RECRUITMENT OF TRUSTEES
TO THE BOARD OF THE NATIONAL FLOOD FORUM
Information for Applicants
The National Flood Forum
Old Snuff Mill Warehouse
Park Lane
Bewdley
Worcestershire
DY12 2EL
All questions relating to this process should be directed to Amanda Davies or Paul
Cobbing
Tel: 01299 403055 Email: amanda.davies@floodforum.org.uk or
paul.cobbing@floodforum.org.uk
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
INFORMATION PACK CONTENTS
1.
INTRODUCTION
3
2.
GOVERNANCE
4
3.
ROLE OF TRUSTEE
5
4.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
5
5.
TRUSTEE OBLIGATIONS
6
6.
RECRUITMENT
6
7.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES STATEMENT
6
8.
APPLICATION FORM
7
9.
NOTES ON HOW TO FILL IN THE APPLICATION FORM
9
10. DIVERSITY MONITORING
10
ANNEX A - STAFF STRUCTURE
12
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
The National Flood Forum
Supporting and representing flood risk communities
1 INTRODUCTION
The National Flood Forum is a national Charity that supports and represents people at
risk of flooding.
We are looking for two types of role.
1. Someone with financial skills who in time could take on the role of Treasurer. We
are looking for an appropriately qualified and motivated Treasurer with a
background in financial management, audit and charity governance to take over
from Paul Roberts FCMA CGMA who, after 5 years in the role, has advised the
Trustees that he feels it is time for a fresh perspective.
The overall role of the Treasurer is to maintain an overview of the Charity’s affairs,
ensure its financial viability and make certain that proper financial records and
procedures are maintained.
Key Tasks

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To ensure adequate budgetary control, financial and business management
Present financial reports to the Board on a quarterly basis
Ensure that fellow Trustees are kept aware of their financial and corporate
governance responsibilities
 Ensure that the Charity’s accounts are prepared in a suitable format and
meet statutory accounting and Charity Act requirements
 Ensure that the Charity’s accounting policies and documents are up to-date
and fit for purpose
 Liaise with the Charity’s auditors to ensure that the accounts and financial
systems are audited and comply with all regulatory requirements
 Contribute to the design, delivery and review of the Charity’s Business Plan
 Provide guidance on financial and business management issues to the Chief
Executive and Operations Coordinator
 To participate as a Trustee on the Board to further the aims and objectives of
the Charity.
2. We are looking for people to be general board members, but in particular those with
media, legal or fundraising skills and in particular those who want to make a
contribution to this growing charity. All candidates will be considered on merit but
women and non-white British applicants are currently under-represented on the
Board, as are Trustees living in the East of England, North East. We are also
particularly interested in candidates who have been flooded or who have first-hand
experience of supporting people who have suffered flooding.
Flooding can be a devastating experience for people. As well as the economic
consequences to people, businesses and communities, the experience of being
flooded can be traumatic, seriously impacting on people’s health and wellbeing,
education and employment. People often report that the recovery process is much
3
The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
worse than the flood itself, with long term health and mental health impacts. In
addition, people who have been flooded are at risk of being flooded again, and this
often dominates their lives for years to come.
The Environment Agency reports that 3.2 million households in England and Wales are
at significant risk of flooding, approximately 1:6 of the population, though in reality all of
us are at some risk.
The floods of 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013 and 2014 demonstrate that the risk of flooding is
real. The UK Climate Change Risk Assessment 2012 identified it as the single greatest
threat arising from climate change and the Adaptation Sub-Committee of the
Committee on Climate Change, in their 2012 report “Climate Change – Is the UK
preparing for flooding and water scarcity?” states that climate change could increase
the number of properties in England in the most significant danger of flooding from the
current total of 330,000 to as much as 1.2 million by the 2080s.
The National Flood Forum (NFF) is a small registered charity established in 2002 with
start-up funding from the Environment Agency (EA). We are a national organisation
that helps communities and individuals to be prepared for flooding and provides
recovery support for people who have suffered. We work with people and communities
to address their concerns and from their perspective, rather than the institutions
delivering services.
We also provide a strong and independent voice that represents the interests of people
affected by flooding. This includes working closely with national and local government,
agencies, flood protection companies and the insurance industry, as well as flood
groups.
For further details of our priorities and our work, please see attached a Draft Strategic
Priorities paper.
In addition, we have run a highly successful project in Scotland, the Scottish Flood
Forum, which from 1st April 2013 became an independent Scottish Charity. A Board
member of the new charity sits on the National Flood Forum Board and vice versa.
2 GOVERNANCE
The National Flood Forum is governed by a Board of non-executive Trustees who
operate in a voluntary capacity, supported by a small team of professional staff.
Trustees make a vital contribution to the National Flood Forum’s work through their
governance role and, where feasible, more active engagement in its work; taking on
specific actions linked to their areas of expertise.
The Board has a maximum of 12 Trustees and currently has up to two vacancies. The
Chair of the Board is John Pegg. Please see www.nationalfloodforum.org.uk for details
of current Trustees.
The Board is supported by a Company Secretary, a paid member of staff.
The Board of Trustees is responsible for two entities, the National Flood Forum charity,
which supports people at risk of flooding, and National Flood Forum Trading Services
Ltd, a Community Interest Company (CIC) set up to generate financial resources for the
charity, and which has its own Board of Directors. The CIC is currently dormant but the
success of the two bodies is contingent upon very close working relations between
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
them. A requirement when the charity was set up was for it to also be listed as a
limited company. Therefore Trustees are also directors of the company.
The National Flood Forum employs a Chief Executive, three permanent full time, 7
short contract full time, one permanent part time and two short contract part time staff in
England and Wales. The short contract staff are predominantly employed to work with
communities involved with the Defra Flooding Resilience Community Pathfinder,
finishing in March 2015. Details of the staff structure are at Annexe A.
We rely on a small number of volunteers to assist as advocates and undertake practical
tasks. We also have over 200 affiliated local flood groups that receive information from
the bulletin and participate in events such as the biannual conference.
3 ROLE OF TRUSTEE
As well as directing the work of the Charity through Board meetings, Trustees are
expected to support, promote and represent the National Flood Forum where possible
and appropriate.
The Board meets at least four times a year, usually in Birmingham or London. Trustees
will also be involved in committee work and occasional attendance may be necessary
at external meetings to represent the National Flood Forum, for instance at Defra
Stakeholder Forums. Trustees will also be expected to take part in email and
telephone discussions as required. They are entitled to claim reasonable travelling
expenses.
Trustees will be appointed for a term of four years initially, after which an appointment
may be made for one further term.
4 PERSON SPECIFICATION
Experience

