The Council of Governors

Each NHS Foundation Trust must have a Council of Governors. The Governors represent the interests of the members and any partner organisations in monitoring how services are developed and how the organisation is managed.   See the profiles of our Governors.

Our Council of Governors has the following seats:

• A Chair (who is also Chair of the Board of Directors)
• 16 Public Governors elected from the public membership
• 6 Staff Governors elected from the staff membership
• 3 Partner Governors nominated by the organisations they represent

How are the public governors selected?

In order to ensure that the interests of the community are broadly reflected, there are governors to be elected from each of the current constituencies:

• Norwich x3
• Breckland x3
• Broadland x3
• North Norfolk x2
• South Norfolk x2
• Gt Yarmouth/Waveney x1
• West Norfolk x1
• Rest of England x1

Governors are elected by the membership of their constituency (eg Broadland members elect Broadland Governors). Our first election was held between January and April 2008 in line with national guidelines and we run annual elections to fill any vacancies on our Council of Governors.

How are staff governors selected?

We want a broad representation across all staff groups and therefore the staff membership elect staff Governors in the following categories:

• Nursing and Midwifery x2
• Medical x1
• Admin and Clerical x1
• Clinical Support x1
• Facilities Contractors/Volunteers x1

How are other governors be selected?

A number of local organisations appoint a Governor to represent their interests on our Council of Governors.  They are the University of East Anglia, the Clinical Commissioning Groups and Norfolk County Council.

What do Governors do?

• Reflect the interests of members (staff and public governors)
• Represent the interests of partner organisations (appointed governors)
• Monitor the governance of the NHS Foundation Trust
• Influence change and strategic development
• Appoint the Chairman and non-executive directors

Elected governors serve a term of three years, after which they can be re-elected. Newly elected governors are provided with induction training which will provide them with the skills and information they require to fulfil their role.

The Council of Governors will meet at least four times a year; the Trust will provide support to meetings. Governors will not receive payment for their role; they will however be entitled to claim relevant expenses i.e. travel expenses.

Governors can also get involved in hospital working groups such as those looking at outpatient clinics or helping us to improve our patient information.  The Governors also help in recruiting new members at hospital events, such as the open day, and community events and fetes.

Interested in becoming a Governor?

Before an election takes place all members are advised through the Pulse magazine which is sent to members each quarter. In order to stand as a governor in the election members are required to complete a nomination form. All prospective governors are expected to:

• provide a supporting statement (up to 120 words) describing why they wish to be a governor
• complete a declaration of interests

Where a seat is contested then voting will be by secret ballot, using the “single transferable vote’ method where preferred candidates are ranked in order.

If you are interested in becoming a Governor please contact our Membership Office.

Janice Bradfield
Head of External Affairs
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Colney Lane
Norwich
Norfolk
NR4 7UY

Tel: 01603 287634