Become a Governor

​What is the Member’s Council?

Foundation Trusts are based on membership with local people having a say through representation on a Members’ Council.  The Members’ Council has elected, appointed and staff Governors.

The role of the Members’ Council is to make sure the Trust Board, which are responsible for the day-to-day running of the Trust, is accountable to the local communities the Trust serves through the Trust’s membership.

The Members’ Council provides influence and a voice for the communities the Trust serves and its staff. The Members’ Council makes sure that the Trust carries out its duties in line with its mission, vision and its values, and supports the principles and values of the NHS as a whole. Governors hold the Non-Executive Directors to account to make sure they carry out their responsibility for the performance of the Board of Directors. Governors are not responsible for the day-to-day running of the organisation – that is the role and responsibility of our Board.

The Members’ Council has a number of other duties such as:

• Influencing our forward plans and how the Trust provides its services
• Choosing who the Chair and Non-Executive Directors of the Trust should be
• Choosing who our auditors should be
• Talking to our members and sharing what our members tell them with us

 Who can be a governor?

• You can be a governor if you are a member of the Trust in the area where you live
• You can be a governor if you are aged 16 or over
• You can be a governor if you make a commitment to fulfil your duties if elected/appointed as a governor of the Trust.

Some people are not allowed to be a governor. For example, you can’t be a governor if you have been declared bankrupt or if you have received a prison sentence for three months or more. There are some other conditions and full details are available from the Trust If you have any questions about being a governor please contact the governance team