements that support Noise Solution’s strategic intent in relation to all stakeholders.
Customer Engagement - Clearly demonstrates the importance of customer engagement and service excellence to both internal and external customers delivering positive outcomes in support of the business.