Monday 18-03-2024 - 16:27

We are in the process of revising NUS Charity’s model constitutions for HE members, which were last updated in 2017.

Through reviewing the documents questions were raised that we wanted to ask members' opinions on. We are also checking the documents with the Charity Commission at the same time so that the finished documents will be accepted by them.

We’ve created a briefing document with Bates Wells where you can read about the proposed changes and can answer specific questions.

 

The key changes we want feedback on are:

The models themselves

• If you agree we should continue providing documents for all four models – CLG and CIO, both with trustees as constitutional members or students as constitutional members

Clearer democratic process

• A proposed clearer definition between democratic policy decisions & statements made by students and formal constitutional/company law decisions made by the constitutional/company law members

Modern private benefit provisions

• Making it clear that student trustees could be casual workers for the SU as long as safeguards were in place
• Making the information about private benefit simpler and more consistent across the models

Charitable purposes and powers

We aren’t looking to amend the charitable purposes as we are currently working on a legal opinion as to what can constitute a ‘students as students’ issue. As part of this we would be interested if you had any comments on their scope.

Trustees / officers

• We propose clarifying processes around election and removal of trustees and officers and simplifying delegation

Inter-relationship with bye-laws

• We’ve noticed a lack of detail in constitutions are not always then covered by bye-laws which can cause SUs issues.
• We have three potential options – to put more information in constitutions rather than have that info in byelaws; to provide model bye-laws; or provide wording that creates a default position that trustees can make a ruling on an issue where the bye-laws are silent

Clarity/transparency

• There are limitations on how accessible constitutions can be as the content is so heavily regulated – but we are trying to modernise the wording where possible
• We’d like views on whether we should try and significantly rewrite constitutions with a greater emphasis on lain English or whether we limit those amendments to where we have ideas for bigger changes so that more SUs can ‘slot in’ these sections to their existing documents.

 

Please email any feedback on our proposals to uniondevelopment@nus.org.uk by April 30^th