Election for new Trust's chairmen

THE Five Partnership chairmen positions come to the end of their volunteering term this autumn requiring an election.

The chairmen of four of the Trust's Waterway Partnerships (Manchester & Pennine, North Wales & Borders, South Wales & Severn and West Midlands) plus the chairman of the Museums & Attractions Partnership, are coming to the end of their first volunteering term. Each is eligible to apply for reappointment for a second term as part of an open recruitment process.

Governing Council

The Partnership chairmen, who have a seat on the Trust's governing council, lead a group of local volunteers that help shape plans for their waterway, or CaRT's museums, and guide the Trust's decisions, we are told. The Partnerships include people with relevant business experience and expertise in areas like boating, local government, volunteering, fundraising, environment, heritage and community engagement, as well as core waterways and museums experience.

Each of the positions will be advertised during July with short-listed candidates invited for interview in early September. Appointments will be effective from November 2014.

Crucial role

Tony Hales, Chairman of the Canal & River Trust, comments:

"Our Partnerships have played a crucial role in the formative period of the Trust. The members are all unpaid volunteers and I thank them all for the contribution they have made. Every waterway is different and has its own special role in its community with different challenges and opportunities, and our museums are also unique.

"The Partnerships have worked with management, using their local knowledge to promote the value of their canals and rivers, and our museums, to establish stronger local relationships that help sustain the network, and to promote a new sense of local involvement and ownership. As volunteers they have a particular empathy with the burgeoning volunteer numbers in the Trust, a group of great importance to our long term future.

"I would like to thank all of the 'Chairs' for their contribution to date and look forward to the process of recruiting people to these really important roles going forward."