Board Meeting 8th March 2022
Attendees: David Gray (DG, Chair), Gavin Wilson (GW, Treasurer), Roslyn Neely (RN), Mark Bishop (MB, Minutes), Liann Weir (LW), Mark Weir (MW), Mark Philips (MP), Laura Malone (LM), Gregor Urquhart (GU).
In attendance: Thomas Lynch (TL), Lisa Morrison (LM).
1. Welcome and Apologies
The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and noted we are kindly joined by Thomas Lynch (TL) and Lisa Morrison (LM).
The Chair notified the Board that Kevin Fallon (KF) had advised him of his need to resign his position with immediate effect. The Board was keen to note the important contribution KF made in his time as a Trustee.
Apologies were received from Joanne Price. No declarations of interest were asked to be noted.
2. Co-opting of new Trustee
A proposal was made to the Board by the Chair to vote Gregor Urquhart onto the Board as a Trustee. Gregor has a background in Scottish Government, and has a direct service link to the work at Dads Rock. Gregor also formerly worked at Young Scot. Proposer LW, seconded by GW.
The Chair welcomed Gregor to the Board and reminded Trustees that this appointment will be subject to a Member vote at the autumn AGM in line with governance procedures.
3. Minute of the meeting held 1 December 2021
The minute of the meeting held 1 December 2021 was presented for approval as an accurate and true record of the meeting. The minute was proposed by LM and seconded by RN.
4. Service Update
TL provided a verbal summary of the accompanying paper which covered service activity for the last three months.
5a. Fundraising update
LM provided an update on current fundraising performance and made reference to the report in the Board pack. The Board was keen to recognise the strength of the performance in challenging market conditions.
LM provided an overview of the Fundraising Plan for 2022/23 that has had Trustee input ahead of the meeting (RN, LM, MB).
Trustees recognised that despite the challenging market conditions that the plan has been reliably developed and is a plan that is achievable.
5b. Finance update
GW presented the financial plan for the forthcoming year. The plan was presented for formal approval. Proposer MB, seconded by MW. Board approved.
The Chair thanked GW for his efforts in helping to develop and present the budget proposal to the Board.
6. Trustee and Office Bearer Succession Planning Update
The Chair advised the Board that he, GW and TL have completed conversations with Board members to understand the capacity for each Trustee to take on office bearing roles. The conversations also sought to understand informally the priorities each Trustee felt the Charity should consider as it goes forward. Key points and decisions:
The Chair advised the Board that GW was willing to be proposed as his successor as Chair at the AGM in autumn (subject to his employer, not posing an objection).
The Chair reminded the Board how important it is for succession planning to happen in this way. Trustees were asked to give approval to GW being proposed as Chair to Members at the AGM. Proposer LM, seconder MW. The Board gave its support to GW being proposed for the position of Chair at the AGM.
The Chair also advised the Board that MW had expressed his willingness to become one of the two Vice-Chairs will immediate effect. This appointment is subject to a Member vote at the AGM in autumn. Proposed by RN, seconded by LW. The Board gave its support to this proposal and thanked MW for stepping forward to one of the two Vice-Chair positions. The Chair advised the Board that there was an intention to recruit two new Trustees to cover vacancies. The first vacancy is to find a Trustee with a finance background. This Trustee would be recruited on the basis of being proposed as Treasurer at the AGM (with GW being proposed for Chair). The second Trustee vacancy will seek to appoint a Trustee with a charity
secretary/governance background. This second role will be recruited with the intention of securing a second Vice-Chair, which will also be subject to a Member vote at the AGM.
7. Board Away Day / Strategy Planning Session
The Chair noted that for the last two years the Board focus has been, understandably, on short-term funding review. But going forward the Chair proposed the following:
Renewed focus should be placed on strategy development and longer-term planning. To aid this a Strategy Day will be scheduled for as many Trustees to attend as possible.
LW made the point that co-production for service development would help us ensure the future strategy is shaped by the people we are seeking to support.
Any other business
LW raised the need to give additional consideration to the heightened
risk of cyber security. Actions were agreed.
Date of next meeting: Wednesday 8th June 2022, 6.00-8.00pm