Treasurer

As Treasurer, you will play a central role in supporting the Board to oversee the financial health, sustainability and risk profile of the Society of St James. This includes oversight of a substantial and complex income base, where financial decisions directly impact service delivery, risk exposure and long-term organisational sustainability. This is a strategic governance role, not an operational one. Working closely with the Chief Executive, senior team and fellow Trustees, you will ensure the Board has clear, meaningful financial information to support effective decision-making across a complex organisation. With increasing demand for services and ongoing pressure on public funding, your role will be to bring clarity, challenge and forward-looking financial insight. Who we are looking for We are looking for a Treasurer who brings strong financial expertise alongside sound judgement and a collaborative approach to governance. You will be joining a Board committed to strong governance, constructive challenge and supporting the organisation through its next phase of development.

• A recognised financial qualification (e.g. ACA, ACCA, CIMA, CIPFA) or equivalent senior-level experience
• Strong financial literacy, with the ability to interpret, challenge and clearly communicate financial information
• Experience operating at a senior level, ideally within a complex, multi-income organisation
• An understanding of financial risk, sustainability and long-term planning, particularly in environments with contracted or commissioned income
• Integrity, independence of thought and a commitment to effective governance
Previous Trustee experience is not essential, although experience of working with Boards or Committees would be helpful. You will be motivated to apply your expertise where financial stewardship directly enables services that support people through homelessness and complex disadvantage.

The Society of St James is a Southampton-based homelessness charity supporting people across Hampshire to move towards safety, independence and well-being. We work with individuals experiencing homelessness, problematic alcohol or substance use, mental-health challenges and long-term disadvantage. Our services span supported accommodation, housing, recovery and community-based provision. This breadth brings both impact and complexity, requiring strong operational delivery alongside careful financial stewardship. Today, SSJ is a sizeable and complex organisation, with an annual income approaching £23m and a workforce of over 400 staff. A significant proportion of our income is derived from government contracts and commissioned services, requiring careful oversight of financial risk, performance and compliance. We believe everyone deserves somewhere safe to live and the opportunity to build a more stable future. As we look ahead, our focus is on strengthening our resilience to meet growing demand., Placing purpose and quality before profit, Peridot Partners is a values-led third sector executive recruitment agency transforming leadership and inspiring change with organisations that have a social purpose. We're a close-knit team of exceptional people and we're proud of developing an ultra-flexible, empowering and fun culture. We focus on long-term, deep-rooted relationships that bring added value. We challenge the status quo about what makes good leadership, and this is reflected in our exceptional clients, candidates and close community of change-makers. Since 2009, we have worked with organisations that want to grow and who appreciate and value good leadership, across the public, third and private sectors. The strength of our organisation comes from our cross-functional networks, our exceptional research team and our experience attracting people from all sectors to organisations with a social focus. We recruit to boards, executive positions and specialist functional roles such as fundraising, finance, and marketing and communications across a range of sectors, from social justice and health charities, foundations, grant-making organisations and think tanks to awarding bodies, training providers, schools, multi-academy trusts, colleges and universities, and student unions., "The Executive Team recruited by Peridot are fantastic! The team are one of the best I have seen and have successfully taken on the challenge of an organisation facing insolvency and led a turnaround in our fortunes, and into a successful merger that will safeguard further education in the city of Brighton." - Chair of the Corporation at Greater Brighton Metropolitan College We're driven by our values:
• Be brave - We champion and challenge in our own individual ways to improve outcomes for ourselves and our clients.
• Bring rigour - We're thorough, thoughtful and speak up for what's right.
• See the bigger picture - We build real partnerships and work together for long term success.
• Sense and respond - We respond in creative and meaningful ways to what's needed.
Our intentions are clear: to achieve the best outcomes for our clients, our candidates, our people and our business. We are known for third sector executive recruitment underpinned by high standards, quality service and creating social impact. We develop long-term, deep-rooted relationships that bring real value to our partners across socially focused sectors. Diversity at our heart We do not believe in throwaway statements about diversity. Instead, diversity is at the heart of everything we do and is crucial to our success, reputation, and the organisations and people we work with. We understand that it is not good enough to simply not discriminate and we must do more to create positive change. With this in mind, we are proud that we have been actively working to become an Anti-Racist and more inclusive organisation. We recognise that unconscious bias exists and must be minimised. We have put processes in place to manage them. We have a position of influence as a recruitment company to make our positive contribution to change the systems that perpetuate discrimination, and with that comes a responsibility to do better. We work tirelessly to ensure we lead inclusive campaigns and projects that can encourage all members of society to apply and know that they will be treated with decency and respect. We support equal opportunities in employment and oppose all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination based on gender, age, ethnic or national origin, religion, sexual orientation or disability. We believe that a diverse not for profit sector will provide better leadership to accelerate positive change in society. We are proud to have an exceptional track record of leading inclusive recruitment campaigns that enhance diversity of leadership teams and boards. As a recruitment partner, you can expect us to:
• Constructively challenge you if you have exclusive and restrictive criteria in your role profiles.
• Ensure the advertising materials for your role use inclusive language and imagery.
• Promote your role within sector-specific networking forums wherever possible (e.g. women, global ethnic majority, disabled and LGBTQIA+ networks).
• Put diversity at the heart of the projects we are undertaking when talking to your staff and board to ensure we are reflecting the people and communities you work with and for.
• Challenge inappropriate behaviour, practice and comments where required.
• Make reasonable adjustments as needed.
Our commitment to building diverse organisations starts with us, and we are proud that women, LGBTQ+, disabled and people from ethnic minorities consider Peridot a great place to work.