Non-Executive Director

About Cup-O-T

Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services is a mental health occupational therapy service for young people. We provide accessible, creative, evidence based mental health support and training to empower communities, young people and families.

Cup-O-T offers outdoor-based occupational therapy programmes as well as family and community sessions across Norfolk. Our programmes empower young people aged 7-25 and families, who face complex and difficult challenges in their lives. We focus on the physical, mental and emotional wellbeing of our young people working with them to make lasting changes to their lives and helping them play a positive role in their communities.

We are entering an exciting phase of growth and are now recruiting 2–3 new Non-Executive Directors to join our existing Board of three.

Who We’re Looking For

We are particularly keen to hear from individuals with experience in one or more of the following areas:

• Finance and legal expertise
• Business development and growth
• Social enterprise or healthcare leadership
• Contracts and tenders, particularly within healthcare, education and training

Additional skills we would value:

• Chair or Vice-Chair experience
• Treasurer experience
• Lived experience of accessing mental health services, neurodivergence, care experience, or navigating support systems

We are looking for people who believe that mental health support for young people needs to be delivered differently, and who are motivated to help shape services that are accessible, relational, creative and effective.

You Might Be…

• A qualified accountant or someone with strong financial acumen
• A solicitor or legal adviser with knowledge of governance
• A business owner, strategist or enterprise professional passionate about scaling training, mental healthcare and services with social impact
• A leader with experience of running or supporting a social enterprise, healthcare or education organisation
• Someone well-connected within local or national commissioning, with knowledge and experience of contracts and tenders

You do not need previous board experience. We are interested in your skills, values, curiosity and willingness to contribute.

What You Will Be Doing

As a Non-Executive Director, you will:

• Support the strategic development of Cup-O-T: Wellness and Therapy Services
• Bring insight, constructive challenge and external perspective
• Help shape the future direction of our services and training
• Provide governance oversight, ensuring good decision-making and accountability
• Act as an ambassador for Cup-O-T, championing our work and values
• You will work closely with the CEO and fellow Board members in a collaborative, supportive and mission-focused way.

Why Join Us?

By joining Cup-O-T’s Board, you will:

• Champion occupational therapy, mental health and early intervention for young people
• Be part of an organisation doing things differently, creatively, ethically and with integrity and transparency
• Influence the growth of innovative training, therapeutic and community-based services
• Contribute to meaningful, preventative work that prioritises accessibility, relationships and lived experience
• Join a Board that values reflection, learning and shared leadership, not hierarchy

This is an opportunity to make a real impact while supporting a passionate, award-winning team.

What to Expect

Trial Period

We offer a 6–12 month trial period before formally appointing new Directors to Companies House. During this time, you will:

• Attend Board meetings
• Take part in discussions and decision-making
• Contribute to the organisation’s development
• You will not hold formal legal responsibilities during the trial period. This allows both you and Cup-O-T to ensure the role is a good fit.

Time Commitment

• Approximately 4–6 Board meetings per year
• Meetings are mostly weekday evenings and online
• Occasional ad-hoc informal meetings with the CEO
• Invitations to attend team quarterly meetings and away days (not mandatory, but encouraged)

Voluntary Role

This is a voluntary position.

• Reasonable expenses (e.g. travel for in-person meetings) will be reimbursed
• We are committed to exploring ways to value and recognise Board members’ contributions over time

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

We particularly welcome applications from:

• People with lived experience
• People from racialised communities
• Disabled people
• Members of the LGBTQ+ community
• Younger people and others underrepresented in leadership and board roles

We believe diverse voices strengthen governance, challenge assumptions and improve outcomes.

Safeguarding:

All members of the Cup-O-T Team agree to:

• adhere to the Safeguarding Policy and procedures
• report any safeguarding incidents or concerns immediately to your Lead Designated Safeguarding Officer or Deputy Designated Safeguarding Officers.
• complete any Safeguarding Awareness training as required 
• undertake an enhanced DBS check and maintain annual membership through the update service, if required for your role.

How to apply

We want the application process to be as inclusive and accessible as possible. While we do have a short set of key questions we’d like everyone to answer, you can choose how you respond.

You can apply by:

• Completing this expression of interest form
• Sending an email, voice note or video that answers the same questions
• Starting a conversation with us by asking a question

We’ll be reviewing applications on a rolling basis and will keep the process open until we feel the Board has the right number and mix of experiences to support our work effectively.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited for an informal virtual or in-person chat with our CEO, Catherine Gray, and another board member. 

We’d love to hear from you and to work together in supporting young people’s mental health.