Council members should be aware that they are trustees of the institute, which is a registered charity.
Chatham House is governed by a Charter and Bye Laws which lay down the objects of the institute and the powers of council. The Charter and Bye Laws also lay down the responsibilities of council members, which include:
- agreeing, in conjunction with the director, the institute’s strategic plan;
- agreeing the annual business plan and budget;
- monitoring performance against the plan and budget;
- receiving the auditors’ report and holding the executive to account for acting on agreed recommendations; and
- agreeing the annual report and accounts.
The particular priorities for the institute for the coming period are to:
- ensure that the position of the institute as one of the world’s premier venues for the debate of international affairs is maintained in a competitive market for ideas;
- implement the director’s strategic plan for the institute;
- bring added focus to the institute’s inter-disciplinary research priorities and hold high quality events and discussions;
- ommunicate effectively with the institute’s membership and wider audiences, particularly through the website and social media as well as in-person events;
- aintain and extend the institute’s fundraising activities; particularly with the aim of increasing the receipt of unrestricted funds available to the director for allocation to research;
- bring together the Institute’s various activities aimed at increasing involvement by younger people into a coherent and adequately funded programme; and
- mintain high levels of communication with the institute’s valued and committed staff and continue our programme to embed diversity and inclusion in the workplace and in our activities.
Council members can contribute to achieving the institute’s objectives by:
- contributing management experience and other skills to improve the effectiveness of Council including by serving on committees of Council or specific advisory groups;
- develop an effective relationship with the director and her team, providing both support and feedback;
- using their own networks where relevant to raise the profile of the institute’s work with its key constituencies in government, the media, the private sector and civil society;
- working with the director on improving impact and broadening the institute’s appeal to diverse audiences;
- contributing to the institute’s members’ events and conferences;
- king an active interest in the views and concerns of the institute’s staff, for example in respect of EDI;
- supporting the institute’s fundraising priorities by introducing or recruiting new corporate and individual members and connecting the institute to potential funders of its research and sponsors of its conferences;
- dvising the Director on the institute’s research agenda and helping deepen the institute’s academic links; and
- contributing personally as a sponsor of activities or via the Annual Fund.
Council members are elected for three years and may stand for re-election at the end of their first term.
Council members are expected to attend council meetings, of which there are up to five each year, usually held from 4pm to 6.30pm on a mid-week evening, as well as the annual strategy away day in May and the annual general meeting. Additionally, Council members will usually serve on one or more committees of Council, each of which usually holds three to four meetings each year. It is also important that Council members regularly take part in Chatham House events and activities.
Council members are required to sign a confirmation that they have read the institute’s policy on related party transactions and will comply with the requirements to avoid any conflicts of interest.