Nick Baker

Background

About Nick Baker

I am passionate about making organsiations work effectively to create postive change in society and ensuring that they listen to and respond to those who they are set up to serve. My combination of professional and voluntary roles has allowed me to gain and share a flexible and wide-ranging skillset in finance, governance, project management and education. I am currently Finance Manager for a charity turning over £1.7m and its sister pan-European CIO. My responsibilities including preparing statutory and management accounts, advising the board on financial issues and leading on a variety of projects ranging from the selection and implementation of IT systems to fundraising. I am a member of the National Director's team and contribute to leading orgisational change as well my finance responsibilities. My commitment to using my skills in leadership and governance to serve my local community and to engage with the environmental crisis is shown through my volunteer work as a local councillor, Chair of Laverstock and Ford Parish Council and as trustee and treasurer of A Rocha UK (the Christian conservation charity that runs the Eco-Church scheme, Wild Christian and Partners in Action). My journey from senior leadership roles in education to the non-profit sector started with five years spent in a wide ranging role as Operations Director of a large church, heading the finance team but also leading on IT, governance, HR, Facilities, digital media and project management. Handling a workload including large building projects, management accounting, setting up live streaming and working with 14 staff and 300 volunteers was great fun and grew my skill-set quickly. I have been able to bring to not-for-profit sector the experience gained from 15 years working in education- teaching courses from Key Stage 3 to undergraduate level and holding a range of senior leadership positions in both the School and Further Education sector. I am keeping in touch with developments in education by continuing to act as an examiner for a major awarding body and work with young people weekly as a Cub Scout Leader.