TWO new trustees will bring decades of financial know-how and charity experience to Dorset Community Foundation.
After more than 35 years in banking Rupert Blake has been using his skills in the voluntary sector, setting up a school charitable foundation at Bishops Wordsworth Grammar School in Salisbury and being a governor at The Sheiling, a school and college for five to 25 year olds with special educational needs near Ringwood.
But it was working with the UK Youth charity during the pandemic that opened his eyes to the hidden need in communities. Rupert, who lives near Gillingham, said: “We had some money from a foundation to distribute to small groups and we must have done three days of Dragons Den-style pitches. There were all these little youth groups with zero income, and it was just trying to discern which were the most deserving ones.
“That’s what opened my eyes because there was some shocking stories and what attracted me to Dorset Community Foundation is that’s what it seems to be trying to do.
“That’s really what makes me want to try and help those who aren’t as seen as others and that’s why I find working with DCF very attractive. It has a lot of funds that are bespoke but it is also actively trying to seek out, those people who aren’t getting noticed.”
Rupert, who has worked all over the world with financial giants like Barclays, JP Morgan Chase and Citibank, said he feels very connected to Dorset. “Half of my family are from here and I grew up just over the border in Wiltshire,” he said.
“I am interested in bringing some of my skills to the community foundation and with my breadth of experience feel that I could add some value.”
I am interested in bringing some of my skills to the community foundation and with my breadth of experience feel that I could add some value
Colin O’Connor has spent more than 20 years working in financial management with PLCs and not-for-profit organisations. He volunteered with London charities The Food Chain, where he started as a kitchen assistant and food delivery driver before becoming treasurer, and Ability Bow, a disability gym.
Colin, who lives in Bournemouth, said he wants to work with the community foundation because of the need he sees in his community. “I’ve been here several years and am very much aware of the inequalities in the area close to where I live,” he said.
“The community foundation has a reach over the whole of Dorset and provides funding for so many different areas and that’s really what drove me to become a trustee. My experience has given me a grasp of the way charities’ finances work and the pressures they are under but I’m looking forward to understanding more about the needs of the recipients of our different funds, and understanding how we’re helping them.”
DCF Chair Tom Flood CBE welcomed the new trustees, saying: “I’m very glad to have their experience and skills to add to what is already a very strong board. I’m sure they will both make a very telling contribution to our continued growth for the benefit of communities in Dorset.”
