Love Hambrook Marshes CIO, Canterbury, is seeking a new Chair of Trustees
Love Hambrook Marshes CIO, the charity that owns and runs Hambrook Marshes in Canterbury, would like to recruit a new Chair of the Trustees who look after this important public open space. This is a voluntary position.
How to apply
Read the following document, consult the further information sources mentioned and complete an application form. The deadline for applications is 15th September, 2025
To obtain or submit an application form, or to ask any questions, please email lovehambrook@gmail.com
Background
Hambrook Marshes, beside the Great Stour River on the outskirts of Canterbury, is a natural wildlife haven, home to a wealth of bird life, plants and wildflower species. Open all year round, its paths and wetlands provide an opportunity for people to enjoy nature close to the city. You can find out more on our website: www.lhmcio.org.
The site is owned by the charity Love Hambrook Marshes (LHM). When the site was put up for sale by the previous owners in 2013, it became clear that a new owner could close public access and effectively ban walkers and cyclists from the one-mile Hambrook Marshes section of the Great Stour Way, and could also have made changes which might have been damaging to local wildlife. As a result, the charity ‘Love Hambrook Marshes CIO’ was formed on 31 March 2014 with the aims of acquiring Hambrook Marshes, maintaining public access, guaranteeing that the area would remain undeveloped, conserving the site through effective land management, protecting and encouraging plants and wildlife, and encouraging community involvement. The CIO currently has seven volunteer trustees.
LHM is funded primarily by grants administered by DEFRA’s Rural Payments Agency to support management of the site for nature conservation. These grants stipulate that the site should be maintained as a wetland, largely through cattle grazing. In 2024 LHM entered into an agreement with Kentish Stour Countryside Partnership (KSCP), which was extended in 2025, whereby KSCP is responsible for the day-to-day management and maintenance of the site, for dealing with funding from environmental land management schemes and submitting claims to the Rural Payments Agency, and for coordinating and managing educational and school engagement activities.
Chair of Trustees
The responsibilities of the Chair are:
- To oversee the strategic direction and management of Love Hambrook Marshes CIO;
- To ensure that Love Hambrook Marshes C IO pursues its charitable purposes as set out in its governing document and in its reporting to the Charity Commission;
- To oversee succession planning in order to ensure that Love Hambrook Marshes continues to be able to fulfil its objectives into the foreseeable future;
- To monitor cooperation between Love Hambrook Marshes CIO and the Kentish Stour Countryside Partnership in accordance with the Memorandum of Agreement;
- To chair meetings of the Trustees;
- To coordinate with the Secretary the arrangements for meetings of the Trustees, including the dates of meetings and the setting of the agenda.
In addition to these specific tasks, the general expectations for all Trustees are:
- attending Trustee Meetings – we hold 4 or 5 a year in Canterbury;
- attending occasional additional meetings if needed on particular issues – also held in Canterbury;
- ability to work in a team and cooperate with other Trustees;
- a reasonable knowledge of the Canterbury area;
- a broad general interest in – not necessarily any detailed knowledge of – natural history, plants, wildlife, public parks, etc.;
- keeping other Trustees informed and up-to-date on matters for which you are responsible;
- looking out for new issues likely to impact on LHM work or interests and bringing these to Trustee meetings;
- visiting Hambrook Marshes when needed to identify or consider issues and be able to contribute to management discussions;
- a basic working knowledge of email, word processing, spreadsheets and accessing websites.
Background information on formal role of a trustee
LHM is constituted as a CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1156473). This is an incorporated structure designed for charities. It is created by registering with the Charity Commission and Trustees have limited or no liability for debts or liabilities.
Trustees must ensure that the charity is carrying out its purposes for the public benefit; that the charity complies with its constitution and with the law; that each Trustee acts in the charity’s best interest; that Trustees manage the charity’s resources responsibly; and that individual Trustees act with reasonable care and skill.
For more information see The Essential Trustee – what you need to know, what you need to do; this is 40 page PDF available from the Charity Commission at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/617828/CC3.pdf
Who to contact for more information?
Contact Richard Norman, Secretary of LHM Trustees, at lovehambrook@gmail.com if you would like to arrange a more detailed discussion or raise any questions.
What happens after I have applied?
Each applicant will be contacted shortly after the closing date to let them know whether or not a follow-up interview will be arranged. After a successful interview we will contact referees and make a final decision.