The Howletts Wild Animal Trust - Trustees

The Howletts Wild Animal Trust (THWAT) is seeking to appoint two Trustees who are able to contribute their skills and expertise to oversee the strategic direction of the Trust, as well as provide appropriate independent challenge and scrutiny. (Deadline: 21st December)

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About The Howletts Wild Animal Trust

The Howletts Wild Animal Trust (THWAT) is a dedicated animal conservation charity based in Kent. Its purpose is to protect endangered wildlife, improve their lives, and where possible, breed such endangered species to ensure their survival. THWAT operates two wildlife parks in Kent, Howletts Wild Animal Park near Canterbury and Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve situated on the coast just outside Hythe. THWAT is one of the most successful breeders of endangered animals in the world. With unrivalled achievements in animal husbandry , the charity to date boasts, amongst others 149 gorilla births, 41 black rhino, 126 clouded leopards, 38 Javan gibbons, 172 Javan langur and 22 African elephants. The Trust’s central aim is to return these endangered animals back to protected areas of the wild.

Howletts Wild Animal Park sits on 100 acres of land and reports a turnover of £3.5m, while Port Lympne Hotel & Reserve sits on 600 acres of land with a turnover of £20m. Port Lympne is also home to 90 units of award winning accommodation, restaurants and wedding and conference facilities. The continued growth of Port Lympne as a luxury destination is core to the ongoing strategy of the trust.

All profits from both parks support the charity’s conservation work, so guests can enjoy their visit knowing they are directly helping to protect vulnerable wildlife and, in turn, enable these species to be sent back to the wild. Since 2003, the Trust has donated scores of animals to The Aspinall Foundation for rewilding to their natural habitats.


Role specification

The Trust is looking to strengthen the independent oversight and governance of the Board through the appointment of two independent Trustees.

Trustees work with the Chair and other members of the Board to determine the Trust’s strategy and ensure that it delivers on its charitable objectives and long-term mission, which include:

  • Ensuring that the organisation complies with the Trust’s constitution, charity law and any other relevant legislation or regulations
  • Ensuring that the organisation pursues its objectives
  • Contributing actively to the Board of Trustees' role in giving firm strategic direction to the charity, setting overall policy, defining goals and setting targets, and evaluating performance against agreed targets and budgets
  • Safeguarding the good name and values of the charity
  • Ensuring the effective and efficient administration and financial stability of the organisation

In addition, Trustees should be willing to use their specific skills and expertise to support the Board and Senior Management Team in its decision making, and will be ambassadors for the Trust, always acting in its best interests.


Person specification

The Howletts Wild Animal Trust is seeking to appoint two Trustees who are able to contribute their skills and expertise to oversee the strategic direction of the Trust, as well as provide appropriate independent challenge and scrutiny. The successful candidate must have a passion for animal conservation and support the work which the Trust does.

Additionally, it would be desirable if candidates had some form of charity governance experience, fundraising experience or expertise in digital marketing and communications as the Trust aims to make the most of digital channels to attract both visitors, donors and supporters. The Howletts Wild Animal Trust is keen to support the local community and therefore encourages applications from those who may reside in the areas surrounding its two parks in Kent.


Terms of appointment

This role is unremunerated, but reasonable, pre-agreed travel expenses will be reimbursed. There are four meetings per year, with the total time commitment estimated to be around six days per year. Additionally, Board members also generally serve on one or more committees – the Audit Committee and the Related Party Committee. The appointment is for a three-year term, which may be renewed twice at the discretion of the Board.


The deadline for consideration is 21st December 2021.

If you would like to register your interest, please fill in the form below. A member of the Nurole team will be in touch ahead of the deadline to let you know whether it would be worth submitting an application and to discuss the process further.