Experience of working within a team and contributing at a strategic level is essential

Personal experience of the effects of flooding on homes and businesses is desirable

Experience with community groups is desirable

Knowledge and experience of good governance is desirable
Competencies

Ability to read, assess and analyse information contained within Board papers and
to comment constructively on the National Flood Forum’s performance.

Confidence to contribute effectively to Board discussions.

Ability to understand, support, communicate and promote the work of the National
Flood Forum.

Ability to contribute effectively to group discussions involving a wide range of people
including specialists and professionals.

Ability to extract the essence from Government papers.

Strong local or regional knowledge of flooding.
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
5 TRUSTEE OBLIGATIONS
Trustees have a number of obligations, set out in the Memorandum and Articles of
Association, which are currently being reviewed, to:






commit to its values and objectives;
contribute and share responsibility for the Board's decisions;
read Board papers and to attend meetings, training sessions and other relevant
events;
declare relevant interests;
keep confidential the affairs of the Board (subject to any overriding legally
binding requirement to the contrary);
comply with their fiduciary duties, including to:
o act in the best interests of the Company;
o declare any interests a Director may have in matters to be discussed at
Board meetings and not put himself in a position where his personal
interest or a duty owed to another conflicts with the duties owed to the
Company;
o secure the proper and effective use of the Company's property;
o act personally;
o act within the scope of any authority given;
o use the proper degree of skill and care when making decisions;
o act in accordance with the Memorandum and Articles; and
o act with reference to their obligations under the general law.
6 RECRUITMENT PROCEDURE
The Board has established a committee to shortlist candidates and organise the
interview process. Each candidate on the shortlist will meet with a group of Trustees.
The deadline for receiving applications is 8.00 am on Friday 12th September.
Interviews will be carried out at the end of September.
Decisions on successful candidates will be taken shortly afterwards, with a view to
successful candidates taking up their appointment at the autumn Trustees meeting.
Those applicants who attend an interview will, by prior agreement, be paid reasonable
travel and subsistence expenses incurred. Claim forms will be supplied to candidates.
Unsuccessful candidates will be informed as quickly as possible.
7 EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES STATEMENT
The National Flood Forum is committed to principles of public appointments based on
merit, openness and transparency of process and is seeking to promote increased
diversity in the Board of Trustees. We encourage applications from both men and
women, from a variety of age groups and from people with diverse social and economic
backgrounds and identities including, but not limited to, members of ethnic minority
communities and people with disabilities.
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
8 NATIONAL FLOOD FORUM TRUSTEE APPLICATION FORM
Please read through the form first before filling it in and answering all the questions.
There are some guidance notes at the end on how to fill in the form. If you need extra
space for any of the answers, please use a separate sheet.
This form can be filled in electronically and sent to amanda.davies@floodforum.org.uk
alternatively please fill in a hard copy and post to Amanda Davies, Office Manager, the
National Flood Forum, Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcestershire
DY12 2EL by Friday 12th September 2014.
PERSONAL DETAILS
Surname
First names
Address
Telephone Numbers:
Email address
Work:
Home:
Mobile:
Are you able to attend four meetings a year in Birmingham or
London?
YES/NO
Are you willing to respond to email and telephone
discussions outside routine meetings?
YES/NO
ABOUT YOU (see note 1)
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
INTERESTS/SKILLS (see note 2)
FURTHER INFORMATION (see note 3)
