News from Council - July 2010

Council met on 27 July to review progress of the preparations for the upcoming Spending Review, and noted constructive engagement with BIS including around the programme of community discussion and engagement now under way. Council in particular noted that the CSR Sub-Group of Council chaired by Professor Keith Burnett would participate in the programme of community meetings. The Sub-Group oversees and guides the STFC executive’s work on the Spending Review preparations.

As part of the broad-ranging discussion, Council reviewed the issues faced by STFC around the CSR 2007 outcome, to ensure the organisation was addressing areas of community concern raised at that time. Council acknowledged major improvements had been made since 2007 in STFC’s engagement with its scientific communities and other partners, internal communications and management, and financial planning. These were evidenced in the successful community input to, and implementation of, the December 2009 prioritisation exercise and subsequent Drayson Review.

Council noted that the CEO and Executive accepted the need for further improvements, as most recently communicated to the Chairman Michael Sterling by members of the particle and nuclear physics and astronomy communities. Council agreed it would be helpful to ensure that the community’s thoughts were specifically considered during the process of selecting the next Chief Executive, who would take office when Professor Keith Mason’s term expired at the end of March 2012. Council noted that Professor Mason had made clear for some time he did not wish to be considered for a second term as CEO having completed a process of considerable change and modernisation during the five-year period of his tenure. Mindful of the likely time needed to recruit a successor to Prof Mason, Council agreed to establish a sub-group to examine these requirements, and report back to Council. (Read the sub-group's terms of reference.)

Council also discussed the role of Council, and reaffirmed that members undertake, as a condition of their appointment by the Government, to act independently and impartially in their work for STFC. They are also required by the Code of Practice (PDF - 112kB - link opens in a new window):

“to observe the highest standards of propriety involving impartiality, integrity and objectivity in relation to stewardship of public funds and management of the bodies concerned”.

Council affirmed that potential conflicts of interests were managed transparently, and did not influence the decisions taken by STFC.