Governance Officer

Gresham College is a charity which provides high-quality free education to the public in a broad range of subjects. The College aims to stimulate a love of learning and intellectual curiosity and to champion academic rigor, professional expertise and freedom of expression.

Gresham College has been providing free lectures within the City of London for over 400 years. Lectures are attended by an in-person audience and live-streamed around the world. We have currently had 46 million views. To watch please visit our website www.gresham.ac.uk or look on YouTube.

The College is now in year 3 of an exciting 5-year plan which has the primary aim of increasing and broadening the audience which the College reaches. Working at Gresham College is hugely rewarding in terms of the breadth and range of subjects covered and the knowledge and intellectual reputations of our speakers.

Purpose To ensure effective governance arrangements are in place, so that the College complies with its constitution, and all legal, regulatory and statutory requirements, maintaining compliance with all matters of corporate and charity governance. Service all committees including agendas, timetabling and minutes.

Reports to The Executive Director

Salary £30,000 - £32,000 (Pro-rata, part time 2 days (14 hours) a week role)

Benefits 28 days holiday, plus 6 days closure over Christmas. Saul pension scheme

Responsibilities
The Governance Officer is responsible for:

Committee work and Report

  • Servicing and overseeing the operations of Gresham College Committees, ensuring high quality papers are produced and distributed to agreed timescales.
  • Attending and minuting meetings of the Board and its committees and ensuring all actions are followed up.
  • Assist the Executive Director with KPI monitoring, especially the production of reporting materials for Council and the sponsors -- this includes the Annual Monitoring Report.
  • Work with Company Secretary and Head of Finance on statutory documents such as annual returns and audits.
  • Oversight of Executive Director and Board (Council) members’ calendars
  • Provide support to the Head of Finance in their capacity as Data Protection Officer and Safeguarding Lead.
  • Responsible for ensuring that governance complies with relevant legislation and Charity Commission guidance.
  • Develop and manage systems and processes that improve governance awareness and compliance across the organisation.
  • Define improvements to data management including the implementation of technology to modernise data administration.
  • Ensuring that all Council members and sub-committee members receive appropriate induction and training as required and that statutory records of appointments, retirements and skills matrix are kept up to date.
  • To support the College in trustee succession planning, recruitment and appointment and maintain appropriate Board schedules and records.
  • Maintain sensitive information and records with appropriate confidentiality and in line with GDPR requirements.
  • Undertake other duties and responsibilities as reasonably required.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Holder of a university degree or equivalent experience.

  • Knowledge of all aspects of office procedures and confident in the use of MS office applications and other IT systems.
  • Experience of working with Boards, to record and maintain accurate records of meetings and decisions.
  • Proven experience and demonstrable working knowledge of charity law and regulation, and experience of ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory guidance.
  • Experience of developing and implementing governance frameworks
  • Ability to organise time effectively, create work schedules, prioritise workload, meet deadlines and multi task with ease over a 12 month board cycle period.
  • Strong planning and organisation skills to help analyse complex demand.
  • Excellent oral and written communications skills, with a high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
  • Willing and able to work flexible hours when needed.

Equal Opportunities

Gresham College encourages applications from those of diverse backgrounds. The College is committed to fairness, consistency and transparency in selection decisions. Panel members are aware of the principles of equality of opportunity and fair selection.

Application Process

All applications will be managed in accordance with the College’s recruitment policy; the process is outlined below.

Formal applications must consist of a Curriculum Vitae accompanied by a letter explaining your suitability for the role in relation to the information and criteria specified in the Job Description and Person Specification.

The selection and interview process will be managed a panel comprised of employees and/or other persons. The final appointment will be made subject to satisfactory references, and any other necessary document checks (e.g., right to work in the UK).

For more information on how to apply for this post please click apply below.

The closing date for the position of Governance Officer at Gresham College is 9.00 am Monday 12 June 2023, but will close earlier if the position is filled.