Hestercombe Garden Trust were in need of a new Chair of Trustees and were recommended to Charisma by the Chair of Cogges in Witney, for whom we had successfully recruited a number of Trustees. Following an initial virtual meeting with the CEO of Hestercome and the Charisma consultant, a full proposal was put together that fully met the brief of the organisation.
Hestercombe has had some high profile Chairs in its history and individuals with significant national relationships and commercial experience. It was important that the search, though for a local trust in Somerset, had a national reach and encouraged a wide range of applications. A full briefing meeting was held with the search committee, made up of three Trustees, to ensure that the Charisma consultant had a full grasp and understanding of the type of candidate required.
A significant headhunting exercise was undertaken to engage candidates in the process, as well as a comprehensive advertising and marketing campaign. The campaign ran over 8-weeks with nearly 50 suitable individuals identified, contacted and engaged in the process.
Following interviews with candidates at Charisma a shortlist of two suitable candidates was submitted to the board, in line with the brief and expectations of skillset and experience.
Both candidates were invited forward for a half-day interviews at the Trust, getting to meet the CEO, have a tour of the site, meet with the senior leadership team and interview with the Board of Trustees. Following this half-day, one of the candidates was invited to join the Board as Chair. The Charisma consultant handled the whole offer process, as well as sharing full feedback with the unsuccessful candidate.
Following this verbal offer and acceptance the full Board of Trustees met via video to ratify the decision, meaning that the candidate was able to start in post within a few weeks of the offer being made. The calibre of candidates submitted for the role fully met the brief and all individuals involved in the process were pleased with the outcome. We looking forward to seeing how the new Chair flourishes in their role, as well as supporting Hestercombe in the future.

Hestercombe Garden Trust were in need of a new Chair of Trustees and were recommended to Charisma by the Chair of Cogges in Witney, for whom we had successfully recruited a number of Trustees. Following an initial virtual meeting with the CEO of Hestercome and the Charisma consultant, a full proposal was put together that fully met the brief of the organisation.

