Trustees play a key role in ensuring SVC’s continuing development. They work behind the scenes to ensure that the future of SVC is bright and its missions and priorities remain of upmost importance. Therefore we believe it is vital for everyone to know a little bit about all of our trustees.
In the lead up to trustees week (the 7th-13th November) we want to give you the opportunity to meet the faces behind our motto ‘give a little, gain a lot’. Each week we will introduce a few of our board members via blog post!
This week we begin with meeting our Chair Kieran and Secretary Alison.
Kieran - Chair
I’m Kieran, and I’m the chair of the board of trustees for Student Volunteering Cardiff, my shared responsibilities are to oversee the strategic and finical direction of the charity and to ensure it meets all the rules and regulations outlined by the Charity Commission. This is just a short outline of my time with SVC so far:
After spending a year being a Lead Volunteer, I decided to put myself forward for a position on the Board of Trustees, and I’ve never looked back since. I was voted on to the board by the other trustees and quickly dived into board meetings, training and research to support SVC in any way I could. I’ve always been interested in the management of charities, voluntary services and other organisations in the not for profit sector, and this interest was often an item for discussion as part of my assignments and researched at Cardiff Business School, so I was overjoyed when I became chair of SVC and could get involved with the management of a charitable organisation.
I’m now a couple of months into being chair and my enthusiasm has not diminished. Being a trustee is a challenging but hugely rewarding process. It’s fantastic going to SVC events and volunteering projects and seeing decisions and actions taken by the board being implemented and making a real difference in Cardiff. You meet some amazing people, from the team of committed staff, to the volunteers who give up their time to do something amazing. I only hope I can continue to help make an impact and ensure that our volunteers have everything they need, to continue the wonderful work that they do. Finally, I would recommend being a trustee to anyone who is lucky enough to have this amazing opportunity to make a real difference in the future.
Alison - Secretary
Hi! I’m Alison and I am the Secretary on the SVC board of trustees this year. My role is to document all of our board meetings and keep the rest of the board up to date with meeting details. I am a mature student currently in my 3rd year of a Speech and Language Therapy degree at Cardiff Metropolitan University.
My involvement with SVC goes back almost 10 years! During my first degree in Psychology at Cardiff University I discovered SVC through a housemate and began volunteering with the charity. I first volunteered on a befriending project with older members of the community, then on an education project in a local primary school as well as taking part in one-off volunteering with people with learning disabilities. I loved my time volunteering with SVC and after I graduated I started working for the charity. I had an absolutely amazing 4 years on the staff team before embarking on my current course.
When SVC opened their doors to volunteers across Cardiff, not just from Cardiff University, I jumped at the opportunity to get involved again! I am so proud to be part of a charity that does so much good in the community. Seeing the amazing work our volunteers do to help others in their spare time is a pleasure and I’m so pleased to be a part of it again!
