15 Aug 2011

Freelance Creative England – Board Directors

Creative England – Posted by Vanessa Cook – London, England, United Kingdom

NOTE: This job listing has expired and may no longer be relevant!

Job Description

CREATIVE ENGLAND’S RECRUITMENT INFORMATION PACK:

BOARD DIRECTOR

This pack will provide you with the information required to assist you with your application

CONTENTS

1. Advert

2. How to apply

3. Creative England overview

4. Person specification and responsibilities

5. Equal Opportunities form

1. ADVERT

Creative England is a new organisation which formally commences operations in October 2011. It

is built on the work of the Regional Screen Agencies who, for the last ten years, have assisted the

development of the film, TV, interactive, games and digital media industries, and the growth of film

culture in England.

The Creative England Board will comprise industry experts and influencers ready to lead this new

organisation and represent the creative industry sector in the English Regions. As a Board

member you will be responsible for providing visible, effective leadership to the company and

setting the longer term strategy, direction and priorities. Collectively, our Board will be responsible

for setting and monitoring financial policies and internal controls.

Creative England is a not for profit company, limited by guarantee. As a body in receipt of public

funds Creative England will give practical support to government policies for growth, recognising

the need to build on England’s well-established centres of creative excellence while retaining

sufficiently broad-ranging networks to reach out to new talent wherever it is located in the country,

and to help industry reach out to new audiences and new markets. Creative England’s purpose is

to support the sustainable growth of independent creative businesses, and support the talent that

feeds them, in every part of England outside London.

As a Board member you will be expected to have substantial experience and knowledge of the film

and media industries. You will provide impartial, objective and pragmatic advice to ensure Creative

England adheres to corporate governance and compliance with relevant legislation.

Attendance at approximately six Board meetings a year for the first year and four times a year

thereafter will be required, and some additional time will be required to review papers. Further

meetings may be convened at the discretion of the Chair. The appointment will be for a term of

three years, with the option to be renewed for a second term.

We are now looking for dynamic and committed experts to lead this new organisation. This is a

fantastic opportunity to play a major part in boosting England’s creative industries, one of the

fastest growing sectors in the UK.

The ideal candidate will have a demonstrable record of success sitting on high profile creative

industry Boards.

DEADLINE: 9th September 2011

INTERVIEWS: Week commencing 19th September 2011

For further details visit www.creativeengland.co.uk to download an information pack

or request via board@creativeengland.co.uk

Email (as above) or post your applications (registered post only)

FAO Samantha Harrison c/o Screen West Midlands, 9 Regent Place, Birmingham, B1 3NJ.

**NO AGENCIES**

2. HOW TO APPLY

Please apply by CV and cover letter, explaining why you wish to be a Board member and the

qualities and skills you feel they can bring to the organisation. Please ensure that you meet the

criteria set out in the person specification (see below).

Please send applications by email (see above), or by post (registered only) to: Samantha Harrison

Board Secretariat, by 9th September 2011 (midday) c/o Screen West Midlands, 9 Regent Place,

Birmingham, B1 3NJ. Interviews will be held w/c 19th September 2011 in London, venue to be

confirmed.

It is company policy to only contact shortlisted candidates. If you have not heard within 3 weeks of

the deadline, please consider you have been unsuccessful in securing an interview.

Creative England supports and promotes equal opportunities policy. Applications are welcomed

regardless of gender, age, marital status, disability, religion, ethnic origin, political opinion, sexual

orientation or whether or not you have dependents.

Please complete our equal opportunities monitoring form at the end of this pack (this is optional).

3. CREATIVE ENGLAND OVERVIEW

Creative England is a new organisation which will be operational from October 2011. It is built on

the work of the Regional Screen Agencies that, for the past ten years, have assisted thedevelopment of the film, TV, interactive, games and digital media industries, and the growth of film culture in England. Creative England’s core purpose is to support the sustainable growth of independent creative businesses in every part of England outside London, to develop the talent

that feeds them and to nurture film and moving image culture.

