The council of governors is a central part of a foundation trust. It represents the interests of patients, public and staff and oversees the work of the Board in running the organisation.
Governors help set the strategic direction of the Trust. They are either elected by public and staff members or appointed by partner organisations.
Roles and responsibilities
The council of governors can:
The Governors role does not include managing the day-to-day business of the Trust. This responsibility remains with the executive team.
Who will sit on our council of governors?
The majority of governors will be elected by public members but the council of governors will also include staff governors who are elected by our staff members and representatives from partner organisations. It will have up to 20 people, as shown below:
| Governor group | Representing | No of Governors |
| Staff (elected) | All staff |
3
|
| Public (elected) |
Birkenhead 3 Wallasey 3 Wirral South & Neston 2 Wirral West 2 Rest of England 1 |
11 (in total) |
| Appointed | Partners & Stakeholders |
(up to 6)
|
Who can become a governor?
Almost anyone who is 16 or over and lives in one of our five public constituencies (Birkenhead, Wallasey, Wirral South & Neston, Wirral West and Rest of England) can stand for election as a governor. The other members in that constituency will vote for the people they want to represent them.
To be eligible to become a Governor you need to register as a member of the Trust. Please click here to go through to the Membership page where you can join. (Please add link to Membership page)
Some people cannot become a governor, for example: a person who has been convicted of a criminal offence in the last five years and sentenced to imprisonment for three months or more, someone who has been declared bankrupt and not discharged, or anyone who is on the sex offenders register.
Full details of the eligibility criteria, outlined in our draft constitution, can be obtained from the Membership Team on 0151 651 3939 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
|
Public Governors (elected)
|
Birkenhead |
Irene Cooke |
|
Ian Jones |
||
|
Vacant seat |
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|
Wallasey |
Dr Paul Ivan |
|
|
Vacant seat |
||
|
Bill Wylie |
||
|
Wirral South & Neston |
Kevin Sharkey |
|
|
Vacant seat |
||
|
Wirral West |
Lynn Collins |
|
|
Vacant seat |
||
|
Rest of England |
Vacant seat |
|
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Staff Governors (elected)
|
Fiona Davies |
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|
Fiona Fleming |
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|
Vacant seat |
||
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Appointed Governors representing... |
Wirral CCG |
Paul Edwards |
|
University of Chester |
Eve Collins |
|
|
Healthwatch Wirral |
Karen Prior |
|
The Council of Governors meet regularly to ensure that the interests of members and the public are represented within the Trust, and to oversee the work of the Board of Directors. To get in touch with your local governor please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 01521 514 2203.
Non Executive Directors (NEDs) are a vital part of the Trust Board providing independent judgement and advice, and help the executive board to enable the organisation to fulfill its leadership responsibilities to patients, for healthcare of the local community.
Council of Governors meetings
The Council of Governors meetings are open to the general public. If you would like to attend or have any queries please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 0151 514 2203.
The Council of Governor Elections are now open to members. Being a governor is a vital role; you will be the voice that represents our members and help shape the future of our Trust, improving the experience our patients receive. If this is something you would like to do, please put yourself forward today.
For a full list of vacant seats and constituencies please click through to the Notice of Election >>
As Returning Officer, UK Engage, will be managing this election on behalf of Wirral Community Health & Care NHS Foundation Trust. If you would like to put your name forward to sit on the Council of Governors, you will need to complete a nomination form.
The easiest way to do this is to complete our online nomination form. Which you can access here >>
Alternatively, you can request a nomination pack by phone or email and UK Engage will send it to you.
If you have any other questions about the nomination process, please contact UK Engage.
You can also complete a nomination form by downloading it here>>. Once you have filled it in, please post it to UK Engage.
Nominations for this election will close on the Thursday 31 October 2019, 5.00pm.
If you have any other questions about the nomination process, please contact UK Engage.
Or Write to: UK Engage, House, 10 Acorn Business Park, Heaton Lane, Stockport SK4 1AS
Timetable for 2019 Elections
|
Event |
Date |
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Publication of Notice of Election |
Monday, 14 October 2019
|
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Deadline for Receipt of Nominations |
Thursday, 31 October 2019
|
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Publication of Statement of Nominations |
Friday, 1 November 2019
|
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Deadline for Candidate Withdrawals |
Tuesday, 5 November 2019
|
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Notice of Poll / Issue of Ballot Packs |
Friday, 15 November 2019
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Close of Poll – 5pm |
Tuesday, 10 December 2019
|
|
Declaration of Result |
Wednesday 11 December 2019
|
Frequently Asked Questions - Governor Elections 2019
The Trust is holding Governor Elections to fill a number of vacant seats on the Council of Governors.
The election is run by an independent, external election company, UK Engage.
The Council of Governors is currently made up of 19 governors namely:
10 public governors (elected from and by our public members)
3 staff governors (elected from and by our staff members)
6 appointed governors (nominated from and by our partner organisations)
For the first time we will be electing a governor for The Rest of England constituency recognising that as a Trust we provide services outside of Wirral.
In order to ensure local accountability, there are both elected and appointed governors. Elected governors represent members in our public and staff constituencies. Appointed governors represent partner organisations that we work with such as local councils, academic institutes (Universities), commissioner groups and local voluntary networks. Of note, the majority of our Council of Governors (14 out of 20) will be elected by our members.
Our membership community is made up of patients service users, local residents, staff and the public with members voting to elect representatives (governors) onto our Council of Governors. Governors are responsible for representing members and the public and engaging with them to forward their views and opinions to the Trust’s Board of Directors.
You are eligible to vote if you are already registered as a member of our Foundation Trust in the member constituency for which the election is being held or if you register as a member, ON OR BEFORE the closing date of the nomination period (i.e. 31 October 2019).
Staff are automatically invited to become staff members but are able to opt out.
At the start of the election process (i.e 14 October 2019) UK Engage will issue a Notice of Election >> which includes an election timetable detailing the key nomination and voting dates.
All election documents are published on our website ‘Governor Elections’ webpage
If you provide your name and contact details to the Trust’s Membership Office on 0151 514 2203 they will be able to let you know if you are registered as a member and, if you are, which membership constituency you are in.
Constitution
As a Foundation Trust our Council of Governors has responsibility for the appointment of NEDs. We have been working with the Governors to agree the process for Reappointment and Appointment, as from May this year all of our NEDs will be coming to the end of their existing terms of office. This process has commenced.
Wirral Community Health & Care NHS Foundation Trust Constitution
Last Updated: Tuesday, 05 November 2019 15:17
