Trustees wanted for Falkirk-based befriending charity Friends of Scottish Settlers (FOSS)

Registered in 2020, the charity helps newcomers to the Falkirk district to stand on their own two feet and make use of the knowledge, networks and services they need to live full, self-determined lives.

FOSS is a volunteer organisation, focussing on holistic support through providing material needs, befriending and other volunteer activities to a diverse community of newcomers of many nationalities with wide ranging needs.

The majority of the charity’s present work is in supporting refugees from Syria, Ukraine, Afghanistan and Hong Kong, and asylum seekers accommodated in Falkirk by the Home Office.

FOSS currently has a team of three part-time staff and 30 dedicated, registered volunteers and its Board of six volunteer Trustees is responsible for ensuring objectives are achieved by the appropriate use of the grants and donations on which the charity depends.

A spokesperson for the charity said: “FOSS has grown rapidly and is a dynamic organisation. Those who depend on our support are often in very challenging circumstances. Their needs are pressing and made more complex than the services provided by similar organisations in the big cities where the available infrastructure is necessarily more comprehensive.

“Our Trustees are volunteers and are expected to serve three years. We are now urgently seeking to appoint up to three Trustees. This is an exciting opportunity for people, with or without experience as Trustees, who are interested in a challenge and would like to help us to drive forward the many initiatives in our important work, making Falkirk a welcoming haven for newcomers.”

Anyone interested should contact Tom Ogilvie on 07917 162960 or at [email protected] for more information or to register their interest.