Ambition Inclusivity Integrity Respect Sustainability Transformation

Chair of Council

Mrs Marian Wyn Jones (until 8 February 2025)

Pro–Chancellor and Deputy Chair

Professor Iwan Davies (until 31 August 2022)

Professor Edmund Burke (from 1 September 2022)

Professor Oliver Turnbull

Mr James Avison (until 30 June 2022)

Ms Nyah Lowe

1 July 2022)

(until

Appointed By the Senate Dr Llion

31 July 2022)

12 April 2022)

Health & Safety 4/5

Committee (Chair), Welsh Language Affairs Committee (Chair)

&

Welsh Language Affairs Committee Nominations & Governance Committee Finance & Strategy Committee Joint Engagement Forum 5/5

Nominations & Governance Committee Joint Engagement Forum Finance & Strategy Committee 5/5

Finance & Strategy Committee Nominations & Governance Committee Welsh Language Affairs Committee Audit & Risk Committee People & Culture Committee 5/5 1/1

Welsh Language Affairs Committee 5/5 1/1

Independent Members of Council / Governing body diversity and inclusivity

Drawn from both private and public sectors independent members of Council bring a wealth of experience and professional expertise to the Council. The Council is committed to promoting equality and diversity and all vacancies for independent members are advertised externally with applications particularly welcome from under–represented groups.

Applications are considered by the Nominations & Governance Committee and matched against the current skills matrix that was last undertaken in the summer of 2022. None of the independent members receive payment for the work they do for the University apart from the reimbursement of expenses. All appointed members of the Council serve for a period of four years but may be reappointed for a maximum period of eight years.

A skills audit is completed by each member of the Council annually, enabling the Nominations & Governance Committee to map members’ skills against the breadth of expertise required by the Council membership, with recruitment for vacancies then being based on what the Council requires in terms of skills.

An Advance HE Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) workshop was held virtually for all Council members on 28 March 2022. The aim of the workshop was to develop a shared understanding of creating a diverse Council that has effective engagement with and oversight of EDI matters within the HE sector through assessment of current strengths and development areas for the Council. Work on EDI matters is being overseen, on behalf of the Council, by the People & Culture Committee.

Induction of Council Members

New Council members are required to undertake an in–depth induction session with both the University Secretary and Chair of the Council. The induction session includes the history of Bangor University, University values and the Governance and Regulatory framework. In addition, new members are invited to observe a meeting of the Council prior to joining as a member.

Annual development reviews

The Chair of the Council works with each member of the Council on individual annual development reviews for continued development and improving effectiveness, as well as identifying additional development requirements and/or opportunities.

Independence of Council members

In the Review of Governance of Universities in Wales, author Gillian Camm recommended a higher bar for governor independence than existed at the time of the Review (2019) and that guidance on what is meant by independence and those matters which may compromise governor independence be produced and made public. The University has adopted the Guide on Independence for Lay Members developed and agreed upon by the Welsh Secretaries and Clerks in June 2020 as a response to this recommendation. The Guide has been shared with Council members and is kept under review by the Nominations & Governance Committee.

As the governing body of the University, the Council is entrusted with public funds and therefore has a particular duty to fulfil the highest standards of corporate governance at all times. Universities were included among the public bodies examined by the Committee on Standards in Public Life (the Nolan Committee) and consequently Council members must observe the Seven Principles of Public Life drawn up by the Committee, namely selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.

Council members must not allow themselves to be captured or unduly influenced by the interests of others associated with the University such as staff, students, alumni, or trade unions. Council members need to be able to challenge effectively and constructively and they cannot do so if they have a vested interest in a matter under discussion.

Declaration of Interest

Council members are required to undertake a formal declaration of interest procedure at the start of each academic year and the register is available online here: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/about/university-management-and-governance

In addition, members are asked to declare any conflict of interest in relation to items on the agenda at the start of each Council meeting and these are formally noted in the minutes.

Biographical Details: Independent members of Council

Biographical detail relating to the Members of the Bangor University Council can be found on the University’s web pages here: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/about/biogs

Stakeholder engagement

The University works closely with the Council on stakeholder engagement and during 2021/22 it re–constituted its stakeholder engagement committee into a Community Board. The Board replaced a Liaison Group and acts as a platform to bring together a broad range of stakeholders in Bangor and North West Wales. The new Board provides a platform for the University to discuss key strategic issues with external stakeholders, to raise urgent matters, to identify areas for cooperation and to deepen and strengthen relationships with partners in the community. The Board is a key part of the University’s Civic Mission, helping to improve and promote the wellbeing of our communities. Furthermore, the University maintains a flexible approach to working with the Council on stakeholder engagement, providing updates and receiving guidance on ad hoc projects and initiatives that involve specific partners.

In addition the University established a Joint Engagement Forum with the Campus Trades Unions in early 2021 to enable senior independent members of the University Council to engage effectively with the Campus Trades Unions on all aspects of the Council’s remit and responsibilities and to share information and understanding of strategic and operational matters. In addition the Forum provides an opportunity to discuss key strategic issues, to enable Campus Trades Unions representatives to be briefed on matters currently being discussed by the Council, and to allow representatives to present the opinions of their members on such issues before any decisions are made by Council.