Case Study: Hestercombe Garden Trust

Charisma Charity Recruitment are dedicated to working with charities and not-for-profits across the UK. With an existing track record of working with Animal Assistance organisations, including partnerships with organisations such as Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, I have been passionate about expanding our support in this community.
2023 was a busy year in this arena, with me leading successful campaigns for Assistance Dogs UK, Pets as Therapy, and Canine Partners, as well as several key campaigns for Dogs for Good in 2022. These rigorous and far-reaching executive and board searches relied on robust, fair, and well-governed processes. Our in-depth knowledge of the opportunities and challenges in the sector, talent acquisition, candidate engagement, vetting and aftercare, complemented by vibrant and accessible advertising and marketing, being key to the success of these impactful campaigns.
Read more below:
<h3>Assistance Dogs UK</h3>
Charisma was delighted to have the opportunity to work in partnership with Assistance Dogs UK (ADUK), a voluntary coalition of assistance dog charities that have been accredited by Assistance Dogs International (ADI) and/or The International Guide Dog Federation (IGDF), to secure their new Chair of Trustees.
The new Chair would be leading the Board of Trustees and working closely with the Executive Director in building ADUK&rsquo;s external presence and influence, whilst continuing to work as an effective umbrella body and hub for assistance dog-related information and good practice. Ensuring that the organisation remained focused on the delivery of the organisation&rsquo;s charitable purposes, giving direction to Board policymaking, representing the organisation at functions and meetings, and building new networks and relationships with relevant stakeholders and decision-makers was essential. Charisma&rsquo;s search focused on finding strategic individuals who demonstrated credibility, relevant experience, and influence, with previous experience as a Chair, Trustee, or in leadership roles, and of leading national campaigns for change. Ensuring a diverse pool of candidates was engaged via accessible advertising and marketing, and talent acquisition (headhunting, networks, and database search) was essential, as we actively encouraged candidates with experience in the disability or animal welfare sectors and/or with lived experience of being partnered with an assistance dog.
Following a UK-wide search, six high calibre candidates were secured and shortlisted for consideration, with an experienced senior leader, with previous high level Board exposure, appointed to join the Board.
"The Charisma team have been brilliant - hugely supportive and efficient. I will definitely recommend you to others&rdquo;. Incoming Chair of Trustees
<h3>Canine Partners</h3>
Charisma worked with Canine Partners to secure two strategic, inspirational, and motivational leaders, to assume the roles of Director of Finance and Resources and Director of Income Generation. Canine Partners, a registered charity that transforms the lives of people with physical disabilities by partnering them with assistance dogs. Their amazing dogs bring a greater independence and quality of life to their partners, offering security, companionship, and practical help with everyday household tasks, as well as providing psychological and social benefits including increased confidence, social interaction, and self-esteem.
It was an exciting time to join the organisation, but also a challenging one, as Canine Partners was still recovering from the long tail of Covid-19. Charisma needed to find strong team players who could hit the ground running, and who were confident at taking the initiative and building relationships and trust quickly. The new Director of Income Generation was set to lead the creation and development of integrated, innovative, and sustainable high value fundraising and marcomms strategies to deliver the charity&rsquo;s strategic objectives and meet agreed KPIs. The Director of Finance and Resources, would need to provide strategic financial direction across the organisation and be accountable for all aspects of internal and statutory financial reporting, ensuring the effectiveness and efficiency of the Charity's financial policies, procedures, and internal control systems. Both directors were to be inspirational leaders, responsible for leading their team and function, but also providing leadership across the organisation as a member of the SLT.
Charisma conducted robust public campaigns and worked in close collaboration with the Talent Team to ensure no stone was left unturned in terms of direct approaches to both warm and cold candidates. With strong engagement, especially from our database, and a complementary 4-week outward facing campaign, strong shortlists were defined with both roles appointed successfully. During one of these campaigns, we also supported an internal candidate, who was brought into the process to ensure a fair and robust experience for all candidates. Ultimately, an external candidate was selected for the appointment.
<h3>Dogs for Good&nbsp;</h3>
The now former Chief Executive of Dogs for Good engaged Charisma to manage the recruitment of a new Director of Income Generation as well as the search and selection of a new Chief Executive. With the upcoming retirement of the incumbent Chief Executive, after more than twenty-five years in post, and the desire to shape an integrated role that would focus on the leadership of fundraising, communications, and marketing, more weighted to income generation that ever before, Charisma conducted a detailed site visit and consultation with internal stakeholders to ensure an accurate brief was captured prior to the campaigns commencing.
For the new Chief Executive, a dynamic and inspirational leader with a commitment to achieving high standards of dog welfare and a genuine interest in and passion for bringing people and dogs together to enrich and improve both lives and to better understand the human animal bond was essential. Key criteria were defined across both roles, with the Chief Executive requiring experience of effective partnership working and development, and external relationship management, managing, motivating, and developing staff, business planning, business development, strong financial skills, and with a robust approach to governance, controls, and implementation of new processes. Following wide-reaching searches and robust vetting and interview processes, a new Chief Executive, and a Director of Income Generation, with extensive experience of fundraising/income generation, a strong track record of harnessing digital tools, and of developing effective and integrated marketing and brand strategies for a charity, were secured, and joined the organisation in late 2022.
&nbsp;"Charisma formulate very clear plans and timescales for the recruitment process and then execute the plans in a very professional and timely manner. I have been particularly impressed by the way Charisma took a lot of care to really understand the culture of Dogs for Good and our precise requirements and this has resulted in a very positive partnership.&nbsp; Overall, our experience of working with Charisma has been excellent and I would have no hesitation in recommending them as first-class recruitment consultants." Former CEO, Dogs for Good
<h3>Pets as Therapy&nbsp;</h3>
2023 was a busy year at Pets as Therapy (PAT) and Charisma was delighted to have ownership for the management of two major campaigns. PAT is a charity formed in 1983, to share the joy of companion animals with those deprived of it, and it is now the UK&rsquo;s largest volunteer-based charity dedicated to enhancing health and wellbeing in the community through companion animal interactions. As a national organisation, PAT facilitates visits from more than 4,500 volunteer person and animal teams, contributing to an improved quality of life and wellbeing for thousands of people every year, in a range of settings, including hospitals, hospices, nursing and care homes, schools, and colleges, prisons and a wide variety of other situations.
In early 2023, new&nbsp;trustees were sought to join the Board. Each new trustee was to have a different skill set/expertise acquired through professional fundraising, HR, finance, and/or volunteer management or lived experience. These key areas were defined via a skills audit, and the new trustees were to use their specific knowledge or experience to help the Board of Trustees reach sound decisions, as well as leading discussions, focusing on key issues, and providing advice and guidance requested by the Board on new initiatives, or other issues relevant to the area of the charity's work in which the trustee had expertise. Charisma had a UK-wide brief, with the aim of securing better representation for the charity in geographical areas their work was emerging in. Following an 8-week campaign, 19 candidates were secured against the key disciplines and 5 candidates were appointed to trustee roles.
With a track record of success with PAT, Charisma were retained to secure a new&nbsp;CEO. The successful candidate would need to demonstrate drive, vision, and creative leadership skills, to build on their strong track record and implement an ambitious strategy, which included funding diversification, partnership and engagement development, sector leadership and above all, ensured the delivery of an outstanding service for all beneficiaries supported by operational excellence. Charisma was tasked with securing individuals with a strong track record of impactful and influential leadership, with a strong fundraising or commercial component, experience in the development and delivery of strategies and operational plans, leading and working with volunteers, and proven experience of robust financial, budget and people management. Due to the high calibre of candidate sought, following the first campaign, the Nominations Panel worked with Katherine to reframe the role, increasing the salary level and flexibility. The second search and selection campaign opened the role up to a new area of the market and enabled the securing of a robust shortlist for interview. Following a total of 8-weeks of searching and vetting, and robust interviewing, a successful candidate was appointed.
If you have any upcoming recruitment plans on the horizon or would like to connect for an introductory virtual coffee for the future, please contact me via this <a style="color: rgb(35, 111, 161);" href="/contact-us/">form</a>&nbsp;or call 01962 813300.