From 1st October 2011 Creative England will be the designated body in receipt of DCMS funds via

the British Film Institute (BFI) for the delivery of film services in the English regions. It is also

bidding to a number of other central government and European funds. Creative England is a

private not for profit company, limited by guarantee. It currently has an Establishment Board

(interim advisory board), chaired by John Newbigin, and is in the process of recruiting for a new

permanent Board of members and directors appointed from across the film and creative industries

who will be responsible for the effective governance of the company.

As a body in receipt of public money Creative England will give practical support to government

policies for growth, recognising the need to build on England’s well-established centres of creative

excellence while retaining sufficiently broad-ranging networks to reach out to new talent wherever

it is located in the country, and to help industry reach out to new audiences and new markets.

Creative England will deliver initiatives that use public funds to add value rather than to duplicate

services; to ensure that it intervenes when there is a clear market failure, concentrating on

improving infrastructure and removing barriers and to use public subsidy to achieve the right

balance between creative, cultural, social and economic impacts.

OBJECTIVES

The core objectives for Creative England will be to:

Grow the film, media, and creative industries across England, except in London, to assist the

UK economy towards a strong recovery and strengthen the country’s position as an

international centre of excellence for the sector

In partnership with the BFI, develop and support film activity throughout England, providing a

focus for talent development; nurturing film culture and maximizing inward investment

Act as a conduit from the local to national and international, connecting business to

opportunities wherever possible

Provide aggregation of SMEs to provide a distributed network for public and private funds

Work with local communities to ensure they have the access and opportunity to engage with

film and digital media

Provide innovative, market led thinking to help government develop strategy and policy for the

sector and delivering impact, securing the conditions that allow the sector to grow and thrive

Help build creative people and businesses by backing innovation and supporting the

development of a dynamic and sustainable creative and media sector

4. PERSON SPECIFICATION

Board members should possess knowledge, skills and experience in the following areas:

Be/have been in a senior influential role in their particular sphere of activity

Have expert sector knowledge, with a good operational network of contacts and in-depth

experience in at least one area of Creative England’s work

Demonstrate commitment to the growth of opportunities, business development and

infrastructure development for the creative industries outside London

Demonstrate commitment to and understanding of the aims of developing regional cultural

and economic prosperity

Have an understanding of the barriers faced by disadvantaged and socially excluded

groups together with an understanding of and commitment to equal opportunities and

practice

And the following personal qualities:

An effective advocate

Excellent listening, analytical and comprehension skills

Excellent judgment and a high level of integrity

Be able to operate effectively as a member of a team with collective responsibility

Be an open minded strategic thinker, able to take a strategic view across the full range of

issues affecting Creative England

Be able to command trust and respect from colleagues and stakeholders

Have a track record of effective, timely delivery

Have the ability to understand complex issues and discern what is significant before

meetings

Creative England Board responsibilities

Chair

The Chair has the responsibility for ensuring that all members are fully briefed on their terms of

appointment and their duties and responsibilities.

Impartiality

Creative England aspires to the highest standards of impartiality, integrity, and objectivity in its

work and will use clear and objective data, careful analysis and professional judgements in arriving

at its decisions. Creative England will maintain a regularly updated register of members’ and their

partners’ interests.

Openness

Creative England aims to be open and responsive in the way it conducts its affairs, and complies

with all reasonable requests for information concerning its policies, procedures, criteria and

decisions from funding bodies, users of its services and the general public.

Funds

Creative England receives funding from the British Film Institute (BFI) and from other public sources. The conditions of funding as set out by the BFI and other funders informs the way Creative England manages and accounts for its use of public funds. Creative England decides funding priorities and allocates funds against those priorities.

Creative England is a delegated body for the administration of Lottery funds and as such is obliged

to meet all the requirements laid down by the National Audit Office and the Department for Culture

Media and Sport through the BFI.

