Our Trustees

Their responsibility is to make sure that our mission and vision reflects the wishes of the members (you!). They are also responsible for the effective management and administration of your Students' Union, through the Union Directors. 

 

Student Trustees attend the union’s trustee board meetings and are responsible for ensuring good governance and the financial stability of the organisation, as well as contributing towards the overall strategy. The trustees hold senior staff to account and set the staffing and financial policies of the union.

 

Key Responsibilities of Trustees. The Trustees shall:

• At all times act in the best interests of Keele SU.
• Ensure that the Union complies with its governing documents, all applicable laws and statutory regulations or any regulations of any governmental, quasi-governmental, supra-national or other competent agency (including, without limitation, all health and safety legislation) in force from time to time.
• Ensure that KeeleSU’s governance is of the highest possible standard and quality.
• Be guardians of all KeeleSUs assets, both tangible and intangible, taking all due care over their security, deployment and proper application.
• Work in partnership with other Trustees, the Operations Managers and other senior staff in ensuring that KeeleSU has a clear vision, mission, and strategic direction and is focused on their delivery.
• Ensure there are effective mechanisms in place to:
  1. listen to the views of current and future Members;
  2. ensure student views are at the heart of everything the University does;
  3. evidence the impact of Keele SU on the diverse student membership;
  4. review the external environment for changes that might affect Keele SU;
  5. continually re-assess the need for Keele SU and the services it does or could provide and review regularly against its strategic plan and charitable objectives.

Other Duties of the Trustees

• In addition to the above duties, each Trustee should use any specific skills, knowledge or experience they have to help the Board of Trustees reach sound decisions. 

What Meetings do Trustees Attend?

• All Trustees attend the Trustee Board, a meeting which usually lasts between 2 and 3 hours and that meets 4 times per year, along with any extraordinary meetings which can be called to discuss a pressing matter. 
• There are also two sub committees that trustees are invited to be part of; The Finance, HR and Compliance Sub Committee and the Student Engagement Sub Committee. Each of these sub committees meet twice annually. 
• The Finance, HR and Compliance Sub Committee is responsible for scrutiny of high level budgets, management accounts, HR policies and compliance with relevant legislation such as charity governance. We need at least one Student Trustee to be a member of this board. 
• The Student Engagement Sub Committee considers, scrutinises and reviews how well Keele SU is engaging with students. It considers areas such as democracy, student activities and communication with students. We need at least one Student Trustee to be a member of this board.