Independent Trustee

Who we are

The EY Foundation (EYF) is an independent charity founded in 2014. At EYF, we believe that every young person in the UK can succeed in the workplace, and that every employer (regardless of size or sector) has a role to play in giving young people a better start to their working lives.

Our mission is to reduce the barriers to work many young people face, supporting them to successfully transition into higher education, employment or self-employment and fulfil their work potential. We are unique in our position as the link between employers and young people, having strong relationships with both.

Our ambition is that by 2032 we will enable all young people who are eligible for Free School Meals to have an employment and earnings potential that is equitable to other young people in the UK. We will do so in collaboration with employers and key partners, through employability skills training and targeted programmes, and by leveraging our convening power to influence systemic change.

Check us out at EY Foundation.

What we do

An independent charity, we bring young people and employers together to deliver high-quality employability skills training, paid work experience, and mentoring. Our programmes build aspiration, confidence, and a greater sense of purpose.

To date we have supported over 24,000 young people and created over 23,000 volunteering opportunities.

We operate in regions across the country, collaborating closely with employers to enable our insights-based approach to benefit them too, progressing towards our aim of builder a more diverse, accessible and inclusive workforce.

We operate as a Member Firm of EY Global Limited and are grateful to have a five-year funding and Master Services Agreement in place with them which provides the majority of our funding as well as other resource and service provisions. Our Board operates with majority independent Trustees and an independent Chair along with a minimum of four EY colleagues. We also have the role of EY Member who acts as a representative between the two organisations but does not sit on the Board.

What we are looking for

We are recruiting an Independent Trustee to join our diverse Board and help us drive the step-change needed to deliver our ten year ambition, with experience in campaigning and advocacy and the ability to influence key decision makers.

It is essential that the successful Trustee is committed to driving social mobility and making the working world equitable for young people across the UK.

Skills, knowledge & experience

• Evidence of successful advocacy and campaigning experience which influenced key decision makers.
• Up-to-date understanding of the UK political context and opportunities to influence.
• Experience of carrying out a UK-focussed campaigning role including particular focus on how to achieve the greatest possible influence through Parliamentary processes.
• Experience devising, developing, and implementing advocacy influencing strategies.
• Understanding of other strategic campaigning approaches including public mobilisation (online and offline), strategic communications, partnerships, and research/ data gathering.
• Demonstrate a track record of upholding a positive culture of inclusion.
• Connect, through lived experience or other, with the young people with whom we work.
• Commitment to prepare for, travel to and attend five Trustee meetings, per year including one Board away day (whilst occasional board meetings can be joined remotely we meet face to face whenever possible).
• Willingness to meet with lead staff online and in person (where possible) in between Board meetings (where relevant) in addition to Board meetings.

We would also welcome applications from those who have experience in:

• Monitoring and impact evaluation for a large charity, higher education body, management fund or similar.

What you will be expected to do

Trustees share the ultimate responsibility of governing the Foundation. As a Trustee, you will be expected to:

• Ensure the Foundation has the right strategy, resources and governance to fulfil its purpose and oversee the management of these responsibly and with care.
• Act in the best interest of the Foundation and our beneficiaries at all times.
• Delegate day-to-day functions and operations of the Foundation to the Leadership Team, Sub-Committees or other such entity, as appropriate.
• Attend four Board meetings per year plus one Board Away Day.
• Comply with our Child Protection Policy in which we require all Trustees to complete an Enhanced DBS (England) / PVG (Scotland) and NSPCC Safeguarding training.
• Comply with internal independence processes (as an EY Member Firm we must ensure independence from any and all EY audit clients and affiliates).

Future Dates for Meetings

• Wednesday 9 October 2024, 10.00-16.00 (Board Away Day)
• Wednesday 4 December 2024, 10.00-13.00
• Wednesday 12 March 2025, 10.00-13.00
• Wednesday 4 June 2025, 10.00-13.00

All Board meetings are held in person at EY, 1 More London Place, London, SE1 2AF.

Trustees are often chosen for their previous board experience and long professional careers. However, we are interested in talking to anyone who can demonstrate the ability to think strategically and the integrity to take on this important role with time to give us. Please don’t be discouraged if this isn’t something you’ve done before, or if you don’t meet all elements of the role specification; we will provide mentoring and training to support new Trustees to understand their role. Please do consider applying if you have the courage and enthusiasm to encourage, challenge, influence and support us to be the best we can be.

Please view the Recruitment Pack here or download below for full details of the role

Our commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

EY Foundation is an Equal Opportunities, Diverse and Inclusive Employer. At EY Foundation, we welcome and encourage applications regardless of their backgrounds, nationalities, ages, gender reassignment, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and disability. 

With over 80% of the young people we work with from Black, Asian or ethnic minority communities, our team and Board, need to reflect the young people we support. In 2019, we made diversity and inclusion a strategic priority, with a differential focus on race, and in 2020 we published eleven race commitments. You can find out more here.  

We encourage applications from across our regional hubs, the South (London), Midlands (Birmingham), North (Manchester) and Scotland (Glasgow).

Applications will be open for 6 weeks, closing at 3pm on Tuesday 6th August 2024.

Interview schedule:

• 2 stage interview process with EY Foundation
• First stage – virtual
• Second stage – ideally in person

First and Second stage interviews with EY Foundation expected to be between 27th August and 18th September.

For a chat about the role, you can reach out directly to Dom in the Inclusive Recruiting team. Call 0203 397 8333 or email dom@inclusiverecruiting.co.uk.