Papers

All Creative England Board papers are made available to funding partners unless they are

confidential to Creative England, i.e. they relate to financial or other information concerning

individuals, organisations or personnel issues.

Legal

The Creative England Board is responsible for ensuring compliance with relevant legislation,

including employment law, health and safety, diversity and equal opportunities.

Decision making

Creative England Board takes decisions on the following matters:

Corporate responsibility

Members have a corporate responsibility for ensuring that Creative England complies with all

statutory and administrative requirements for the use of public funds.

Other responsibilities include:

The establishment of the overall direction of Creative England within the policy and

resources framework agreed with its funding bodies

Ensuring that high standards of corporate governance are observed and that Creative

England operates within the limits of its legal authority

Monitoring the efficiency and effectiveness of its performance against agreed objectives,

strategies, and targets.

Meeting all legal requirements for the distribution of Lottery funds

Creative England is established under the Companies Act of 2006 and has corporate

responsibility for all actions taken by Creative England members, including wrongful ones. This

means that if judgement is made against Creative England, any financial settlement will be met

from the body’s funds rather than from the personal assets of members, unless fraud can be

proven.

Individual responsibility

Individual members must comply at all times with the framework set out in this document and with

the rules relating to the use of public funds and are required to act in good faith and in the best

interests of Creative England. They must not use the information gained for personal benefit or to

promote private interests.

Creative England Board members are required to avoid being lobbied by media practitioners and

to ask that all concerns and/or complaints are directed to the Chief Executive who will in turn bring

the matter to the attention of the Board or one of its committees. All complaints are recorded by

the Chief Executive and reported annually to the Board.

Board competencies

Board members are required to have one or more of the following competencies:

RequirementsSkills, experience and capabilities

Strategic thinkerAbility to think strategically and identify and critically assess strategic

opportunities and threats, developing effective strategies

Ability to identify key issues for CE and develop appropriate policies to

define the parameters within which the organisation should operate

Financial acumenQualifications in accounting and finance

Ability to analyse key financial statements

Ability to critically assess financial viability and performance

Provide an overview of financial planning

oversee budgets and the efficient use of resources

ensure funding arrangements applied and accountability

Risk ManagementAbility to identify key risks to the organisation and regularly monitor risk

and compliance

Corporate GovernanceKnowledge and experience of best practice in corporate governance

Executive management

experience

Experience of appointing and evaluating the performance of CEO and

senior executives

Oversee strategic human resource

Oversee and support organisational change

CommercialBroad range of commercial/business practice

Understanding of needs of creative SMEs

Reputation and ContactsHigh level of reputation and networks in CI, sector stakeholders,

government and industry leaders

Ability to influence key stakeholders, industry leaders and others

ThinkingCritical, open and innovative thinkers

5. Equal Opportunities Monitoring

We keep this information to make sure that we are complying with all our legal responsibilities and in order to

ensure that we are attracting candidates from all sections of the community. Filling in this section of the form

is voluntary, and none of this information is used to shortlist or select candidates for interview. This

information will be kept strictly confidential and used solely for monitoring purposes. It is entirely optional.

Your Sex (Please circle as appropriate): Male Female

White

British

Irish

Any other white background, please write in _________________________

Mixed

White & Black Caribbean

White & Black African

White & Asian

Any other Mixed background, please write in _______________________

Asian or Asian British

Indian

Pakistani

Bangladeshi

Any other Asian background, please write in _______________________

Black or Black British

Caribbean

African

Any other Black background, please write in _________________________

Chinese or other ethnic group

Chinese

Any other background, please write in _________________________

Do you identify as disabled? Y/N (please delete where appropriate)

The Disability Discrimination Act (1995) defines a disabled person as someone with “a physical or mental

impairment, which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-

day activities”.

Your Age: I currently fall into the following age group

16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+

Where did you find out about this vacancy?

Job Centre Advertisement ( Please state where you saw it _____________________

Other Please specify _________________________

Creative England promotes cultural diversity and equal opportunities for all

How to Apply