About the organisation
Workwhile is an innovative new charity, which has grown from a highly successful pilot project, the London Progression Collaboration (LPC). From our inception until early 2025, we were incubated by progressive think tank IPPR (the Institute for Public Policy Research).
The LPC launched in 2020, aiming to address the progression barriers facing low-paid, disadvantaged and marginalised Londoners by making the apprenticeships system work better in the capital. The pilot project, supported by the Mayor of London and JP Morgan Chase, worked with employers to create new apprenticeship opportunities which supported Londoners into and in good work.
By delivering a practical support service for SMEs, and leveraging unspent apprenticeship levy funds for redistribution, since 2020 we have created in excess of 2,100 new apprenticeships and redistributed nearly £20 million in unspent apprenticeship levy funds.
Having achieved proof of concept - including a positive evaluation from Learning & Work Institute - the core work of the LPC continues to this day, creating high-quality apprenticeships with our large network of businesses and training providers.
With the support of funders including Youth Futures Foundation, Trust for London, Gatsby Foundation, CVC and The Crown Estate, since 2022 we have also built and now deliver a wider portfolio of projects including the DevelopMentor line management training pilot. In 2022, we secured a competitively tendered two-year Department for Education contract to support SME apprenticeship creation in Merseyside and Blackpool. All of this is complemented by traded consultancy work, including a major contract with UCL and the East Bank partners.
The practical insights from and impact of our apprenticeship creation work have been the foundation to influence government policy, from the introduction of the gov.uk levy matching portal to the lifting of the annual cap on SME apprenticeship starts. The LPC was cited as an example of best practice by the OECD, and we have received national press coverage for our work on the apprenticeship minimum wage.
About the role
As a trustee for Workwhile, you will have responsibility (alongside other trustees) for governance and oversight of our organisation, including strategic decisions and the management of our finances and risk. In everyday language: trustees keep our CEO and wider team on track, making sure we do what we’ve said we will do and stay true to our mission. To do that, you'll participate in trustee meetings at least quarterly (in person or remotely), prepare for these by reading documents circulated in advance. We envisage that, as our finance specialist, you will be asked for support relating to your expertise in between meetings, including having additional oversight of our accounts and financial processes.
How you'll help us - trustees' technical responsibilities
You'll help to make Workwhile a successful, sustainable and high-impact organisation by:
• Ensuring that the organisation complies with its legal and charitable obligations, including pursuing its objects as defined in its governing document.
• Ensuring that the organisation uses its resources exclusively to achieve these objects, and ensuring the financial stability and sustainability of the organisation.
• Contributing actively to the board of trustees’ role in giving strategic direction to the organisation, defining goals, setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed objectives and targets.
• Safeguarding the values and reputation of the organisation.
• Ensuring the effective and efficient administration and running of the organisation.
• Supporting Workwhile's CEO in the role.
• With fellow trustees, setting the remuneration of the director and, where required, other members of staff.
• Preparing for and contributing to quarterly board meetings.
• Providing guidance and direction on strategic areas of expertise, including convening and being part of subcommittee groups relevant to your expertise, if required.
Our ideal candidate
Equity is at the heart of Workwhile's mission and vision - and we're committed to ensuring our governance reflects that too. We want our trustees to reflect the businesses with whom we work, and the workers who benefit from our work. We especially welcome applications from people from disadvantaged and marginalised groups who are under-represented in governance roles.
As a trustee, you'll be committed to our mission, and you'll be someone who builds strong relationships, works inclusively, and listens and engages effectively.
In this particular instance, we are seeking a trustee to join our board who brings finance expertise, to fill a current skills gap we have identified.
Across the full board of trustees, we aiming to ensure we have the following experience and expertise:
• Leadership experience, especially in the charity sector
• Experience of organisational start-up and growth phases
• Income generation skills, including from philanthropic sources
• Experience of strategy / business planning, and/or programme delivery
• Legal, HR and finance skills, especially as these relate to small charities
• Knowledge of the skills and good work space, inc. as a worker or a business leader
• Communications, branding and marketing skills
Please note that we don't expect any one individual to be able to bring all these skills -that's why the best boards bring together the diverse contributions of a number of trustees. And that list isn't exhaustive, so you may well bring valuable skills and insights from a perspective that we've not thought of.
You might have relevant finance experience from working in a business setting, in a charity or third sector organisation or in local/national government. You might also have started or managed something, or bring experience from a voluntary role. You might have been a trustee before, or this might be the first time you've considered it.
So, if you're committed to our work and have the skills and time to make a difference, we'd love to hear from you.
What’s in it for you
As a trustee at Workwhile, you’ll use your finance expertise to guide a growing, high-impact charity making real change for disadvantaged workers. You’ll gain board-level experience, expand your network, and contribute to an inclusive mission that combines innovation, policy influence, and practical support for SMEs. It's a chance to make a meaningful difference while developing your own leadership.
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