< Back to board positions

Board Chair

United Kingdom

Age UK Stockport

Organisation Type

Charity/NfP

Industry / Sector

Social Care / Welfare/ Disability

About The Organisation

Our vision is for Stockport to be a place where everyone can make the most of later life, living as valued members of their communities.

We achieve this by

Having wellbeing at the centre of what we do
Supporting wellbeing in people’s homes and in our communities
Offering support – physical, social, financial, psychological

Our priorities are to:

Keep the future in mind in all our work – futureproof what we do
Campaign and influence against age discrimination
Use a strength-based approach throughout our organisation
Know our audiences better – both those we support now and people new to us

To achieve these aims and priorities we will:

Work with others
Be active
Influence organisations and people
Be effective

Our activities:

Current Services and activities

Age UK Stockport offers a variety of services to help people live independently and safely at home and in their communities. These include:

Information & Signposting
Ageing well
Digital support
Domestic abuse support
Handy Help
Home support
Hospital discharge
Prevention / Early intervention
Tandem Support Services & Step Out Day Activities

Many of these services are delivered in partnership with other public and third sector organisations.

Current activities

We also offer a range of weekly activities like walking, bingo, exercises classes, coffee mornings and community clean-ups.

Position Description

Chair of Age UK Stockport Board

This is an exciting time to lead Age UK Stockport’s Board.

To be the Chair of Age UK Stockport is to be an active volunteer in our community. But it’s not the easiest volunteering role! It can be challenging, but will be rewarding and a big responsibility.

What will you be doing?

The Board is made up of up to six elected trustees, plus a Chair.

Future challenges and opportunities A consistent theme of the last year or so has been unpredictable and challenging times.

One of our priorities is futureproofing Age UK Stockport. We recognise the challenges locally. We have worked and are working hard to meet them.

With every challenge, there are opportunities. These include:

    • AI and the digital transformation

 

    • Collaboration, partnerships and mergers

 

    • A focus on “the local” – demonstrating tangible, immediate, and transparent impact

 

    • The potential for new fundraising models

 

    • New types of volunteeringTo meet these challenges and seize the opportunities, Age UK Stockport aims:

 

To be resilient and sustainable, delivering what people need and want

For the people we work with to be resilient and have control, choice and independence

We are looking for a Chair with the interest and commitment to lead and drive forward the development of Age UK Stockport in line with our core values – to be Connected, Confident and Creative.

The Chair leads the Board, ensuring that it governs the charity effectively. You will support the Board to work together well and will manage and support the Chief Executive. The Chair is also an ambassador for the charity.

What difference will you make?

The impact you will have as our Chair is to lead the setting of the overall direction of the charity and make critical, collective decisions that affect what we do, why we do it and how we do it, all with the aim of making Stockport a place where everyone is able to make the most of later life, living as valued members of their communities.

Being the Chair of Age UK Stockport is to be an active volunteer in our communities. Like any volunteer involved in our work, our aim is for you to enjoy what you do with us, know how you contribute towards our work and see the positive impact that you have on people’s lives.

But it’s not the easiest volunteering role! It can be challenging, but rewarding, and a big responsibility. Along with your fellow trustees you will have collective legal responsibilities – you work together for the best interests of Age UK Stockport and for the people in later life we work with across the borough. We will tell you more about these responsibilities our Recruitment Pack.

Our aim is that you will feel connected to the people we work with, whilst also gaining news skills and enabling you to network and build connections with our cross sector partners.

Selection Criteria

What are we looking for?

The qualities and experience we are looking for in our new Chair are:

    • Experience at Board level or of being a trustee. You do not need to have been a Chair before
    • A clear commitment to the organisation, its vision and mission
    • A keen sense of strategic purpose
    • An inclusive leadership style: able to inspire and support everyone to participate on an equal footing
    • The ability to listen and engage effectively. You are comfortable with challenge and debate, and are able to encourage that in others, whilst fostering a collaborative board environment
    • Advocate – be able and willing to champion Age UK Stockport’s work through personal networks, social media, and other channels
    • A strong personal commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion
    • Be responsive. Sometimes issues ‘come up’ that require the Chair to advise, support or give consent to between Board meetings. It is very helpful to have a Chair who is available and responsive

How to Apply

Please apply via the Reach platform in the first instance:

https://reachvolunteering.org.uk/opp/chair-age-uk-stockport-board