ACCESS
TheFoundationfor Social Investment
Trustee recruitment pack
Contents
• Introduction from Nick Hurd
• About ACCESS
• Our Strategy and impact
• Role Description and Person Specifications
• Terms and Conditions
• Timetable
• How to Apply
Introduction
Dear Applicant,
Access is working to change the way charities and social enterprises are supported to grow their own income, and how social investment works, so that more organisations can build their resilience over the long term.
We are at an exciting time of our journey. In our tenth year of operation, we have a proven track record of widening access to finance for smaller charities and social enterprises through our blended finance programmes. These represent around a third of all social investment deals done each year and are heavily skewed to investing in more deprived communities. We are also supporting hundreds of organisations to develop their enterprise activity and overcome barriers to accessing investment, growing the field of enterprise grant making.
The significant impact on the ecosystem has been externally verified, including in the independent review of Access undertaken by the Oversight Trust in 2021.
Building on this strong track record and evidence base, and in order to secure the legacy of our work, we are actively building broader partnerships to advocate for the long-term supply of grant for blended finance and the development of enterprise grant making across the sector’s funders and infrastructure organisations, as well as with government.
I am fortunate to lead a high calibre board, and we are aware of where we need to boost our skills, knowledge and expertise. We are particularly looking for candidates who can bring one or more of:
• Proven leadership in frontline charity or social enterprise, ideally complemented by experience in infrastructure organisations or systems-building roles.
• Senior leadership experience within an endowed or non-endowed foundation, with a strong interest in social and/or impact investment or place based economic development.
• Experience in commercial banking, with experience in capital structuring and/or coinvestment models, or understanding of commercial lending to the voluntary and community sector.
I hope that having read through the appointment brief you will decide to apply, and I really look forward to meeting you.
About Access
We want to see a social investment ecosystem that works for all charities and social enterprises. Through our programmes and our advocacy work, we ensure that charities and social enterprises can access the finance they need to sustain or grow their impact.
We target those most in need of patient and flexible investment through:
• Funding enterprise development and blended finance programmes in England.
• Sharing knowledge and data and translating it into practical insight that others can use.
• Mobilising others who share our goal of making capital work for communities.
Since 2015 Access has been tasked with distributing over £160m from the Dormant Assets scheme, Government and the National Lottery Community Fund. As a wholesaler we work with several dozen partners to deliver programmes around England, including social investment funds, social enterprise support organisations, network organisations, and grant management bodies. We expect to make grants of over £20m this year. We are a relatively small but collaborative and dedicated team of 13.
Access' board reflects its mission. Its trustees have deep experience in the social sector and in trusts and foundations, as well as the business and financial sectors.
Our Strategy and impact
Our current refreshed three-year strategy has three main strands:
Theme One: Funding
Stimulating flows of capital by providing funding for blended finance, enterprise development and infrastructure support, and by doing so seeking to change the incentives within the ecosystem for others to act
Theme Two: Sharing
Shift perceptions and behaviour of actors across the ecosystem through sharing data, learning and insight. Influence policy to remove barriers and to highlight social investment opportunities to address social challenges
Theme Three: Mobilising
Convene organisations across the ecosystem to build shared understanding, address challenges, identify common approaches, and build momentum around common opportunities.
We have a clear strategy and comprehensive measures of success which are embedded in how we manage our programmes and the data they generate. We regularly publish our dashboard which highlights the reach and impact of our programmes.
With our sector partners we are also seeking to build deeper insight into the business models which are prevalent across the sector, the role of enterprise within those models and how social investment can best support the development of those models.
Our commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Access wants to see an investment eco-system that works for all charities and social enterprises, helping to create stronger communities. This vision cannot be achieved without harnessing all the diverse talent seeking to deliver impact in communities. It will be held back if we do not bring a diverse range of perspectives into investment and decision-making processes.
Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion policy and action plan sets out in detail our approach. It recognises our own influence and power (and its limitations), not only in relation to Access itself but also our social investment and delivery partners, the charities and social enterprises they work with and the communities they serve. It builds on the work we have done to date and the work of our partners across the social investment ecosystem – set out here in more detail on the Access blog.
We have just completed our second Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Audit in late 2024, as part of our action plan. In addition, we have for the first time, undertaken a Pay Gap Analysis and will be publishing the results of this on our website shortly.
As a charity, we are dedicated to reflecting the communities and individuals we aim to support. We particularly welcome applications from candidates who share lived experiences or come from backgrounds that align with those we serve. Diversity strengthens our ability to make a meaningful impact, and we encourage all who feel passionate about our mission to apply.
Trustee-RoleDescription
Trustees have overall responsibility for the Access’s direction, strategic delivery and for supporting the Executive.
