‍Role Overview

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250 million children under 5 years old across the Global South miss out on the care, play and stimulation they need during the most important years of their lives. Governments increasingly recognise the importance of early childhood development, but many struggle to find approaches that are affordable, scalable, and sustainable.

Lively Minds believes the solution is hiding in plain sight: parents.

For almost twenty years we have worked alongside governments and communities to develop and test a parent-powered approach that enables families, regardless of their income or level of education, to give children the best possible start in life. We have shown that this approach can be successfully integrated into government systems and delivered at scale. In Ghana alone, our model has been adopted nationally, reaching more than 700,000 children and supporting over 130,000 parents. Independent research found participating children made developmental gains equivalent to an additional year of schooling.

Having demonstrated what is possible, we are now entering an exciting new phase.

Rather than operating as a traditional programme delivery organization, Lively Minds has evolved into a specialist technical assistance partner. We work alongside governments to design, test, and scale parent-powered early childhood development within national education systems, building the capability, evidence, and implementation approaches that enable governments to lead sustainable, long-term change.

Today we support governments in Ghana, Uganda, Ethiopia, and the Gambia, with partnerships in development in Togo and Senegal. Our ambition is to help many more governments transform early childhood development over the coming decade.

This is an opportunity to help shape not only the future of Lively Minds but also how governments across the Global South deliver early childhood development for generations to come.

We are looking for a finance trustee who shares that ambition and can help ensure we have the financial stewardship, strategic judgment, and governance needed to achieve it.

The Opportunity

This is not a traditional finance trustee role

Lively Minds is at an important strategic inflection point. As we expand our technical assistance model across multiple countries, we are asking new questions about organisational sustainability, financial resilience, growth, risk, and investment. We are looking for someone who enjoys helping ambitious organisations navigate those questions.

As finance trustee, you will bring independent judgment, financial expertise, and constructive challenge to the Board. You will help ensure we remain financially strong while enabling the organisation to pursue ambitious goals responsibly.

Working closely with the chair, CEO, COO, and finance director and chairing the finance & audit committee, you will help the board make confident, well-informed decisions about the organisation's future.

You will join a board that believes its role is to help the organisation realise its potential. That means asking difficult questions, opening doors, sharing expertise, encouraging innovation and supporting the executive team to succeed, while respecting the principle that the Board governs and management manages.

To find out more about our programme, please visit www.livelyminds.org.

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Key Responsibilities

As Finance Trustee you will help the Board to

Provide financial stewardship

• Act as a trusted sounding board to the FinanceDirector
• Help strengthen financial reporting and governance where appropriate
• Share expertise and experience that builds organisational capability
• Chair the Finance & Audit Committee and oversee the charity's financial health and long-term sustainability
• Review financial performance, budgets and forecasts
• Oversee the annual audit and approval of statutory accounts
• Monitor reserves, financial controls and risk management
• Ensure resources are used effectively and deliver value for money

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Strengthen strategic decision-making

• Bring financial insight to discussions on strategy, growth and organisational development
• Help assess the financialimplications of major strategic decisions and investments
• Support the Board in balancing ambition with affordability and risk
• Contribute to discussions on the long-term financial model needed to support international growth

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Support organisational capability

• Act as a trusted sounding board to the FinanceDirector
• Help strengthen financial reporting and governance where appropriate
• Share expertise and experience that builds organisational capability

Contribute as a Trustee

Like all trustees, you will contribute to the overall leadership and governance of Lively Minds, participating fully in board discussions on strategy, organisational performance, risk, people, and governance. We also expect trustees to champion the organisation actively, using their networks, credibility, and relationships to open doors, support fundraising, strengthen partnerships, and increase Lively Minds' visibility in the spaces where it matters most. The Board governs rigorously and champions energetically; we are looking for trustees who are ready to do both.

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Candidate Profile

Who we are looking for

We are looking for someone who combines strong financial expertise with strategic curiosity and a commitment to our mission.

You will probably have:

• A recognised accounting qualification (ACA, ACCA, CIMA, or equivalent)
• Senior financial leadership experience
• Excellent financial and commercial judgement
• Experience of financial planning, audit, controls and risk management
• The confidence to provide constructive challenge while building positive relationships
• An understanding of good governance and the respective roles of trustees and management
• The ability to think strategically beyond finance alone

Desirable Experience

Experience in one or more of the following would be particularly valuable:

• Charities or social purpose organisations
• International development
• Technical assistance or advisory organisations
• Scale-ups
• Institutional funding or grant finance
• Working with governments or public sector organisations

Most importantly, we are looking for someone who is excited by our mission and motivated by the opportunity to help build an organisation capable of transforming early childhood development at scale.

Time commitment

The expected commitment is approximately one to two days per month.

This includes:

• Four Board meetings each year
• Four Finance & Audit Committee meetings each year
• Preparation for meetings
• Participation in the annual budget and audit cycle
• Occasional advice and support between meetings

Meetings are primarily held remotely, with occasional in-person meetings.

The role is voluntary and unpaid, although reasonable expenses will be reimbursed.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

We believe stronger boards are built through diversity of experience, perspectives, and backgrounds.

We particularly welcome applications from people with lived or professional experience in the countries and regions where we work, and from groups currently underrepresented on charity boards.

We are committed to making our recruitment process accessible and will make reasonable adjustments wherever needed

Application Instruction

Why become a trustee at Lively Mind

‍ If  are motivated by using your financial expertise to help governments transform the lives of millions of children, we would love to hear from you.

 Please send:

• Your CV (or short professional biography)
• A covering letter explaining why you are interested in joining the Board of Lively Minds and what you would bring to the role.

Applications should be sent to jobs@livelyminds.org

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Timeline:

Closing Date: 15 August 2026

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