Overview & Background for TrusteesMay 2016

Background

Doncaster Rape and Sexual Abuse Counselling Service has existed for over twenty five years; now employing approx. 16 staff, it offers a high quality counselling service for children, young people and adults, both male and female who have been impacted by sexual violence.Originally a service for women, a growing awareness of the need for a similar service for men and children led us to offer this.

The centre offers person-centred, client-led counselling, both face-to-face and on the telephone, by appointment in our premises in Thorne Road, as well as a telephone helpline. Other areas of activity are education, training, awareness raising, supervision, group work, information and referral. Counsellors are all qualified to a minimum of Diploma in Counselling standard, and receive specific training in the area of sexual abuse as well as ongoing personal and professional development. We are organisational members of British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and 'The Survivors Trust (TST)'. As such wework within their ethical framework and are subject to their disciplinary procedures. All counsellors receive professional external supervision in line with BACP guidelines.

Trustee Responsibilities

The organisation is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee, limiting any personal financial liability to £1 (other than in the case of fraud or negligence).

All statutory requirements are filled, including employers and public liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance as well as building and contents. Both trustees and staff are required to have enhanced DBS clearance (which is paid for by the organisation) and employment policies and practices are in place.

The board meets every two months, on the third Monday of every other calendar month, from 6:00pm to 8:30pm, with light refreshments provided before the meeting. Members also, from time to time, take responsibility for a specific piece of work or sit on a working group or sub-committee. Some of these are task oriented and thus time limited, some may be ongoing; all may include staff members. These are additional to the minimum commitment we ask of committee members, that of attending the regular meeting and participation obviously depends on the amount of time any person has to offer. Additionally, we hold an away-day once a year, this is for strategic planning and evaluation, and board members try to attend this if at all possible. The committee meetings themselves include the manager and a staff member for minute-taking and can include other staff if the contribution of particular knowledge or expertise is required. We aim to reach decisions by consensus, but should a vote be necessary, paid staff are not eligible to vote.

Staffing and Structure

DRASACS came from a culture of collective working and when changing to management committee/trustee board governance we chose to retain that flat, rather than hierarchical, structure. This system served us well, but in the light of the growth and diversification of the organisation, for instance the work in Doncaster prison and the ISVA service, the Committee, in consultation with staff, made the decision 5 years ago to create a role of DRASACS Manager, to oversee the organisation. The Trustees take legal responsibility for areas such as employment, finance etc. and make decisions on budgets, strategy, policy etc. but are not involved on a daily basis. Trustees clearly have to make essential decisions, but do take into account staff experience and knowledge. All members of the organisation aim to work in an open, honest and accountable way, minutes of both worker and management committee meetings are circulated and considered at all meetings.

Organisational Structure

Funding is from a number of sources which include DMBC, RDaSH, Children in Need, Big Lottery, The Home Office, Ministry of Justice, South Yorkshire Police & Crime Commissioner and a number of Trust Funds.

Some sources are time limited and work is always ongoing to maintain sufficient income. We have a very able finance officer who manages funds on a day-to-day basis, monitors budgets against expenditure and presents monthly financial reports to the treasurer and committee. Funders also receive financial monitoring reports.

In Conclusion

We are the only specialist service for survivors of sexual violence in this area and our many years of experience have enabled us to build a wealth and depth of skills and knowledge in this specialised field. This is now recognised by many agencies, both statutory and voluntary, with over a third of our referrals coming from health professionals and many others from other agencies.

We also are aware of the value of partnerships and networks and of the development of the voluntary and community sector in general, particularly in the current political climate, and thus engage in a number of multi-agency initiatives. These help to raise our profile, remain informed and influence strategy at local, sub-regional and national levels, as well as contributing to the development of the whole sector.

These are the practical aspects, in brief, of the organisation. What we know, on a day-to-day basis, is an enormous commitment to and belief in the work that we do and a determination to do it as well as we can and to keep trying to improve. This is based on our view that our clients deserve the best that we can give. We try to demonstrate our basic values of respect, belief and integrity not only with clients but also amongst ourselves and with anyone who comes into contact with the service. The ethos of the organisation has been built on a belief in those values. We are wishing to recruit trustees from a variety of backgrounds and with complementary skills who will govern the organisation in a professional and effective manner, whilst being prepared to commit to its ethics.

We don’t ask for an in depth knowledge of our area of work, just an openness and willingness to learn. We can offer in-house awareness raising sessions, and for those who may wish to develop extra skills around committee working and governance, external training can be provided. Out of pocket expense, travel and childcare expenses are also available. We are currently particularly interested in Trustees who may have knowledge and experience or a background in any of the following:-

  • Information technology;
  • Data Protection;
  • Health, Safety, Security

Above all, this is a valuable opportunity for anyone who wishes to make a real contribution to the lives of people who have been abused. Our management committee is the foundation that underpins all of our work for survivors of rape and sexual abuse.