SEC/2016/2/0179Draft
LANCASTER UNIVERSITY
Chaplaincy Centre Governance Arrangements
The Governance of the Chaplaincy Centre is managed through the following bodies: Board of Trustees for the Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre Charity (no. 500891), Chaplaincy Centre Management Committee and a User Forum.
1.Board of Trustees
1.1Terms of reference
1.1.1To ensure Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre fulfils its charitable obligations and the requirements of the University to be an ecumenical and multi-faith facility on campus by providing:-
- use of a Chapel and sacristy for worship by Anglican and Free Churches for the practice and advancement of the faith of members
- use of a Chapel and sacristy for the practice and advancement of the Roman Catholic faith
- use of space for the practice and advancement of the Jewish faith
- use of the Islamic Prayer Room for the practice and advancement of the Islamic faith
- rooms to be used for such other purposes as the University may approve in accordance with the Trust Deed.
1.1.2 To ensure financial sustainability of the Chaplaincy Centre.
1.1.3 To report to the Charity Commission.
1.1.4To set the strategic aims and objectives for the Chaplaincy Centre on an annual basis, and monitor progress.
1.2Membership
1.2.1The Board of Trustees shall consist of the following:
Ex officio members
(i)The Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Blackburn or his/her nominee.
(ii)The Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster or his nominee.
(iii)The Chair of the Lancashire District of the Methodist Church or his/her nominee.[1]
(iv)The Chair of the Chaplaincy Centre Management Committee, appointed by the University after consultation with the Trustees.[2]
Appointed members
(v)A Senior Officer of the University (Chair) appointed by the University.[3]
(vi)A Muslim representative.
(vii)A Jewish representative, appointed by the Chief Rabbi.
(viii)A representative of the Christian Churches in Lancashire appointed by Churches Together in Lancashire.
(ix)The Board of Trustees may co-opt up to two members with full voting rights to ensure that there is an appropriate balance of skills, backgrounds etc. on the Board.
1.2.2Appointed members will be appointed for a non-renewable term of five years.
1.2.3A Treasurer appointed by the University after consultation with the Trustees shall attend meetings but will not be a Trustee.
1.2.4The Trustees may wish to appoint a Secretary who will not be a Trustee.
1.2.5No serving Chaplain may be a Trustee.
1.3Procedures
Meets at least once per annum, normally at Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre. The quorum for any meeting of the Trustees is six, to include at least one ex officio member and one appointee of the University.
2.Management Committee
2.1Terms of Reference
The ultimate responsibility for the Centre lies with the Board of Trustees, the University and the Founding Faith Communities. However, to maintain an effective oversight in the day-to-day administration of the Centre, it has been decided to appoint a Management Committee, which is accountable to the Board of Trustees, to perform the following duties:-
2.1.1to ensure that the Centre is a multi-faith, ecumenical facility on campus;
2.1.2to enable the maintenance of regular acts of worship according to the rites and customs of the Faith Communities who use the Chaplaincy and associated space;
2.1.3to present and carry out policies intended to relate the life and work of the Centre to the total life and work of the faith communities, the University and the wider community within the strategic direction set by the Board of Trustees;
2.1.4to be concerned for the proper maintenance and cleanliness of the Centre and its surrounds, and adherence to health and safety policies;
2.1.5to report to the appointed representatives of the University and the Founding Faith Communities upon such repairs and renewals which are their proper responsibility;
2.1.6to raise, receive and administer such monies as may be required to carry out its duties;
2.1.7to provide strategic oversight for the work of the University and Associate chaplaincy staff;
2.1.8to report annually to the Board of Trustees.
2.2Membership
- The Chaplains who have been appointed by the Founding Faith Communities, defined in Appendix 1 and who are recognised by the University, together with one representative each of the religious communities recognised by the University (currently the following: The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), the Unitarian Church, the Muslim Community, the Buddhist Community, the Orthodox Community and the Bahai Community).
- Up to two members of staff of the University appointed by the Senate to serve for terms of three years which may be renewed – one of whom shall normally serve as Chair, following consultation with the Trustees.
- The Management Committee has the right to co-opt up to two persons representing other users of the Centre to serve for a specified task or period, and also to invite to its meetings any persons who may have a particular contribution to make to any item specific on the Agenda.
- The Management Committee has the power to appoint, if required, Sub-committees to deal with particular aspects of the Centre’s work. Such Sub-committees shall be directly responsible to the Management Committee and shall include at least one member of the Management Committee.
2.3Procedures
The Management Committee shall meet at least once a term.
Minutes of the meeting will be circulated to members of the User group for information.
Any matters requiring action between meetings can be referred to the by members of the Chaplaincy Centre Management Committee to the Chair of the Management Committee, and will be reported upon at the next meeting.
A quorum of seven is required for a meeting of the Management Committee.
A report of the year’s work of the Centre will be submitted to the Board of Trustees for their consideration.
3.User Forum
There will in addition be a termly User Forum, open to all users (student, staff and external bodies) of the Chaplaincy Centre, in order to discuss matters of common interest or issues of concern. It will be chaired by the Chair of the Management Committee or her/his nominee from the Management Committee membership, Reports from the User Forum will be submitted to the Management Committee for consideration.
4.University Chaplains’ management role
Whilst the Management Committee has responsibility for the overall management of the Centre, the UniversityChaplains and the Centre Secretary will attend to the following duties, followed in line with the Chaplains Code of Appointment and Conduct policy:
- the booking of rooms and initial consideration of external speakers in any of the rooms in the Chaplaincy Centre or the Islamic Prayer Room in line with the University Code on Freedom of Speech;
- the equitable allocation of the Centre’s facilities;
- a general observation of the maintenance and cleanliness of the Centre and its immediate surrounds.
The use of the Chapels shall be the responsibility of the Chaplains referred to in the first bullet point under Membership (above), who shall carry out the specific terms of the Deed of Covenant. Policy regarding the use of the Jewish Rooms shall be determined in conjunction with the Jewish community’s nominated representative. Policy regarding the use of the Islamic Prayer Room shall be determined in conjunction with the Islamic Students Society [and their community’s nominated representative].
January 2016
APPENDIX 1
Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre
Founding Faith Communities
The Founding Faith Communities were defined in the Deed of Covenant of December 1967:
The Roman Catholic Church
The Church of England
The Methodist Church
The Congregational Church and the Presbyterian Church, which are now the United Reformed Church
The Baptist Church, now the Baptist Union
The Jewish Community
[1] The Chair of the Methodist District is a Trustee in acknowledgement of the substantial financial investment made at the inception of the Chaplaincy Centre. S/he also represents Baptist and URC interests.
[2] The Chair of the Chaplaincy Centre Management Committee should not be the Senior Officer of the University who chairs the Trustees.
[3] The Senior Officer of the University should not also be the Chair of the Chaplaincy Centre Management Committee.