Trustee Recruitment Pack
Welcome from our Chair
Thanks for your interest in NewBridge Trusteeship. Our current collective of Trustees is small but engaged – we are keen to meet people who can join us to bring new energy, expertise and enthusiasm for supporting NewBridge.
The NewBridge Project is an artist-led community supporting artists, curators and communities. Led by the locations and the people in our communities, we’ve provided space – studios, gallery, workshops, resources and libraries - and professional and artistic development support since 2010.
Since moving to the Shieldfield Centre in 2021, our work has expanded, with newer initiatives including For Solidarity, a network of North East climate and social justice projects; dedicated opportunities for non-university routes into the arts, and a range of community activities in our new location of Shieldfield, including a youth programme.
NewBridge became a charity in 2017 and has grown from a staff of 3 to 14. It’s important to us that our Board of Trustees grows as the organisation has, so that we can nurture the staff and the communities who make up the excellent work NewBridge does –from pioneering approaches to developing careers in the arts for those often under supported, to caring and collaboratives ways NewBridge is evolving to become a key resource for the local community.
A number of our long-standing Trustees’ terms will end soon – as well as growing the Board, we are looking to bring in new Trustees alongside so we can share knowledge and learn from each other.
Read on for information about the general terms for Trustees, the application process, and some more specific details of experiences and roles we are looking to find in new Trustees.
As well as the information in this pack, myself and Director, Rebecca, are holding an open day for you to meet us, find out more, and ask any questions – please do be in touch with any questions meanwhile.
Being a Trustee of NewBridge is one of the things I am most proud of. The Trustees are a proactive and discursive group who collectively take care of and support the NewBridge team and its work. If it sounds up your street, we’d love for you to join us.
Ilana Mitchell, Chair, The NewBridge Project
About The NewBridge Project
The NewBridge Project is an artist-led and socially conscious organisation with an annual reach of around 20,000 people. It is a place where artists can thrive and where artists and local communities can come together to work, learn and socialise.
We provide:
Affordable studio space for 135 artists, alongside workshop facilities and resources.
Development programmes for artists at varying career stages; supporting progression into the creative sector for people from a wide range of backgrounds.
An ambitious artistic programme that takes place on and off-site.
A welcoming space for our community, including our gallery, bookshop, library, youth room, free shop and event spaces. Place-based programmes for the people of Shieldfield, including the Shieldfield Youth Programme, Memory Café and Chef’s Residencies.
Since its inception in 2010, NewBridge has grown to be a vital part of the cultural infrastructure in the North East, and we are simultaneously making a deep and lasting positive impact on our local community. As a listening and learning organisation, our progression has been artist-led and community-led, consistently responding to the changing needs of our artists, audiences, communities, and the landscape in which we operate.
Our Values
•
•
•
Artist-Led: An artist-led ethos is embedded across our organisation, generating a responsive programme and vision that is shaped by artists’ needs and interests
•
• Experimental in our approach: We provide artists with the flexibility to test out ideas, experiment and be radical, allowing innovative work and alternative approaches to develop
Responsive to the social, political and civic landscape: We champion artwork that is responsive to the location, situation and time from which it emerges. We believe art has the power to have great impact, introduce new ideas, alternative thinking, challenge convention, and become a tool for social change.
Development of artists at its heart: We position artist development at the core of everything we do, creating informal and formal opportunities for artistic practice and talent to develop and supporting artists from all backgrounds to progress, including those who are underrepresented, or who might not yet see themselves as artists.
Focused on collaboration and community: We instil a spirit of collaboration, collectivity and community in our activity to generate peer learning, critical conversation and social interaction.
•
Solidarity: We work in solidarity with artists, local people and community groups who are working toward social and climate justice and amplify the voices of those historically marginalised.
Care: We embed an ethos of care across our organisation, from the way we work with staff, freelancers, artists and communities, to the way we develop our programmes and policies – modelling forms of care in a society where it is increasingly undervalued.
Listening & Learning: We strive to be a learning organisation, that listens to people and collectively reflects upon the way we work, and how we can develop responsively, accessibly, meaningfully and with integrity.
Management and Governance
NewBridge currently has 14 staff members, all of whom work part-time (between 1 – 4.5 days a week). The Director oversees strategic development and management, and is the key point of contact between the Board and the staff team. The Programme Director oversees the development and delivery of our artistic programmes, and our team collectively work across producing our public, communities, youth and solidarity activities, as well as managing and looking after our building, members, communications, development, finances, evaluation and admin.
Our team has grown significantly over the past five years, in response to gaps in our capacity, the changing needs of our audiences/landscape, particularly with our move to Shieldfield, and increases in our accessible artist development opportunities.
The Board of Trustees supports the staff team and steers the governance of NewBridge, ensuring it operates within its aims, objectives and values. Each Trustee brings their own professional and lived expertise to the table. We currently have 5 Trustees with expertise in higher education, arts and cultural strategy, fundraising, environmentalism, diversity and inclusion, property/law, working in Shieldfield, artistic work in place-based settings, and setting up organisations. To ensure NewBridge remains artist-led, two Trustees are always NewBridge members.