We've enjoyed partnering with many Assistance Animal organisations across the United Kingdom on a variety of critical roles.

How we're partnering with Assistance Animal charities across the UK

Veterans Outreach Support (VOS) is an award-winning, UK registered charity that provides holistic, person-centred support in the areas of welfare, wellbeing, and mental health for individuals that have served their nation in the British Armed Forces and Reserves, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and the Merchant Navy, and their partners, in Portsmouth, Hampshire, and the Isle of Wight. VOS are well known in the armed forces charity sector for developing the Drop-In model of support, with a focus on close collaboration with delivery partners, and for dedicated mental health support. Over the last 4 years, VOS has seen an increasing demand for the vital mental health services and support they provide and has significantly expanded its range of peer-supported wellbeing activities and social groups.&nbsp;
With the growth of the charity, Charisma had been working in partnership with the organisation on salaried roles across finance, projects, and administrative support, so when the time came to renew and grow the Board of Trustees, VOS approached Charisma to manage a full, rigorous, and robust recruitment campaign to secure new Board members. 
Following in-depth discussions and consultation, VOS and Charisma defined skills gaps on the existing Board as key areas of focus for the public search, as well as formulating a comprehensive timescale, which enabled trustee induction prior to their introduction at the spring AGM. A detailed brief was taken, including exploration into the upcoming challenges and opportunities for VOS. 
Following extensive candidate research conducted by Charisma&rsquo;s Talent Team and the creation of marketing tools, including a vibrant and interactive candidate pack, the campaign was launched, with candidates sought in the following disciplines: finance, commercial (e.g. charity trading arm, CIC or social enterprise), mental health and adult social care, HR (ideally with a CIPD qualification), digital transformation and business intelligence and/or lived experience. The search phase encompassed several different engagement routes, including a paid advertising campaign, direct approaches to individuals with the required skills sets via our extensive database, relevant and researched networks and making cold approaches to the wider market. Over 100 candidates were directly contacted across a rigorous 8-week public campaign, with candidates offered initial chats, and those suitable at screening stage, were taken through a vetting interview to further judge suitability and values alignment. Engagement was seen locally and regionally, as well as from further afield. 
11 vetting interviews were conducted, with 8 high calibre candidates secured for the longlist, who all presented with very strong expertise in their specific discipline, and as strategic leaders, who demonstrated credibility and values alignment. In consultation, Charisma and VOS selected 6 candidates to attend in-person interviews, the day itself including formal and informal elements, including a panel interview with the Chair and nominations committee, time spent with the CEO and an opportunity to observe a drop-in session to see the charity deliver their support model. Following interviews, we were delighted that the VOS Board was in a position to appoint 4 successful candidates, with offers made by VOS&rsquo;s dedicated Charisma Consultant. The new trustees were then able to assume their roles in late 2023 (just in time for the Christmas party!) with a full induction prior to the spring AGM.
&ldquo;Working with Charisma on our recent trustee recruitment campaign has been an extremely rewarding and professionally satisfying experience for Veterans Outreach Support and for the candidates alike. From an incisive and insightful client brief, through vetting, selection and appointment, Charisma conducted a highly professional and diligent campaign that resulted in the appointment of four excellent trustees across the targeted areas of expertise and experience. We also know that the experience from the candidate perspective was equally positive, with candidates commenting on the personal warmth, professionalism, and enthusiasm for our charity demonstrated by Charisma staff throughout their engagement. VOS would not hesitate to appoint Charisma Charity Recruitment to deliver future trustee and other recruitment campaigns and would strongly recommend them to others. A first-class service from a trusted and people-centred partner.&rdquo;

