My journey as a Trustee so far – Trustees’ Week 2020
For Trustee’s Week 2020, Jack Boyle, Vice Convener for the Board of Trustees, was invited to write a short insert about his role with Dundee Carers Centre. Here Jack explains how he became a trustee, what is involved and what he gains personally from being involved.
I’ve been a Trustee on the Board at Dundee Carers Centre for close to 4 years now but I’m an employment lawyer in my day job. The circumstances which led to me becoming a Trustee were quite fortuitous as one of the partners in the law firm where I work was retiring.
He was a Trustee and was keen to identify a replacement before he retired. I was flattered when he asked me and although I didn’t think of myself as Board material, he soon talked me round. I also spoke with Lucinda, CEO of the organisation and I knew then that this was a good organisation to be involved with.
I had no prior experience of sitting on any boards or even committees. From the outset, I was made to feel very welcome.
I got to meet all of the other Trustees, plus several staff members. There was an induction process, which although not onerous, gave me a good grounding for starting my role as a Trustee.
The time commitment is not hugely demanding in terms of what being a Trustee requires. There are monthly Board meetings which take about an hour, sometimes longer depending on the volume of discussion. The meetings are very varied in terms of the types of issue that we discuss. This can vary from updates on new legislation that impacts on carers, to fundraising activities. There is also an opportunity to be involved in various other sub-groups for specific pieces of work, or projects.
I was initially a bit nervous about being a Trustee and didn’t feel that I had anything useful to say at the meetings.
However, fellow Trustees who were more experienced made me feel valued and encouraged me to participate.
I’ve greatly enjoyed my time on the Board so far. Dundee Carers Centre is a brilliant organisation with a great group of staff and volunteers. One of the things I have enjoyed most is getting to meet many of the staff and volunteers. Particular highlights for me include assisting with the Christmas Tree Festival last year, walking the Kiltwalk to raise funds for the Centre, and also more generally the wide variety of people that I have met so far.
I look forward to meeting many more people in the future.
I would encourage anyone interested in getting involved with the organisation to get in touch. We are always on the lookout for fresh faces to join the Board, and my advice would be to go for it.