In more detail, the role of the trustees is to:
• Shape and drive the strategy of Access.
• Ensure that Access’s work remains relevant to the evolving needs of charities and social enterprises.
• Help support Access and our partners to expand the reach of social investment initiatives across the charity and social enterprise sector.
• With the Chair, guide, support and monitor the work of the chief executive and his team.
• Ensure legal compliance including with regulatory requirements or contractual or restricted grant arrangements.
• Promote the work of Access externally
• Ensure the proper management and administration of the charity.
Trustee -PersonSpecification
Within your supporting statement, you should be able to demonstrate and provide evidence of the following skills, experience and knowledge, competencies and personal qualities;
Skills, Experience and Knowledge (one or more of):
• Proven leadership in frontline charity or social enterprise, ideally complemented by experience in infrastructure organisations or systems-building roles.
• Senior leadership experience within an endowed or non-endowed foundation, with a strong interest in social and/or impact investment or place based economic development.
• Experience in commercial banking, with experience in capital structuring and/or coinvestment models, or understanding of commercial lending to the voluntary and community sector.
Competencies (all of):
• Strategic direction and judgement: the ability to think and plan ahead, together with the ability to draw on a wealth of experience to consider a wide range of factors when making a decision.
• Commitment: the ability to devote the necessary time to prepare and to participate actively in achieving the mission of Access.
• Team working: a commitment to working with other board (where relevant committee) members to act in the best interests of Access.
Personal Qualities (all of):
• Integrity: being honest and principled throughout your dealings and interactions at all times.
• Passion: a genuine conviction about the social sector.
• Intellectual ability: and the ability to conceptualise different models and to understand complex governance arrangements.
Access Board Governance Structure and Meetings
Board Governance Structure:
Access his governed by several committees, members of which include trustees of Access, co-opted external members and staff. The three main committees are the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee (ARCC), the Endowment Investment Committee (EIC) and the Blended Finance Investment Committee (BFIC).
Depending on the candidate joining, we would expect the individual to join at least one of these committees.
Regularity, date and length of meetings
The Board meets seven times a year, with each meeting lasting up to two hours. One of these (in May) is an overnight away day involving all trustees and all Access staff to visit one or more of our partners in England.
The committees meet at least four times a year, with each meeting lasting up to two hours. One of these (in September) is a joint meeting of the ARCC and EIC.
All meetings are held during the working day, and usually in the late mornings. Most meetings are held over Zoom with a few held in person
The following board and committee meeting dates have been agreed for 2025:
Meeting 1 15/01/2025 26/02/2025 31/01/2025 29/01/2025
Meeting 2 26/03/2025 11/06/2025 28/03/2025 12/03/2025
Meeting 3 25/06/2025 17/09/2025 13/06/2025 30/04/2025 (Joint with ARCC)
Meeting 4 17/09/2025 12/11/2025 19/09/2025 Away Day (Joint with 07/05/2025 & EIC) 08/05/2025 Meeting 5 09/07/2025 Meeting 6 01/10/2025 Meeting 7 26/11/2025
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TermsandConditions
• This role is likely to involve a time commitment of around 1 day a month – this will include participating in one of the Board’s sub-committees as required and other ad-hoc activities such as attending events or interviewing.
• Access’s offices are located in central London. Some board meetings are in person in the Charity’s office, others are held online. Most committee meetings are held online.
• As Access is a charity, this is a voluntary role. However, trustees are entitled to reimbursement of reasonable expenses.
Timetable
Sunday 6th July
28th July – 18th August
w/c 15th September
How to Apply
Closing date for all applicants
Preliminary interviews online with Prospectus, and informal meetings with the CEO of Access.
Final interviews with Access
If you are interested in applying for this role, please do so via the Prospectus website: https://www.prospect-us.co.uk/jobs/190574
Please ensure you provide the following:
• A written supporting statement (maximum of 1000 words), outlining how you fulfil all the criteria within the person specification and why you would like to join the board of Access as a Trustee
• A comprehensive CV (maximum of 2 pages) including details of your achievements in each role
Please ensure that you indicate in your application any dates when you will not be available, or where we might have difficulty in contacting you.
All applications will be acknowledged.
Our recruitment partner, Prospectus will respect the privacy of any initial approach or expression of interest in this role, whether formal or informal.
Please let us know of any accessibility accommodations you may require.
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Closing date for applications is Wednesday 25th June
For an informal and confidential discussion, after having read the appointment brief, please contact our advising consultants at Prospectus;
Rhys Barber – rhys.barber@prospect-us.co.uk
Linda Griffiths – linda.griffiths@prospect-us.co.uk
