Are you ready tochart your own career path? At SJP we need talented individuals like yourself to support our evolving culture. If you’re seeking an employer that is passionate about excellence, innovation and autonomy, SJP could be the place for you.
At a glance:
Location: Cirencester Office
Workplace Type: Hybrid
Employment Type: Permanent
Seniority: Associate
The role:
The Board Support Assistant role is critical to the smooth functioning of the corporate governance framework, providing clear, informative and timely communications and robust record keeping to enable senior stakeholders to operate effectively with full administrative support.
Working closely and collaboratively with the Board Support and Operations Manager, other Board Support Assistants and Non-Executive Director (NED) and Meeting Support Assistant, you’ll provide dedicated administrative and logistical support to boards of directors, the Group Executive Committee (“GEC”), and the wider Company Secretariat team, ensuring the effective and timely coordination of meetings, documentation, and associated governance processes.
What you'll be doing:
Key responsibilities are split into three areas:
Agenda and Board paper management
Own the production of board and committee packs allocated to the role holder through to final publication of the packs, including:
1. Liaising with the NED and Meeting Support Assistant and Board Support and Operations Manager to ensure agendas align with the practical logistics for meetings ( meeting invitations via the CoSec calendar, timings of attendance, attendees, means of attendance, breaks and catering).
2. Liaising with the Secretary for the meeting and the members of the Company Secretariat to ensure the agenda is updated as and when changes are made.
3. Liaising with owner/sponsor of agenda items to confirm deadlines, determine what papers will be received and timing considerations.
4. Issuing formal calls for papers, setting out all of the key information required by sponsors/authors/presenters of papers.
5. Tracking the governance path of papers through to receipt.
6. Keeping meeting Secretary and other relevant stakeholders aware of progress with packs for meetings, ensuring that expectations are managed around the timing for final approval and issuance.
7. Informing impacted presenters when changes are made to agendas.
8. Reviewing papers received to ensure there are no errors.
9. Ensuring cover sheets have been received for items and that they accurately reflect the papers provided.
10. Collating, formatting and uploading meeting papers to SJP’s chosen Board portal in accordance with deadlines and version control protocols.
11. Issue joining instructions and relevant excerpts of packs to attendees of meetings.
Wider meeting management
12. Assist Secretaries of meetings and other members of the Company Secretariat involved with meetings with preparation, including communications with attendees regarding timings, means of attending (virtual or in person) and AV/technical support required on the day of the meeting.
13. Ahead of meetings, prepare first draft of Chair’s scripts/agendas for meetings.
14. Preparation of skeleton minutes to Secretaries of meetings ahead of the meeting as required.
15. Management of action lists for boards and committees, updating actions following meetings, adding new actions.
16. Following meetings, notifying presenters or providers of papers of the outcomes of the Board’s discussions and decisions on approvals sought.
17. Preparation of certified extracts of specific sections of minutes as required.
18. Circulation of draft and final minutes to boards and committees, as required.
19. Arrange for the signing of final approved minutes of boards and committee meetings.
Corporate administration and Company Secretariat operations
20. Where required, update annual planners for boards and committees.
21. Maintain accurate and confidential contact databases for board and committee members, executive assistants, and external stakeholders.
22. Coordinate signature processes for board/committee approvals and governance documentation.
23. Assist with the maintenance and development of the Company Secretariat team’s operational systems, tools and processes.
24. Maintain and update Company Secretariat assets utilised by the wider business ( entity corporate structure charts).
25. Support the Board Support and Operations Manager and all other members of the Company Secretariat with the fulfilment of other administration requirements.
Essential Criteria:
26. Familiarity with corporate governance environments and the expectations of senior executive stakeholders.
27. Experience supporting senior executives, Board members, or governance professionals in a fast-paced, regulated business.
28. Proficient in MS Office and governance systems ( Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Adobe, Visio).
29. High attention to detail and process discipline, particularly in handling sensitive governance documentation.
30. Professional, discreet, and composed when dealing with senior stakeholders and confidential information.
Desirable Criteria:
31. Experience using Board Intelligence tool.
32. Legal/Compliance understanding.
What's in it for you?
We reward you for the work you do, whether that’s through our discretionary annual bonus scheme that reflects both personal and company performance, competitive annual leave allowance (28 days plus bank holidays, with the option to purchase an additional 5 days), or online rewards platform with a variety of discounts.
We also have benefits to support whatever stage of life you are in, including:
33. Competitive parental leave (26 weeks full pay)
34. Private medical insurance (optional taxable benefit)
35. 10% non-contributory pension (increasing with length of service)
Reasonable Adjustments
We're an equal opportunities employer and want to ensure our recruitment process is accessible and inclusive for all, if you require reasonable adjustment(s) at any stage please let us know by emailing us at
Research tells us that applicants (especially those from underrepresented groups) can be put off from applying for a role if they do not meet all the criteria or have been on an extended career-break. If you think you would be a good match for this role and can demonstrate some transferable experience please apply, regardless of whether you tick every box.