Part 1: JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE: Governance Officer

DEPARTMENT: Legal & Governance

TEAM: Governance

LOCATION: Ewell, Surrey

  1. POSITION IN ORGANISATION
  • Reports into: Governance, Risk and Compliance Manager
  • Line Manages: N/A
  • Contacts which the post holder has within and outside the organisation:Central Charity Staff, offices in Ireland, Scotland and Wales, Branch Directors, Regional Directors and trustees
  1. MAIN PURPOSE OF JOB

The Legal & Governance department’s aim is to provide guidance, support and expertise on legal, governance, compliance and risk issues, to enable Samaritans to better achieve its strategy – Working Together to Reduce Suicide. The Governance Officer plays a keyrole in this aim.

Operating within a federated structure, and providing an essential support service to the board of trustees, committees,Executive Leadership Team and Samaritans branches, the role’s main purpose is to ensure that Samaritans decision making bodiesare provided with the support they need to act effectively towards our strategy.

The role will help co-ordinate the Central Charity board and committee agendas/papers and support Central Charity and Samaritans branches in complying with their governing rulesand achieving best practice in governance.

  1. KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Central Charity Governance and Management

  • Ensure Central Charity board, committees and councilsand Executive Leadership Team are briefed in a consistent and timely format
  • Oversee administrative tools supporting planning of governance meetings, including the Central Charity governance planner
  • Support the Governance, Risk & Compliance Manager and central charity staff in ensuring items are on committee agenda are appropriate for governance bodies
  • Manage the election process of elected committee members
  • Support the Governance, Risk and & Compliance Manager and the Company Secretary in ensuring an appropriate flow of agenda items to/from different committees and meetings
  • Support with regulatory filing includingrequired submissions with Companies House, OSCR and the Charity Commission
  • Maintain internal and statutory registers including members list and committee membership details
  • Support the management of communication channels between board members and staff

Branch Governance

  • Help ensure branches have access to appropriate resources to assist them in the area of governance and compliance on the ‘Branch Hub’
  • Support branches to complete Samaritans risk assessment tool. Reviewing branch responses returns, highlighting significant gaps and assisting branches where appropriate either directly or by signposting to other teams

General

  • Assist Governance, Risk and Compliance Manager on governance and compliance projects
  • Work with Governance, Risk and Compliance Manager to process invoices and track expenditure against budget

General Duties of a Samaritans’ Staff Member

  • Contribute to the effective and efficient running of the Central Office as appropriate.
  • Participate, as appropriate, in staff forums and meetings.
  • Adhere to Samaritans’ policies and procedures.
  • Represent the Central Office appropriately across the organisation and Samaritans to the wider community as appropriate.
  • Treat all colleagues, volunteers and members of the public with dignity and work within and adhere to Samaritans’ equal opportunities statement and policies.
  • Carry out reasonable requests made that are within the broad remit of the role

Part 2: PERSON SPECIFICATION

  1. SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE

Essential

  • Excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills; ability to establish and maintain positive relationships with colleagues and volunteers at all levels
  • Ability to produce clear documentation, to be used by senior management, committee and board members
  • Knowledge of governance and regulatory requirements for companies or other not for profit entities
  • Excellent organisational skills, with a proven ability to meet deadlines
  • Good ICT skills including use of MS office, particularly MS Word and Excel
  • Ability to work under pressure, manage competing priorities and maintain a positive and professional approach
  • Good analytical skills, with the ability to understand legal documentationand to explain complex terminology in simple language
  • Good problem solving skills with the ability to think creatively and act flexibly
  • Strong attention to detail
  • A high level of integrity, with experience of keeping sensitive information confidential
  • Experience of project support or project management
  • Experience of taking minutes

Desirable

  • Experience of working in a legal or governance environment
  • Experience of committee administration
  1. QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

  • Educated to degree level or equivalent is preferable but equivalent experience will be considered.

Desirable

  • Qualification in legal, governance or compliance field
  1. PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
  • Empathises with Samaritans’ values
  • Customer-focused
  • Is willing and able to travel and attend occasional weekend or evening meetings (UK & Ireland)

Signed by employee:______Date: ______

LAST UPDATED:05/12/2017

This job description is a statement of requirements at the time of writing and is not contractual. It should not be seen as precluding future changes after appointment to this role.