Trustee

Bow Arts are seeking up to three new Trustees to join the Board, to help set the strategic direction, establish ways to better meet our aims, and promote our charitable objects.

Context of the role

Bow Arts’ charitable objectives are:

• The provision and maintenance of an art gallery or art space for exhibition to the public of modern and fine art, design and applied art and of work done by students and young emerging artists;
• The promotion and encouragement of the education of the public in the arts, through an art gallery or art galleries, art spaces and elsewhere;
• The education of children, students and teaching staff in the arts in schools and other educational establishments; and
• The relief of poverty amongst emerging artists by the provision of studio space in which they may create art and by the provision of residential accommodation for emerging artists and their partners and/or dependents.

Bow Arts was one of the first Charitable Social Enterprise models to be established in the 1990’s. Today we have grown into one of the country’s most respected and unique service providers for the arts. We generate around 95% of our own income – investing 100% of our surplus back into the affordable services we provide. We remain steadfast in our commitment to London’s local communities and we are passionate and dedicated to nurturing the success of our artists while partnering with some of London’s largest businesses.

We believe that affordability remains the best access into the arts. Bow Arts stands as London’s foremost provider of services for artists, offering some of the capital’s most affordable work and living spaces to early-career creative professionals across 15 sites and spanning 7 London boroughs. We currently focus activity around three main ‘Hubs’: Bow Road in Tower Hamlets, Royal Albert Wharf (RAW) in Newham and the Lakeside Centre in Abbey Wood, Thamesmead.

Our Learning services partner with approximately 80 schools annually, enhancing social mobility, attainment, and access for over 10,000 young people every year. We offer training programs for artists and teachers, and we generate hundreds of professionally paid work opportunities for artists
in schools each year.

Our Arts and Events services manage our gallery, the Nunnery, which serves as a dynamic hub, supporting thousands of early-career artists through profiled prizes, open calls, residencies, and Creative Professional
Development programs.

Our Partnerships and Places team manages Bow Arts’ hub sites, supporting local residents and tenants, working with our partners to initiate exciting opportunities across London to both access and produce art.

Both the charitable objectives and mission of Bow Arts are met through the delivery of services by 29 members of staff. Our VAT registered trading company (Bow Arts Trading) was incorporated in 2016 to expand our social enterprise. Across both Trust and Trading activities, Bow Arts has a projected annual turnover of c. £4.6m

Recent highlights

• In the past year, we purchased our Lakeside Centre studios and are in the process of purchasing our new studios in Hackney Wick, alongside our founding studio site, Nunnery Gallery and HQ in Bow. Both properties are due to complete within the next year.
• We delivered the 4th year of the East London Art Prize, supported by Minerva and in partnership with the British Council, Dulux, The Line, LLDC, UCL, V&A East and Whitechapel Gallery – providing over £75,000 in direct support and opportunities to winning and shortlisted artists through the prize fund, runner-up studio space, mentoring scheme, events programme, and more.
• We are completing a three-year £300,000 Paul Hamlyn Arts Based Learning grant which has supported our schools consortia across multiple boroughs; an innovative two-year curriculum development programme with partner artists and schools; and our artists and teacher CPD, which includes a paid Artist Educator traineeship (now in its 10th year).

The role of Trustees

As a Bow Arts Trustee, you will help set the strategic direction of Bow Arts, strengthen the management of our financial resources, operations and structure, monitor our performance and help to establish ways to better meet our aims and promote our charitable objects. You will ensure that Bow Arts complies with its governing document, charity and relevant company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations, safeguard the good name and values of Bow Arts, and represent Bow Arts externally.

You will be expected to attend a minimum of four Board meetings per year. Meetings are held in-person quarterly on Wednesdays from 6-8pm and dates are published well in advance.

We have space for up to three new Trustees and are looking for particular expertise in the following areas, but would welcome applications from anyone who believes that they can bring value to the Bow Arts Board:

• Visual arts
• Learning & Education (ideally with a focus on Primary Schools)
• Audit experience (ideally in a charity setting)
• Community Engagement
• Property Management
• Built Environment and Placemaking

Alongside the board meetings, you will have the opportunity to join one (or more) of our subcommittee groups according to your interests and experience. Meetings are generally online/hybrid:

Sub Committees:

• Finance Committee: compliance, finance (Statutory)
• Governance, Audit & Risk Committee: board effectiveness, internal and external controls, sustainability, equality, inclusivity and representation (Statutory)
• Remuneration Committee: review of salaries, terms and conditions and HR policies (Statutory)
• Strategic Development Committee: major projects (Advisory)
• Partnerships and Places sub-committee (Advisory)
• Learning sub-committee (Advisory)
• Arts and Events sub-committee (Advisory)

Person Specification

Bow Arts Trustees should have:

• A genuine passion for our work and dedication to Bow Arts and its objectives
• A knowledge and acceptance of the legal duties, obligations and liabilities of trusteeship
• A willingness to devote the necessary time and effort to their duties as a trustee
• Integrity
• Strategic vision
• Good, impartial judgement
• An ability to think creatively
• A willingness to speak their mind
• An ability to work effectively as a member of a team
• Bow Arts is dedicated to promoting equality of opportunity and tackling discrimination. We welcome and value the inclusivity of the communities we serve, and we would like to have a diverse Board that is representative of those communities.

How to Apply

We welcome applications from everyone. We are particularly keen to hear from people from the global majority, women, LGBTQ+ people, younger people, and disabled people, who are currently underrepresented on our board.

Don’t worry if you haven’t had experience of being a trustee or board member before. We will offer you support and training to help you to undertake your role. We are most interested in hearing from applicants who are passionate at Bow Arts Mission and Values

To find out more about our current Board of Trustees, visit our website: Our people – Bow Arts

If you would like more information about the role and expectations of Trustees before applying, please email jenpringle@bowarts.com

If you wish to apply, please email send a cv and cover letter to recruitment@bowarts.com and complete the equal opportunities monitoring form. 

Closing date for applications: 5pm, Monday 25th May 2026.

This is a voluntary, unpaid role, but reasonable travel expenses can be reclaimed. Trustees are expected to commit to a minimum of 4 evening Board meetings per year, an Away Day, plus up to 4 additional evening meetings per sub-committee.

Statement on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Applications 

We recognise that some candidates may choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to assist with preparing their application. While we welcome the use of technology to support your work, it is important that all information you provide is truthful, accurate, and reflects your own skills, experience, and understanding. 

Responses that are substantially or entirely AI-generated often lack the personal detail and specific examples we need to assess your suitability for the role. They may also put you at a disadvantage during interview, where we will explore the same themes in greater depth and expect you to speak confidently from your own experience. 

If you have used AI tools in preparing your application, please mention this in the application and indicate: 

• Which tool(s) you used 
• The purpose for which you used them (e.g., grammar checking, idea structuring) 

Please note that applications will be assessed on the quality, authenticity, and relevance of the content provided. Any false or misleading information, whether generated by AI or otherwise, may result in your application being withdrawn from the process. 

If you are unsure what is appropriate, please contact us before submitting.