Calling all Gloucestershire farmers - fancy a seat on the board of a rural and educational charity?
A call has gone out for an entrepreneurial farmer to come forward to help steer the direction of one of the UK’s leading land-based educational charity.
The Ernest Cook Trust, which is based in Fairford and owns estates across six counties in the UK, has a vacancy for a trustee and specifically wants a farmer to fill the role, which is a paid position.
The new trustee – who can be a tenant farmer or farm owner - will bring first-hand experience of farming, helping the charity address the ongoing challenges of agriculture, diversification and conservation.
The Ernest Cook Trust is one of the UK’s foremost funders and providers of outdoor learning. It runs outdoor learning opportunities for children, young people, their families and communities on its own land as well as with partner estates. Every year, it also gives out thousands of pounds in grants, to further outdoor learning.
Its Chairman of Trustees, Andrew Christie-Miller, said: “We are looking to recruit a new Farmer Trustee to join our board in furthering our sole charitable object of education. The successful applicant will embody the Trust’s values, bringing first hand relevant experience to our dynamic team, helping address the ongoing challenges of farming, diversification and conservation.”
The Board is currently made up of six Trustees, who bring to the role a complementary range of professional skills and experience of investment, estate and land management, education and learning.
The successful applicant will sit on the main Trustee Board, which normally meets four times per year. They will also be required to join the Estates Committee, dealing with the agricultural portfolio and overseeing the wider range of property issues, including forestry, residential and commercial properties, and developments.
Last year, despite the pandemic, the Trust was able to commit more than £600,000 in emergency funds to provide help to those schools in the most deprived areas. It also provided financial support to a number of Outdoor Learning Centres which were struggling through the pandemic.
The Trust was also bequeathed Court Farm in Quenington, close to Fairford. The Trust is currently seeking to use this as its head office,
For more information about the role, visit https://ernestcooktrust.org.uk/jobs/. The closing date for applications is Sunday 31 July.
