Trustee

Trustee – Hackney Champion

Voluntary role

Trustees initially join the board for three years, and are then eligible for re-appointment for a second three-year term.

Deadline for applications is Monday 11th November 2024.

Shortlisted candidates will then be invited for an interview either in person or on zoom.

Download Role Pack

About the role

The Ministry of Stories is looking for a Hackney Champion to join our board of trustees. We’re looking for someone well connected in our home borough, with the networks and influence to help us unlock opportunities for our local community.

You will share our vision of inspiring and supporting young people’s ideas, imagination and voice through their creativity and writing. You will have the passion to be an important part of our organisation, helping guide us remain well connected locally, and meet our ambitions to support more children, young people and families through our work.

Who we’re looking for

The Hackney Champion will:

Help to set and shape the Ministry of Stories strategic direction, with a particular focus on unlocking opportunities for our Hackney Community
Build and broker relationship with key local strategic partners
Provide insight into the needs of the local community
Be a local advocate for Ministry of Stories and our work
Fulfil charity governance responsibilities, including supporting the Management Team to identify and manage risk

You will have:

Excellent knowledge and understanding of the Hackney context, spanning: education, community, culture, regeneration, assets and/or planning
A good awareness of current and future opportunities locally
An excellent network across Hackney, with key routes in to building and strengthen partnerships with key decision makers locally
Ability to support and influence decision-making
An understanding and commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Why join our team?

Ministry of Stories is growing. We are expanding our trustee team of passionate, skilled and motivated individuals who share our ambition to champion the writer in every child.

It’s an exciting time to join Ministry of Stories as we embark on an ambitious new strategy. We continue to expand our Community Writing Labs to support more children to access free writing programmes at our dedicated writing centre in east London, and are growing our support to schools to meet their needs through creative writing. Our attention-grabbing shop, Hoxton Street Monster Supplies, is growling and growing to keep our monster customer base grizzly through new products and marketing.

Our approach to recruitment

We have an engaged, skilled and supportive board of trustees who work effectively together to support the charity and the executive team.

Our programmes and shop proudly serve a wonderfully diverse east London community. We particularly welcome candidates who define themselves as:

Black, Black British Caribbean and Black British African
Asian and Asian British
Turkish
Mixed Ethnicity
From our local area (Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Islington)
Working class
Disabled

Ready to take the next step?

To apply, please send us:

a short email, letter or video (no more than one side of A4 or a 2 minute video) to rob@ministryofstories.org that tells us why you are interested in the role, and the skills and experience you bring
a CV, professional biography or an up-to-date LinkedIn profile
a completed diversity monitoring form

Deadline for applications is 9am on Monday 11th November 2024.

Shortlisted candidates will then be invited for an interview either in person or via zoom. The successful candidate will be invited to join a full Board meeting as an observer, before being formally appointed at the following meeting.

If you have any access requirements please drop us a line to rob@ministryofstories.org and we will do our best to support you to apply.

We look forward to hearing from you.

About us

Ministry of Stories champions the writer in every child. Co-founded by author Nick Hornby in 2010, we help young people discover their confidence, imagination and potential through the power of their writing. We develop self-respect and communication skills through innovative writing programmes and small group mentoring for children living in under-resourced communities, working in schools, and at our dedicated writing centre in east London.

We empower young people to write brighter futures for themselves through the power of their ideas, creativity and imagination. Inspired by San Francisco’s 826 Valencia, you’ll find us hidden behind our own fantastical shop Hoxton Street Monster Supplies, which has been serving London’s monster population (and the occasional human) since 1818. All proceeds from our monstrous offerings such as Cubed Earwax and Thickest Human Snot go back to support our work with young people.

We champion the writer in every child