Culture and collegiate working

Governors and staff we spoke to have emphasised the importance of sustaining a positive culture of collegiate working. Governors may feel disillusioned or demotivated, so it is important that they are valued and included in planning for what comes next. This is both right and proper, and no less than volunteers and staff alike should expect at all times, and particularly so at this time of uncertainty. FTs should also be mindful that staff members whose role involves supporting governors may be concerned about how the proposals will affect them. 

The lack of central communication about the proposals creates an information vacuum. This report is intended to partially fill that gap. Nonetheless, some governors we spoke to were not aware that their FT had as little information as them, and some felt that information was being withheld.  

To address this, it would be helpful to explicitly engage with councils of governors and any staff potentially affected by the proposals to make it clear that the trust is not privy to any additional information, and to commit to sharing anything that is subsequently made available. Sharing this report would also help clarify that everyone is operating under similar levels of uncertainty. 

Governors and FT staff we spoke to emphasised the potential impact that poor relations between the trust and governors could have on effective, efficient corporate governance and public, staff and stakeholder accountability during this next period. Where open and respectful relationships are already in place, they will provide a strong foundation for navigating changes ahead.  They recognised that where those constructive relationships are not already in place, existing tensions or mistrust may well be heightened. While it may be challenging to attempt a ‘reset’ in the current circumstances, attempting to do so would be in everyone’s interest. Working together on what follows after the council of governors model of public accountability (see section 8 below) was seen as one avenue to helpfully focus on together. 

A number of governors and staff members we spoke to advised that, in the current circumstances, the only practical approach is to ‘keep calm and carry on’ i.e. continue to operate as usual, hold elections as planned, and maintain the council in its current form. Governors remain covered by the legislation in Schedule 7 until the law changes. Some governors told us their FTs had already stopped inductions for new governors. Until it changes, the law still requires FTs “to secure that the governors are equipped with the skills and knowledge they require in their capacity [as governors].” Reasonable induction to the role, and other training that is essential (e.g. for those on Nominations Committees/undertaking recruitment) should continue. 

Many governors and staff accepted the need to explore options together to ‘right-size’ the council to reduce expenditure on elections (see section 6) and to avoid recruiting additional FT members and appointing governors in the current circumstances.  

Whatever approach is taken, having those conversations, being intentional about your approach, and maintaining open lines of communication will support collegiate working and help governors to continue being effective in their role.

Some governors have indicated that they are keen to lobby the government to change its policy. As citizens, governors are entirely free to hold their own views about the proposal and act on them if they wish, but staff and public governors should be mindful of the NHS values when taking action in their governor role, and of any applicable code of conduct when deciding whether and how to take campaigning action. 

If in doubt, governors may wish to discuss this with their governor liaison staff (for example the trust secretary) before taking action, and FTs may wish to explicitly discuss any perceived boundaries on public activity based on governor and/or staff commitments and agree boundaries with their governors in advance.

Remember that staff governors have their own constituency and staff FT members should expect to be informed about the proposed changes. Staff governors often provide valuable insight to the board about staff perspectives, may be influential in the trust, and may have enjoyed access to the chair or other board members that all parties have benefited from. When working with governors and board members on the implications of the Bill’s proposals, consider how staff will continue to be engaged and involved, and how their perspectives reach the board and particularly the NEDs.

When thinking about the impact on appointed governors, you will know that FTs have been expected to work collaboratively with stakeholder partners for many years now and the removal of appointed governors should not affect this collaboration and engagement (although of course stakeholders’ formal role in FT governance through the council of governors will cease). As with elected governors, appointed governors should be engaged and involved in making decisions which affect them, and be communicated with regularly and transparently. It is unlikely that having an appointed governor is any longer the only point of access that key stakeholder organisations have to your FT. It will nonetheless be worth ensuring the appointed governors and the organisations they come from are aware of the government’s policy intentions, and that if they wish, they are involved alongside other governors in thinking through what comes next. 

FTs will also want to consider how to celebrate and value governors’ contribution at the point at which the legislation may be passed.