I declare that the information in this application is true to the best of my
knowledge and belief.
Signed
Date
DATA PROTECTION NOTICE:
We will only use the information you provide to deal with this application
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
9 NOTES ON HOW TO FILL IN THE APPLICATION FORM
Note 1:
About You
Please provide a concise statement summing up how your interests, experiences and
areas of expertise are relevant to the work of the National Flood Forum. For example,
you may have experience of being flooded, have worked with flood risk communities, or
be part of a flood group. You may have a practical or academic interest. Alternatively
you may have knowledge of an issue that is relevant to understanding the impacts of
flooding, such as the experiences of vulnerable groups.
Please refer to the criteria in the person specification in this and the subsequent
section.
Note 2:
Interests/Skills
In this section we are interested in the skills and knowledge that you will bring to the
National Flood Forum, with particular reference to those outlined in the person
specification. This might include:

Any voluntary positions you hold or have held

Membership of committees (please indicate if current or past appointments)

Current or previous work

Anything else you think is relevant to your application
Note 3:
Further Information
We are particularly interested here in finding out:

What attracts you to serve as a Trustee/your main reason or reasons for
applying

What you will be able to contribute as a Trustee
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
10 DIVERSITY MONITORING
It is our policy to appoint Trustees of our Board based on merit. As part of our diversity
policy, we welcome applications from all parts of the community. It would help if you
answered these questions to help us to monitor the effectiveness of our policy.
We treat the information you give us in confidence, and we will not use it as part of this
appointment process. We will separate this questionnaire from the rest of the
nomination/application form before we decide whom to call for interview.
1. Personal Details
Title:
Surname:
First Names:
Date of Birth:
Sex
Male
Female
2. Ethnic Origin
This question is to establish the broad ethnic group of people who want to become
members of our advisory committees. It is not concerned with your nationality,
place of birth or citizenship. For example, UK citizens may fall into any of the
ethnic groups we list in the question:
How do you describe your ethnic origin?
White
British White
Irish White
Gypsy or Irish Traveller
Other White
White and Asian
White and Black African
Other Mixed
Pakistani
Bangladeshi
Chinese
Mixed/multiple ethnic groups
White and Black
Caribbean
Asian/Asian British
Indian
Other Asian
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
Black/African/Caribbean/Black British
African
Caribbean
Other Black
Other Ethnic Group
Arab
Other
3. Disabilities
Are you disabled? The notes below outline what the law says. We are more
interested in whether you consider yourself disabled.
YES/NO
The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 says, “a person has a disability if they have a
physical or mental impairment which has substantial and long-term adverse effect
on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”. The meaning of long-term
is lasting, or being likely to last, at least 12 months. You can find out more about
disability and the law in a free booklet “The Disability Act: a guide for everyone” by
calling Freephone 08457 622633
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83
Annexe A - Current organisation structure including staffing, trustees and directors
Community
Interest Company
Trustees
Chief Executive 1FTE
Community
Development
Manager 1 FTE
Operations Coordinator
and Company Secretary
1FTE
Administration
Assistant 0.25
FTE
Community
Development
Project Officers
7FTE
Administration
Assistant 0.73
FTE
Administration
Assistant 0.25 FTE
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The National Flood Forum • Registered Charity No. 1121642
• A Company Limited By Guarantee • Registered in England & Wales No. 4349401
Registered Office: Old Snuff Mill Warehouse, Park Lane, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 2EL • VAT Registered No: 786 2681 83