Governance of Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust
What is the Trust's legal status?
The Trust is a registered charity (no.201081) and a company limited by guarantee (registered in England no. 676313) governed by its Memorandum & Articles of Association. The Trust was first established in 1960.
Who governs the Trust?
Those elected to serve on the Council of Management have a dual role as a Trustee of the charity and a Director of the company. All Trustee Directors are volunteers and are not paid for their services. There are currently 14 members of Council who provide the Trust with a wide range of professional expertise in the fields of conservation, law, finance, marketing, education, management, biological research and human resources.
How is the Trust governed?
The Council of Management is scheduled to meet four times each year (more meetings can be held if necessary) and is responsible for complying with the principles of prudent management as laid down by legislation and the best practice guidelines of the Charity Commission. An Annual General Meeting for members of the Trust is held in the autumn each year.
Council's specific responsibilities include the taking of all decisions on matters of strategic management and governance, monitoring of operations, land and buildings acquisition and disposal, health and safety, risk management, setting and amendment of investment guidelines, recommending to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) the Statutory Auditors for the coming year, approving the Annual Report & Accounts, keeping the Memorandum & Articles of Association under review and appointing and appraising the Chief Executive who is responsible for the day to day management of the Trust.
Trust Committees:
Council has the power to delegate powers to sub-committees and currently has a Business & Finance Committee, a Conservation Committee and a Membership, Marketing & Education Committee that meet four times a year in advance of Council. The members of Business & Finance Committee are drawn from current trustees only, while Conservation Committee has a mixture of trustees and outside experts as does Membership, Marketing & Education Committee.
The Trustees elect the following officers annually: Chair, Vice-Chair, Honorary Treasurer and also Chairs of Committees. Council also appoints a Company Secretary (a paid member of staff) to assist with the governance of the organisation and to support the work of Trustees.
