Governance Manager, SEO, Perm, Liverpool/ London

• This role will be stretching and rewarding in equal measure. You will regularly interact with both executive members of the leadership team and Board Members. You will also have sufficient autonomy to put your expertise into practice, acting on your own judgement and building positive relationships with those stakeholders.

With important operational responsibility, you will support effective governance of the Charity Commission working within the Governance Framework, ensuring processes run smoothly, comply with agreed standards, and adapt to changing business needs. This will include coordinating and delivering high-quality governance support to Senior Leaders and Board Members, and providing practical, professional governance advice in line with established policies and procedures. You will also deliver a high-quality and well-organised secretariat service, preparing agendas, commissioning, drafting, reviewing and issuing papers, and taking accurate minutes for governance groups as required. This will include deputising for the Head of Governance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Operate in line with the Governance Framework, Governance Handbook, Framework Document and Scheme of Delegation, reviewing materials at agreed intervals, identifying areas for improvement, and highlighting gaps or non-compliance with a recommended course of action to the Head of Governance for decision.
• Provide a high-quality and well-organised secretariat service and governance advice. This will include but is not limited to the Casework Risk Committee and Audit and Risk Assurance Committee. This includes managing forward plans, agreeing agendas, drafting, commissioning and reviewing papers, negotiating timelines with authors and presenters, and issuing final packs in line with agreed service standards.
• Anticipate, analyse and respond to novel or emerging issues by identifying pragmatic and proportionate options within governance parameters, escalating appropriately with clear supporting evidence.
• Take accurate, well-structured minutes that reflect discussions, decisions and rationale, and maintains comprehensive action logs to ensure timely delivery of all actions by their owners.
• Build productive working relationships with Board Members, senior leaders and colleagues across the organisation, providing clear and practical advice on governance procedure, due process and propriety, and guiding stakeholders to apply governance requirements consistently.
• Contacts will also include other Government departments, e.g., DCMS up to and including SCS and other public bodies
• Supports the design and delivery of the Board Induction Programme and ongoing development activities, ensuring materials remain current, accessible and aligned with organisational needs.
• Coordinate the production of inputs to the Accountability Report and contributes to the Annual Report and Accounts process with the Head of Governance, working closely with Finance and Commercial partners to meet required timelines.
• Upholds strong information management practice, ensuring appropriate handling, security classification, version control and accessibility standards for governance materials. Implementing processes as necessary to support this.
• Supports business continuity by ensuring the smooth operation of governance and secretariat activities deputising for the Head of Governance, maintaining meeting cycles, monitoring emerging issues, and escalating risks or concerns with clear and evidenced recommendations
• Contributes to continuous improvement activities by reviewing internal processes, templates and systems, identifying opportunities to strengthen the governance function, and supporting lessons-learned activity across the annual cycle.

Please note that this role sits within the Corporate Office team which provides support and advice to the Chair, Chief Executive, and the Executive Leadership Team. From time to time, you may be required to perform duties that contribute to wider Corporate Office objectives.

Ability:

• Excellent written and verbal skills to articulate complex compliance policies and reports clearly
• Strong planning skills to manage governance calendars, draft board papers, and maintain accurate decision and action logs.
• Excellent Communication and stakeholder management, with the ability to influence, communicate and build consensus among diverse groups.
• Able to confidently and appropriately problem solve in the absence of direction
• Able to proactively plan, prioritise and work collaboratively at all levels.
• Ability to influence colleagues to meet agreed deadlines and to deliver against agreed action
• Ability to constructively challenge others, often senior leaders

Experience:

• Experience of having supported Board or Committees
• Experience in charity, public sector or similar governance environment
• Demonstrable track record of attention to detail, including reporting writing, briefing and minute taking.
• A proven track record of building and sustaining trusted relationships with senior management and team members through clear communication, and engagement.
• Highly organised, resilient and delivery-focused, able to manage competing priorities at pace

Technical:

• Understanding of governance principles and practice
• Understanding of the Charity Commission’s role.
• Proficient IT literacy skills, including MS Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint).

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service

This is your chance to make a contribution that really matters and to make an impact in an organisation where your voice will be heard and your hard work noticed.

Watch this short video to find out more about us.

We operate a flexible hybrid working policy where office attendance is combined with at least 3 days homeworking per week dependent on role requirements.

We recognise everyone as an individual, accepting people for who they are and treating everyone fairly. We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring from all backgrounds and we aim to have a workforce that represents the wider society that we serve. We champion inclusion and wellbeing, aiming to create a workplace where everyone feels valued and has a sense of belonging.

We do not discriminate on the basis of culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor.

We offer access to the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme (employer contributions of 28.97%), far more than in the private sector, and a flexible, family-friendly environment. Additionally, you can look forward to other great benefits via our ‘Perkbox’ and ‘Edenred’ schemes. These include everything from an interest-free season ticket loan and bicycle loan (after two months) to discounts on gym membership, cinema tickets and restaurants. Please see the attached Charity Commission benefits document.

A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by one day per year up to a maximum of 30 days per year.

The Charity Commission’s operational ambition is to realise the Commission’s values of being an expert regulator that is fair, balanced, and independent, which works in a way that is supportive, collaborative, and innovative to achieve our ambitions. We want to develop our capability to regulate charities to realise this goal and meet our statutory and public duties to ensure that charity in England and Wales can deliver maximum benefit to society in a way that upholds its reputation in the eyes of the public.

Work at the Charity Commission and you’ll make a difference every day to:

• The 170,000 charities of all shapes and sizes that we regulate across England and Wales.
• The trustees we partner with and advise.
• The people and causes that benefit from the £10bn generously donated each year by the public.

Find out more about working for us here.

To note: Any move across the Civil Service on or after 4 October 2018 may have implications on an employee’s ability to carry on claiming childcare vouchers.

Job contact :

• Name : Rachel Wenstone
• Email : Recruitment@charitycommission.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : charitycommissionrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk