Lay Trustee (Voluntary Role)

Please note, this vacancy is with the Worcester Students' Union and not the University of Worcester.

Current University of Worcester employees cannot be considered for this role.

Lay Trustee (with a finance background)Voluntary20-25 hours per year3-year term of office (maximum of 2 terms)

Would you like play an important role in supporting our Executive to continuously improve our organisation, to navigate the current financial climate and challenges in higher education, and to maintain excellent services to students (our members)? 

Worcester Students’ Union (WSU) is a registered charity (number 1145192) and a membership organisation, with its primary object being the advancement of education of students at the University of Worcester.  The Union aims to achieve this through:

WSU is an unincorporated company with a Board of Trustees comprising of three Officer Trustees (the Full-time, elected Officers), up to four Student Trustees, and up to four Lay Trustees.  The Board is responsible for the oversight of the Union’s governance, strategy, and financial sustainability.   The post of Lay Trustee has a 3-year term and post holders may serve a maximum of two terms, either consecutively or non-consecutively. 

We pride ourselves on providing a range of excellent services to students, having a strong reputation nationally, and going above and beyond for students to make a difference.  As a team, we are determined to constantly evolve with the help of our dynamic and committed staff, who are working to our new Strategic Framework for 2023-28, which you can find on the Students’ Union website.

This is a very important time for WSU as we manage the challenges posed by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and the well-documented difficulties being experienced by higher education providers.  We must support the needs of a diverse and ever-changing student body across multiple campuses, with less resource.  

Students’ Unions are unique organisations where change is the norm and where students are at the heart of strategy and decision-making.  They deliver a wide range of services in a passionate, cost-effective, and professional way and are, necessarily, responsible, vibrant and fast-paced.  Becoming a Trustee of a Union is an excellent way of providing support and guidance whilst gaining personal knowledge and satisfaction.  We have an excellent Board and currently have a vacancy a Trustee with finance expertise.

There are 5 full Board meetings per year and, also, 5 meetings of the two Sub Committees of the Board.  We estimate that time to attend meetings (we ask that Lay Trustees sit on one Sub Committee), as well as time to prepare and read papers and liaise with the Chief Executive, totals between 20 to 25 hours per year.  Meetings are on-line and so we welcome applications from further afield.

WSU recognises the value of difference and is committed to equality of opportunity for all. We welcome applications from individuals regardless of race, colour, ethnic or national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religious belief, age, marital status or disability, or any other individual characteristic or intersectionality of different characteristics.

We want to support a diverse and inclusive environment as we believe it makes a team more effective and are actively looking for people who share our values.  You can see our work as an organisation and commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion on our website.

To maintain our independence from the University of Worcester, and to ensure a balance to the student membership of the Board, we cannot consider applications for the role of external trustee from current registered students of the University of Worcester. 

Alumni are not eligible to be Trustees until at least five years after graduation.  To avoid potential conflicts of interest, applications also cannot be considered from individuals who are themselves employees of either the University of Worcester or Worcester Students’ Union.

To apply for this position, please read through the information pack and return your completed application to StudentunionHR@worc.ac.uk by midday on Friday 28th March 2025. 

The Appointments Panel aim to hold online interviews on Monday 14th April.

If you would like an informal chat about the role, please contact the Chief Executive, Sophie Williams, on s.williams@worc.ac.uk

Closing Date: 28 Mar 2025

Sub Department: Professional Services