Advisory Committee Members

About BBC Children in Need
BBC Children in Need believe every child and young person deserves the opportunity to thrive and be the best they can be. We are local to people in all corners of the UK, supporting small and large organisations. Thanks to the support of the public, we currently fund around 1,300 local charities and projects across the UK working with children and young people facing disadvantage.

The BBC Children in Need Appeal started in 1927 on BBC radio when it raised £1,143. Since 1980 it has been an annual live television and radio appeal. In the 1980s the charity was established as a grant-making trust to distribute funds raised by the annual appeal throughout the UK.
Since then, BBC Children in Need, working in partnership with the BBC, has raised and distributed over £800 million to projects working with disadvantaged children and young people across the UK.

Time Commitment
At present, Committee Members are expected to attend at least two Grant Allocation meetings and a minimum of one of the Planning and Portfolio meetings each year. The total time commitment for this will be around 3-5 days per year. This includes time spent reading and absorbing the overview summary of all applications in readiness for participating in the discussion and decision-making process as part of the Grant Allocation meeting and the Planning and Portfolio meetings.

It is expected that the Grant Allocation meetings will be a mix of Teams or face-to-face and take around three hours. Where held face to face, this will usually be at a BBC location within the region you are a member, and travel, overnight and other related expenses will be recompensed.

Planning and Portfolio meetings will ideally be held face-to-face usually at a BBC location in the region, and travel, overnight and any other related expenses will be covered. Provision for the meeting to be held over Teams will be made, if required.

Committee members are also expected to take part in a minimum of one additional meeting during the year to undertake relevant training and development activities.
Appointments are of a voluntary nature and would be for an initial three-year term, starting in starting in the New Year / Early Spring (2027).

• Commitment: 3 - 5 days per year

Candidate Profile
BBC Children in Need requires Committee Members from the following areas: Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, Durham, North Yorkshire, East Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.

We are keen to receive applications from people with knowledge/experience of any of the issues facing children and young people, and / or knowledge of the voluntary sector.

We welcome applications from anyone regardless of their age, disability, ethnicity, heritage, sexuality, gender and socio-economic background. For these roles we are particularly encouraging applications from those from the Black, Asian or other minority ethnic communities and / or LGBTQ+ community and / or people with disabilities as these groups are underrepresented within our Committee.

Appointments are subject to satisfactory references and an ID check. In addition to this Committee members are required to sign up to Terms of Reference and a Code of Conduct, BBC Children in Need Personal Disclosure Form, a Fit and Proper Persons Declaration and an annual Declaration of Interest.

Committee members are expected to strictly observe confidentiality on matters relating to grant applications.