Want to join our Board of Trustees?

Of course you do!

Response Ability Theatre is recruiting for trustees to help us build on our strong, values-led foundations, to become a more resilient and robust organisation, and strengthen our identity in our third year as a charity.

What is Response Ability Theatre?

Response Ability Theatre is a boldly survivor-led theatre and participation arts charity that supports and platforms people living with post-traumatic stress to lead on how stories like ours are told and learned from.

If you're reading our blog, chances are you know a bit about us already. But if you want to brush up a bit before carrying on reading, you can find an explanation of the concept, a link to some information about how we started out, our mission, vision and values, and our theory of change, on our "What is Response Ability?" page.

What are we looking for?

The most important qualities we are seeking in anyone we bring on are the following:

• a belief that post-traumatic stress doesn't and shouldn't have to stand in the way of people with lived experience leading on how stories like theirs are told and learned from;

• a commitment to support the really hard work that needs to be done to make that happen in a resistant social, cultural, political and economic climate.

We are specifically recruiting a Chair or two Co-Chairs, as well as general trustees.

General

We are currently especially interested to hear from people with experience and skills in:

• socially engaged arts programming and/or producing;

• campaigning and policy work, at any level from grassroots to governmental;

• arts in health/mental health;

• multi-agency working;

• clinical trauma care;

• professional or semi-professional arts practice.

Chair or Co-Chairs

• for this/these role(s), we are looking for people who may be able to help us further our presence and influence across the multiple sectors through which we are trying to achieve lived experience leadership in storytelling and change-making.

• If we were determined on just one Chair, we would probably be asking for someone with a background in theatre and/or live arts, and we definitely do need that expertise. But we are also very keen to hear from people with backgrounds in public health, academia, social and health care (especially mental health), grassroots activism, and other arts and media forms.

• We ideally would like two Co-Chairs, not just to combine perspectives from different backgrounds, but also to share the responsibility. We don't ask a huge amount of our Chair(s), but would find it useful to be able to check in with them for brief advice/updates on an ad hoc basis, and to meet properly in advance of board meetings (4 times a year) to make sure crucial things aren't missed from the agendas.

We believe in growing representation in our board organically and in non-tokenistic ways, so will not be setting any particular quotas for intake. We are however aware that our board would benefit from greater representation of Global Majority (especially Black), disabled, and LGBTQ+ people, better to reflect the range of characteristics among our participants and collaborators.

--

We are very interested to hear from people who identify as survivors - whether or not they are happy to declare so publicly, though it is particularly helpful for us to be able to demonstrate survivor visibility in our governance for participants’ and collaborators’ confidence. If you are a survivor, are new to governance and are not sure if this is the right opportunity for you, you are welcome to e-mail info@responseabilitytheatre.com to ask questions or arrange a call with our Founder to go through this and the other ways in which survivors can get involved in our work.

--

What does being a RAT trustee look like?

Our board has four 2-hour general meetings a year, and one “away day” - which sometimes is a whole day, and sometimes is an afternoon after a morning general meeting.

So far, our meetings have been on Sunday mornings, but this is not set in stone and we plan them around trustees’ availabilities.

At times, we may need or want trustee input in between meetings. What this might look like:

• a staff member reaching out via e-mail for advice on something in which that trustee is known to have expertise. This could happen at any time, but it is understood that the trustee will only respond when and if they have time;

• the CEO posting on the trustee WhatsApp group and/or e-mailing to ask for volunteers to read something over for signing, participate in an interview alongside the CEO with a potential funder, be on interview panels for recruitment of freelancers or associate artists, or similar. In these instances, at least one trustee will be required, and trustees are asked to work as a team to divide the load as fairly as possible;

• checking the trustees@ e-mail address in case of complaints, safeguarding concern reports, or other communucation, and responding accordingly. Currently, such things come up roughly 2 or 3 times a year;

• occasionally, trustees may need to complete short trainings outside of meeting times, such as safeguarding or general governance refreshers;

• we would like trustees to attend shows, sharings and events as often as they are able, and to volunteer to help e.g. by signing guests in or set up/pack down - but this is optional;

• trustees are also more than welcome to visit sessions and rehearsals throughout the year - but only if they fancy it!

Application process

To apply, please send a cover letter of no more than 1 A4 page and a CV (or, if more relevant, a link to your website) to info@responseabilitytheatre.com and trustees@responseabilitytheatre.com.

In the letter, please tell us:

• what makes you want to be part of our work in this way;

• what you can contribute to our board;

• and what you would get out of being a trustee;

• what your availability tends to look like, around work and personal commitments.

If you are applying for the (Co)-Chair position, please tell us how you fit our brief for the role, and if you would also be happy to be considered for a general trusteeship if we don’t offer you that specific role.

Timeline

Deadline for applications: Sunday 20^th September

Online informal chats: between Monday 21^st September and Sunday 4^th October

Decisions communicated by: Monday 12^th October

We can't wait to hear from you!