National Board of Trustees
The Board manages the business of The Scout Association in accordance with the Royal Charter and the Bye Laws of the Association. It's the Association's national decision-making body. Its members are the Trustees of the Association.
Role of the Board of Trustees
- The Board shapes and approves the strategy of The Scout Association, makes sure that we are taking action to achieve that strategy and ensures that the Association is meeting its legal and financial obligations. It is the Association's national decision-making body.
- The Trustees must act in the best interests of the Association as a whole (even if they are elected by a particular electoral college). They delegate authority for day to day activities to appropriate volunteers and staff.
- The Board meets four times a year. In addition, Trustees are expected to attend the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and are usually expected to sit on at least one of the Committees which reports into the Board: these meet from 2 – 4 times a year.
- The Trustee role description can be found on our website. Trustees are volunteers and are not paid – although they can claim reimbursement for expenses, in accordance with our Expenses Policy. We give all new Trustees a full induction to the role, along with an allocated mentor for their first year, and all Trustees take part in development sessions before each Board meeting.
- Being a Trustee can be rewarding and enjoyable and is a great way to influence Scouting.
The Board has 21 members:
- Twelve members nominated and elected by the Council of The Scout Association at the AGM: nine elected members * + three elected youth members **
- Three “ex officio” members: the UKCC, UKYC and Chief Executive
- Five members appointed by the Council at the AGM on the recommendation of the Board: the Chair of the Board, the Treasurer and up to three others.
- One member has been co-opted for a year from 2020.
- Information about each of the current Board members
* Elected Members
- The nine elected members are split across electoral colleges: England South (three members), England North
(three members), Scotland (one member), Wales (one member) and Northern Ireland (one member). - As an elected member you will serve for a period of three years (starting from the date of the AGM) and can then choose to stand for election for a second three-year period.
** Elected Youth Members
- To stand as an elected youth member, you must have passed your 18th birthday before the Nominations deadline and be aged 23 years or less at the qualifying date.
- As an elected youth member, you will serve for a period of three years (starting from the date of the AGM). You can then choose to stand for election for a further and final period of up to three years or until such time as you reach your 26th birthday whichever is first
The Scouts actively encourage Council members to nominate candidates which will assist in reaching out to a wide pool of good applicants. We know we have talented members but it’s our Council members that can really bring those talented individuals to our attention. It is important to ensure continued diversity of thought and a wide spread of knowledge and experience is present across our Board membership. If you know of a member who you think would be a suitable candidate please nominate them at the appropriate time.
- To stand for election you must be:
o Aged 18+ (see further age requirement for youth members – above)
o A current member or associate member of The Scout Association
o Supported in writing by two members of the Council of the Association (see below) and
o Not disqualified from being a charity trustee by virtue of the Charities Act. - Please note the Code of Conduct which we expect all candidates to read and comply with throughout the election process, this is available on the nominations website.
- You need to find two supporters (a “proposer” and a “seconder”) who must both be members of the Council. The list of Council membership can be found in POR Chapter 6.
- After you have found a suitable proposer and seconder who have agreed to support you, please go online and complete the nomination form. You may wish to include a short video (max 1 minute and 10mb) outlining why you want to be a Board member – please upload where indicated on the nominations site.
- Your proposer and seconder each need to submit online written statements (maximum of 60 words each) indicating why they believe that you would make a good Board member. These statements should demonstrate that the proposer and seconder have given serious consideration to your suitability for the role in the light of, amongst other factors, the role description and person specification.
- We will let you know when we have a completed nomination for you. We will also ask if you would like to attend the AGM, where the election results will be announced – although you don’t have to attend if you don’t want to.
- We will publish your name, along with the answers on your candidate information form and your proposer’s and seconder’s statements, on our online election website (along with a link to your video, if you chose to send us one).
- An email link to that website will be sent to all Council members asking them to vote online (unless there is only one validly nominated candidate in any category – in which case that candidate will be taken as elected unopposed).
The Vote
- Electronic voting has become the default procedure and details will be sent to each Council Member every July. If you are unable to vote electronically please let the Governance Team know.
- Each Council member can vote for one candidate in each Electoral College and for one youth member candidate.
- We will announce the names of those elected at the AGM.
Data Protection
The data you have supplied will be stored on Mi-Voice’s servers for 6 months following the close of the election. Your personal information will not be disclosed to any other organisation other than The Scout Association. The answers to your questions will form part of the election material that will be made available to the membership as part of this process.
More information
For more information about being a trustee generally, the Charity Commission’s 'The essential Trustee' is a good start. And of course, if you have any questions about the Trustee role or the election process, please contact the Governance Team.
Email the Governance team1. Candidates:
a. Do not start canvassing for support until the voting site is live.
b. Comply with data protection legislation when using personal data for canvassing, ensuring that you
are not using data which has been obtained for a different purpose.
c. Use only publicly available contact details.
Example: Using emails obtained from public websites is acceptable. Using personal data
from Compass or any other source available to you through your Scouting role is not
acceptable.
d. The use of social media for campaigning is allowable, once the election site is live.
e. Act at all times in line with Scout values and policies.
2. Council Members:
a. Comply with data protection legislation when using personal data for campaigning in support of
election candidates, ensuring that you are NOT using data which has been obtained for a different
purpose.
b. Use only publicly available contact details as above.
c. Ensure that all candidates are treated equally and fairly.
Example: Sharing candidates’ social media posts is acceptable, as is expressing an opinion as
to who you think will make a good trustee. Anything that could be construed as telling other
Council Members who to vote for is not acceptable.
d. Act at all times in line with Scout values and policies.
e. Consider any conflict of interest, particularly if you publicly state who you will be supporting.
f. Do not promote candidates until the elections site is live.
g. Encourage members to vote.
3. Breaches
Breaches of this code of conduct will be dealt with in line with Key Policies.