About Gurkha Welfare Trust

The Gurkha Welfare Trust (GWT) is a UK registered charity which targets the alleviation of hardship and distress among Gurkha pensioners and their dependants in Nepal. The executive and fundraising components are based in the UK, whilst the fieldwork is delivered in Nepal by a complement of around 500 local staff. The Trust’s annual budget to support its charitable objectives is around £22m.

GWT aims to ensure that Gurkha veterans, their widows and their wider communities are able to live with dignity. It achieves this primarily through the provision of financial, medical and community aid in Nepal. GWT operates through 20 Area Welfare Centres spread across traditional Gurkha recruiting areas. In the UK, in conjunction with other service charities and government bodies, it offers advice and support to help the thousands of retired Gurkhas and their families who choose to settle here.

Role specification

This Trustee will immediately join the Investment Committee as a member and will be expected to succeed the current Chair in early 2021. The Committee is responsible for setting the investment objectives and policies for GWT’s investment assets of c. £70m. These assets are held in portfolios managed currently by Sarasin & Partners.

There are 14 Trustees governing GWT on the main Board. This role is not confined solely to the Investment Committee, and the Trustee will be expected to play a part in important decisions for the Trust as a whole.

As a Trustee, the successful candidate will work effectively as a member of the Board and make decisions for the good of the GWT, by virtue of:

• An empathy with the values and ethos of the Gurkha Welfare Trust with a corresponding commitment to its mission; and
• An understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship.

Person specification

The role requires a seasoned investment professional who has recent and relevant expertise in long-term institutional investment management. The successful candidate will be an exceptional and credible individual from the investment industry. They should have a demonstrable tenure as an investment professional at an organisation with assets under management of greater scale than GWT, and with experience of asset allocation, investment and fund management.

The ideal candidate will bring previous experience of managing long-term fund, charitable or endowment assets, either as an investment trustee or board member.

The candidate should be UK-based to enable full interaction with the Investment Committee and the portfolio manager, and to attend Committee and Trustee meetings.

Required for this role

• Long-term institutional portfolio management Senior-level background in long-term institutional portfolio management as a portfolio manager, chief economist or sector / geography lead in an asset manager with at least £70 million in AUM. Candidates should have recent (within the last 8 years) executive or non-executive experience in long-term investment management.
• Trustee ready Sitting on a trustee board requires the ability to take a more advisory approach than in executive roles. If you have not previously held any trustee or non-executive positions, you should demonstrate a track record of influencing the direction of your organisation at board level. If you already have significant trustee or non-executive experience, please detail this.

Board composition

Lieutenant General (Ret'd) Sir Nick Pope KCB CBE, Chair
Stephen Cooper
Cathy Turner
David Hayes CBE
David Hitchcock OBE
Colonel Jody Davies MBE
Major General Gerald Strickland DSO MBE
Jeremy Brade MBE
Dr John Keeling
Major General Jon Cole OBE
Major (Ret'd) Krishnabahadur Gurung MVO MBE
Lieutenant General Richard Wardlaw OBE
Ann Levin

Remuneration and Term of Appointment

This role is unremunerated. All domestic travel expenses, travel to Nepal, and in-country expenses in Nepal will be covered by GWT.

This appointment will be for three years with the potential to extend.

Time Commitment

The Investment Committee meets three times a year in London, augmented occasionally by extra meetings as required whether in person or by telephone. The Board of Trustees also meets three times a year.

Trustee meetings are usually held in London but occasionally in Salisbury or Winchester. This Trustee should expect to make a trip to Nepal as an integral part of understanding the organisation better.

Process

Role timetable

Deadline for applications: 24th September

Candidates can expect to be contacted by: 8th October

Candidates can expect the process to be completed by: 31st October