| Location | HELD IN PERSON IN P/CEO’S OFFICE, LONDON ROAD CAMPUS AND BY REMOTE ACCESS THROUGH MICROSOFT TEAMS |
|---|---|
| Date | 5th March 2025 |
| Time | 4.00p.m |
| Minutes Membership | Present in P/CEO’s Office R. Harrison, J. Hoyland, J. Staniforth (Principal/CEO) and J. Vernon. In attendance by electronic device and contributing towards the meeting quorum, in accordance with Instrument 12. (Members may count towards the quorum if they are able to be present by electronic or digital communication (including attendance by video conferencing or telephone conferencing). M. Thompson In Attendance Clerk to the Board, T. Cottee |
| In Attendance | |
| Apologies | none |
J. Hoyland in the Chair.
01/25. Declarations of Interest
None.
02/25. Minutes of the Meetings Held 16 October 2024 and Special Meeting Held 05 December 2024 (Appendices – Agenda Item 4) (previously circulated)
Resolved: That the Minutes of the Meetings held 16 October 2024 and Special Meeting Held 05 December 2024, be approved as a true record.
03/25. Board Vacancies and Succession Planning (Confidential Appendices – Agenda Item 4)
The Committee discussed the position regarding current Board vacancies and opportunities, including -
- actions taken since the last Committee meeting
- appointment Strategy for the 1 current and upcoming Appointed Governor vacancies; and
- Search Strategy going forward.
Since the last Committee Meeting
- The Board had confirmed the appointment of A Rao as a Parent Governor and Blasczyk as a Staff Governor.
- The succession plans put in place regarding the Chair of F&BO Committee, H&S Link, HE Link and Skills Link had been actioned.
The Committee discussed:
- The current Appointed Governor vacancy. In accordance with the Committee’s instructions, the Clerk had focussed search amongst candidates with estates and financial/audit skills. An application had been received (previously circulated). The applicant had passed Due Diligence and had met informally with the Clerk. The P/CEO advised the Committee that the Clerk had received other enquiries on opportunities to join the Board. The Committee agreed to consider all applications together, once received, to better inform succession planning.
Action: Clerk to contact applicants
- The Governor Terms coming to an end by December 2025. Two were Appointed Governors. 1 Appointed Governor on their First Term and currently Chair of Audit and H&S Link, had indicated that they would wish to seek another Term. The other was on their Second Term and would leave the Board. The other vacancies were for the staff and student governors and the Clerk would follow the relevant procedures to seek candidates.
Action: Item to S&G 11/06/2025
- The updated Skills Audit (previously circulated) indicated that the Board’s search activities should focus on securing candidates with financial experience and skills.
04/25. Governance Assessment – External Review of Governance Final Action Plan (Appendix – Agenda Item 5)
Further to S&G Min No 27/24, the Committee discussed –
- The Draft External Review of Governance (ERG) Draft Action Plan (previously circulated) prior to publication on the college website, in accordance with the Guidance requirements; and
- The approach and key focus on Board Self-Assessment for 2024 – 2025.
The Final Report, concluding the External Review of Governance of the college’s Board and governing arrangements, had been discussed at Board on 15 July 2024. The Review had considered the Board’s effectiveness and governance maturity and made several recommendations to support the Board in becoming a more effective decision-making body.
During facilitated group work, the Board and SLT had prioritised the recommendations identified as being the most supportive.
Having reviewed an initial draft Action Plan at its last meeting, the Committee had agreed that, since the report’s production, the recommendations required further review, to both hone the recommendations further and to reflect changes at Board level.
Having considered the revised Draft Action Plan (previously circulated), the Committee agreed that it now both encapsulated into 3 clear recommendations, the most helpful recommendations in the original ERG Report and reflected the recent changes at Board level. The Committee would monitor progress.
The Committee RESOLVED: That Board be RECOMMENDED to approve the External Review of Governance Precis and Action Plan, for publication on the college’s website.
ACTION: Item to Board 31/03/2025
Item to S&G 11/06/2025
Clerk to advise ERG facilitator
The Board would be expected to resume self-assessment for 2024/25. Prior to the ERG, the Board had used committee evaluation and guided conversations between the Board Chair and Governors, as this provided an opportunity for governors to discuss and reflect on governance. It also provided an evidenced-based history of the impact of any improvements made. Due to the added value of this approach, the Committee agreed that it would resume this practice for 2024/25. The programme would also include an evaluation of the performance of the Board Chair.
ACTION: Plan for self-assessment for summer cycle of meetings
05/25. Risk
It was agreed that there had been sufficient discussion of the other risk issues at the meeting, particularly, the need to focus search activities going forward.
The meeting concluded at 4.35 p.m.