&ldquo;Working with Charisma on our recent trustee recruitment campaign has been an extremely rewarding and professionally satisfying experience"

Case Study: Veterans Outreach Support

Alive Church is a multi-ethnic, multi-generational church whose vision is to provide opportunities for people to come to know and passionately follow Jesus. Acts Trust was founded by Alive Church in 2006. Acts Trust&rsquo;s vision to see every neighbourhood within the city of Lincoln thriving as people are empowered and better connected to those around them.
Together Alive Church and Acts Trust were facing a challenge in recruiting a Youth Team Leader. The position required a unique blend of leadership, pastoral care, and a genuine passion for working with young people. Despite their best efforts, they were struggling to find the ideal candidate to fill this critical role.
The CEO of Acts Trust reached out to Charisma Charity Recruitment, known for their expertise in matching talented individuals with roles in the Christian charity sector. Nick Thomas, Consultant at Charisma, who specialises in Christian charity and church roles, oversaw the recruitmentcampaign.
Charisma undertook a wide-reaching and robust candidate resourcing exercise. This involved using various platforms, including a structured marketing campaign to bring the role to life, our database, our extensive networks, and LinkedIn, to identify Christians with the right skills, experience, and passion for the role.
After a thorough vetting process, which included initial calls and vetting interviews, two standout candidates were selected for in-person interviews. Alive Church and Acts Trust invited the youth members to be involved in the interview process, with this innovative approach allowing the candidates to interact with the very individuals they would be working with, providing valuable insights into their suitability for the position.
After careful consideration and prayers, Alive Church and Acts Trust successfully appointed a Youth Team Leader who demonstrated not only the technical skills required for the role but also a genuine connection with the youth members, and an inspiring passion for young people to come to know Jesus.
Alive Church and Acts Trust's partnership with Charisma proved to be instrumental in overcoming their recruitment challenge. By leveraging Charisma&rsquo;s expertise in understanding the genuine occupational requirement for the individual to be a practicing Christian, they have been able to employ a fantastic Youth Team Leader.
<blockquote>
&ldquo;During the course of 2022 we struggled to recruit a new team leader for our Youth Team at Alive Church in Lincoln. We knew this was an exciting and rewarding job but we also knew our limitations promoting the role ourselves. We needed help, especially as we kept being told there is a UK shortage for great youth leaders! I reached out to Charisma Charity Recruitment and immediately felt assured - I was impressed with their approach, their personal touch and especially their confidence. With Charisma's help we successfully recruited an amazing leader for the team - someone who we'd never have found if we were left to our own devices! I can thoroughly recommend their services.&rdquo;
</blockquote>
Our Recruitment Consultant Nick Thomas has a rich background in pastoral leadership. With 12 years experience as an Assistant Pastor, Associate Pastor, and Pastoral Assistant at Southampton Vineyard Church. Nick brings a deep understanding of church dynamics and service.
Additionally, he served as the Centre Manager for the Christian Against Poverty Southampton debt centre for nearly a decade, Nick played a pivotal role in expanding CAP services within Southampton and its surrounding areas. Nick actively engaged churches and individuals from different denominations, encouraging them to join in and make a positive difference in the lives of many.
Nick's professional qualifications include being CIPD certified which highlights his proficiency in human resources and recruitment practices. He is driven by a genuine passion for delivering a nurturing and high-quality experience for both candidates and charities alike.
If you are looking for a recruitment partner who understands the unique needs of faith-based organisations, please contact us today. We would be delighted to discuss your needs and how we can help you to achieve your goals, please do contact the Charisma team.

Alive Church is a multi-ethnic, multi-generational church whose vision is to provide opportunities for people to come to know and passionately follow Jesus. Acts Trust was founded by Alive Church in 2006. Acts Trust&rsquo;s vision to see every neighbourhood within the city of Lincoln thriving as people are empowered and better connected to those around them.

Case Study: Hestercombe Garden Trust

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