City Harvest is an award-winning non-profit organisation that seeks to put surplus food to use in a sustainable way, distributing to organisations that feed the hungry. It was founded in 2014 by a small group of individuals who were aware that in London, one of the wealthiest cities in the world, there is also acute hunger, and that there was no transportation network to get the abundance of surplus food to the hungry. Each week, the charity rescues over 100 tonnes of surplus food, converting it into approximately 1.1m meals per month delivered to partner charities serving vulnerable communities, feeding 84,000 people per week.

Whilst thousands of Londoners go hungry each day; safe, healthy and usable food is being disposed of. City Harvest collects this nutritious surplus food from all segments of the food industry including restaurants, grocers, manufacturers, wholesalers, hotels and caterers. It regularly delivers high-quality, nourishing food to over 375 organisations that provide meals to vulnerable people including homeless shelters, soup kitchens, children's programmes, centres for the elderly, and refuges for women experiencing domestic violence. The food it redistributes helps organisations serve thousands of healthy meals each week and reduce their annual grocer bills, freeing up funds that can be reinvested in other vital support services. In 2023, each of City Harvest’s partner charities saved an average of £75,000 on their food budgets due to City Harvest’s deliveries.  

The London food industry throws away enough surplus food to create 13.3m nutritious meals a month, more than enough to feed every person struggling to eat in the city. In-date, nutritious food is simply being wasted, globally adding an estimated 3.3bn tonnes of greenhouse gases to the Earth’s atmosphere each year. By rescuing this food, City Harvest not only tackles food poverty but also contributes to environmental sustainability by diverting edible food from landfills.

City Harvest's work has been recognised both in the press and with a number of prestigious awards, including the Caroline Walker Trust Award for Campaigner of the Year, Living Wage Champion and Leiths' Charity of the Year.

City Harvest is looking to appoint a Chair at an exciting point in its growth, as it considers how best to further extend its reach and impact. This is an opportunity for a passionate individual to join a hugely impactful organisation and help shape its future.

The incumbent Chair and Co-Founder of City Harvest is due to step down from the board in 2024, and the charity is looking to hire a new Chair to lead the board of up to ten trustees. The incoming Chair will provide support and strategic direction to the City Harvest Executive in its operational running of the charity and expansion of services. Working with the CEO, the Chair will share responsibility for the delivery of increased income, a rise in food donations as well as the strategic growth of the operation throughout London and beyond.

In addition, the Chair will:

• Have responsibility to the Trustee board, and founders, for the overall leadership, direction, and effectiveness of City Harvest London
• Work collaboratively with the Board and the Senior Leadership Team to deliver effective strategic direction
• Build and maintain the capability of the Board so that it is effective, cohesive, and focussed, including annually assessing the performance of members and committees
• Lead the Board in its relationship with the Senior Leadership Team and ensuring there is sufficient capability
• Support the Executive in managing risks to City Harvest London
• Drive collaborative working with stakeholders to help deliver the longer-term objectives for the Charity
• Promote and exercise the highest standards of corporate governance
• Promote a culture of equality, diversity, and inclusion on the Board as well as more widely throughout City Harvest London

The Board are looking to appoint a passionate individual who will possess the following skills and experiences:

• Leadership: Strong leadership skills gained as part of their executive career
• Governance: Previous charity board experience with the ability to embrace and embed good governance throughout the organisation
• Stakeholder management: Experience in building strong relationships, with the ability to inspire the confidence of Ministers, community partners and all staff, as well as nurturing critical relationships between the board and senior leadership
• Ambassadorial skills: Enthusiasm and passion for the charity’s mission with the capability to act as an ambassador for the charity and further expand the charity’s capabilities with regards to fundraising and food sourcing

Whilst the Board is open to candidates from a range of sectors, experience of raising funds (either for non-profits or from a corporate perspective) would be interesting, as would experience of the food sector.

Steve Winningham – Co-Founder and Chair (due to retire April 2024)
David Hirshman
Todd Benjamin
Patrick Street
Kathy Street (due to retire April 2024)
Victoria Heffer
Frank Bandura
Michelle Butler
Rajesh Makwana
Emma Danforth
Shaun Browne
Duncan Everett

As a voluntary position, the role is unremunerated. Board members may, however, claim reasonable pre-agreed expenses incurred as a result of carrying out their role.  The appointment will be for 3 or 4 years, to be agreed with the successful candidate. Reappointments may be made subject to satisfactory performance assessment and will be at the discretion of the board and founders.

Time commitment

This voluntary role requires a commitment of 3 - 4 days per month. There will be a minimum of six board meetings a year, as well as two days away as part of strategy development with the board and Senior Leadership Team. The Chair will also sit on the City Harvest Remuneration, Appointments and Policy Committee, as well as the Audit and Risk Committee. Attendance at regular meetings with the CEO will be required as well as occasional visits to the satellite operational facilities.

Board meetings are held at the City Harvest main offices which are situated in Acton, West London. There are also satellite sites within both New Spitalfields and New Covent Garden wholesale markets.