What we’re looking for
The NewBridge Project is looking to recruit a number of new Trustees.
New Trustees will support NewBridge to build on our diversity, knowledge and skills. We are looking for expertise or experience in some specific areas:
Living in Shieldfield
Working in a place-based organisation or place-based approaches
Alternative routes into employment and education
Barriers to access within the cultural/visual art sector
Social justice
Climate justice and environmental sustainability
Youth work
Strategic communications and PR
Strategic Fundraising
Financial expertise
We value both professional and lived experience in our Trustees, and you may have knowledge in more than one area of expertise we are looking for, or areas that aren’t included but you think will be valuable to the organisation.
You don’t have to have been on a Board before either - we’re more interested in the experience you bring and your interest in supporting NewBridge and the work we do. We will ensure you are supported to understand the role by our current Trustees and staff, and through training.
We are committed to developing more diverse representation and for our Trustees to better reflect the communities we engage with through our work. We welcome applications from those who are currently under-represented on our Board and across the arts sector, including individuals of the global majority, who are disabled, D/Deaf, neurodivergent, LGBTQIA+, or who have faced other intersecting barriers.
We are looking to meet the right people for these roles, so please do sign up for our open day or arrange an informal conversation with our Chair, Ilana Mitchell, if you would like to find out more.
Trustee Role Description
What we’re looking for in a Trustee:
Enthusiasm for the work, ethos and values of NewBridge Commitment to carry out the duties of a Board Member
Willing to offer personal and professional skills and experience to support staff when required
To act as a champion for NewBridge
To work as part of a team, express personal convictions and values, accept a majority decision and be tolerant of the views of others
How we work:
The Board meets regularly four times a year. We have both in person, virtual and hybrid meetings
Meetings are between 2-3 hours
We also plan one annual ‘away-day,’ often with Trustees and staff
Board papers are sent in advance in the week prior to a meeting, and we can provide accessible versions according to access requirements. It will usually take 1-2 hours for each Trustee to read and prepare for a meeting
Trustees provide support/guidance to the Director and staff team (when necessary) between Board Meetings. This may include small group working or one-to-one work. We do not have any set subcommittees
Trustees may also advocate for NewBridge at specific events and meetings.
Once appointed, Trustees serve an initial 3-year term which can be renewed twice (maximum 9 years) - however there is no official minimum time limit, and Trustees can step down at any point as necessary.
All Trustee roles are unpaid. We support expenses to cover travel, childcare and access costs, and aim to hold meetings at times that can accommodate our Trustees’ work, family and personal circumstances.
Application process
The deadline for applications is Monday 4 August, 12 noon.
We have a number of different ways to apply for this role. You can do this through:
A single PDF document containing the information outlined below
A video or audio file containing the information outlined below
A mixture of written and video or audio application (eg. an audio application but written Equal Opportunities Form)
In your application – please include:
A CV (including your name, address and contact information)
A statement on why you would like to be a NewBridge Trustee and what skills, experience and knowledge you would bring to the role
Equality & Diversity Monitoring Form (available to download from our website or linked here)
Please send this to our Chair on chair@thenewbridgeproject.com and copy in applications@thenewbridgeproject.com with the subject line Trustee application.
Selection Process
Applications will be reviewed and shortlisted by a panel of Trustees with support from NewBridge Director Rebecca Huggan.
Following this, we will invite selected applicants to a meeting, which will be a chance for us to get to know each other and explore how we might work together. We’ll share an agenda and any key questions in advance so you can prepare, and there will be plenty of time for you to ask us anything as well. The meeting will be with our Chair Ilana and Director Rebecca.
This process aligns with our commitment to equal opportunities, ensuring all candidates have a fair and consistent experience.
Meetings are planned to take place on Tuesday 12 August, Tuesday 19 August or Tuesday 9 September based on availability.
Since this is a voluntary role, we understand that availability may vary, so we will coordinate with you to find a suitable time if this does not work for you.
Find out more
Visit our website or visit us in person!
If you want to find out more about The NewBridge Project, then you can visit our website, or come to visit us during our opening times, which are Wednesday 1-5pm, and Thursday – Saturday 12–5pm.
You can find out more about accessibility of the building here.
OpenDay
If you’re thinking about applying for the role but still have some questions, or just want to find out more, we are holding an OpenDay on Tuesday17June where you can sign up to have a chat with Rebecca Huggan (Director) and/or Ilana Mitchell (Chair) before making an application. This can be in person at NewBridge or online.
Please sign up for a slot here.
Read Listening & Learning
We recently published Listening & Learning: A Social Impact Report which explores the impact of our work to date in Shieldfield.
We are also happy to arrange a time on another day if the 17June doesn’t suit you or answer written questions via email. Please contact Ilana directly on chair@thenewbridgeproject.com with the subject heading Trustee Query.
