Founding Trustee - Women & Girls Charity - Volunteer

Help build a bold new charity empowering girls & women in the UK and overseas. We’re seeking passionate founding trustees aged 16+ who want to shape real change, bring fresh ideas & create opportunities through education, mentoring, wellbeing & practical support.
What difference will you make?
As a founding trustee, your contribution will have a lasting impact on The MIA Effect Foundation and the women and girls we hope to support.
We are at the beginning of our journey, which means you will have a genuine opportunity to help shape what the charity becomes. Your knowledge, experience and perspective will help us turn an ambitious idea into a credible, sustainable organisation capable of creating meaningful opportunities for women and girls.
Your involvement will strengthen the decisions we make in these early stages from understanding where support is most needed to developing effective programmes, partnerships and approaches that can grow with the charity.
Just as importantly, we want our founding trustees to challenge our thinking. We do not want to build programmes based simply on what we assume people need. We want to listen, learn, use evidence and bring different perspectives around the table so that our work remains relevant and useful.
By helping us build strong foundations now, you will contribute to something that we hope will reach far beyond the organisation itself helping girls develop confidence, ambition and access to opportunity; supporting women to learn, rebuild, progress and lead; and creating connections between individuals, communities and organisations that can open doors for others.
This is an opportunity to be part of the beginning and in time, to be able to say “I helped build that.”
One opportunity can change a life. One changed life can strengthen a family. One stronger family can influence a community.
That is The MIA Effect.
What are we looking for?
We are looking for founding trustees who believe in creating opportunities for girls and women and want to help build a new charity from the beginning.
You do not need previous trustee experience to apply. We welcome people aged 16+ who are willing to learn, contribute ideas and take the responsibility of the role seriously. We are equally interested in people with professional experience and those who can bring fresh perspectives, lived experience or strong connections to the communities we hope to support.
The most important qualities are integrity, reliability, good judgement and a genuine commitment to the charity’s purpose. Trustees should be willing to listen, ask questions, share their views respectfully and work as part of a team. We want people who can challenge ideas constructively, consider different points of view and remain focused on practical solutions.
As we build our first board, we are especially interested in applicants with knowledge or experience in one or more of these areas
Finance & budgeting – helping us build strong financial controls and plan responsibly.
Safeguarding & youth/education – supporting safe, inclusive programmes for girls and young people.
Fundraising & partnerships – helping us develop relationships with funders, businesses, schools, community organisations and other supporters.
Governance & compliance – helping us establish strong policies, accountability and good decision-making.
Marketing & communications – helping us tell our story clearly, build awareness and connect with supporters and communities.
Programme development & impact – helping us design meaningful programmes, listen to beneficiaries and measure the difference our work makes.
You do not need experience in all six areas. We want to build a balanced board where different trustees bring different strengths and everyone has something valuable to contribute.
Lived experience is also important to us. This could include experience of barriers to education or opportunity, financial hardship, caring responsibilities, migration, community work, or growing up in an underserved community. These experiences can bring valuable insight and help us make decisions that reflect real life rather than assumptions.
For younger applicants, we recognise that you may not yet have years of professional experience. Your understanding of young people, education, digital culture, social media and the challenges facing your generation can be extremely valuable. We want younger trustees to feel confident that their voice matters.
For applicants with more professional or life experience, we welcome the knowledge, networks and judgement you can bring to help the organisation develop responsibly and avoid common mistakes as it grows.
We are looking for people who want to contribute rather than simply hold a trustee title. Trustees should be prepared to attend meetings, take part in discussions, complete agreed actions and support the board as we build the charity.
You do not need to know everything from day one. Training, guidance and support will be available as the board develops. If you believe in the vision, are willing to learn and want to help build something meaningful from its earliest stage, we would encourage you to apply.
Remote
What will you be doing?
As a founding trustee, you will join us at a unique stage where the board is still being formed and where your contribution can genuinely shape the charity from the beginning.
At present, the charity is being developed by the founder and we are building our first board of trustees. Our aim is to create a small, diverse and supportive board made up of people with different ages, backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. We want the board to grow with the charity rather than simply oversee it from a distance.
Our biggest challenge over the first year will be turning a strong vision into a well-run, sustainable organisation. The board will help us complete the charity registration process, agree our first strategy, establish strong governance, develop appropriate policies and controls, and make decisions about how our programmes should grow.
Trustees will also help us think carefully about funding, partnerships, safeguarding, financial management and how we measure the difference our work makes. We want to build programmes that respond to genuine needs and create meaningful outcomes, rather than simply delivering activities because they sound good.
You will take part in regular board meetings, contribute to key decisions and help agree the charity’s priorities. You will also help review our progress, consider risks and opportunities, and make sure we remain focused on the people and communities we exist to support.
Because this is our founding board, trustees will have opportunities to take responsibility for areas they are interested in. This could include finance, safeguarding, fundraising, partnerships, programmes, communications, governance or impact measurement.
We also expect to appoint specific roles as the board develops, including Chair, Treasurer and Safeguarding Lead. Trustees with a particular interest may later join or help lead working groups or subcommittees focused on areas such as fundraising, programmes, finance or safeguarding.
You will not be expected to know everything or have all the answers. We want trustees who are willing to contribute ideas, ask questions, learn from others and help make thoughtful decisions as part of a team.
One of our goals is to build a board where both fresh thinking and life experience are valued. Someone joining at 16 or 18 may bring a very different and important perspective from someone who has worked for 20 or 30 years. We believe those different voices can make the charity stronger.
What makes this role particularly exciting is the opportunity to help create something from day one. The decisions made by our founding trustees will influence the charity’s culture, priorities, partnerships and direction for years to come.
You will have the chance to help shape not only what we do, but the kind of organisation we become.
If you are interested in being part of a new charity at the beginning of its journey, helping build strong foundations and contributing to decisions that could create long-term impact, we would love to hear from you.

Work arrangement
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