Governance and leadership

AECC University College operate within frameworks set by Government, regulators and our own internal policies and procedures. Our Governors and Executive Board ensure that external and internal objectives are met, monitored and achieved.

About

Strategy

Read the University College Strategic Plan for 2021-2026 which has been reviewed and approved by AECC University College's Board of Governors. You will also find our education strategy and income and expenditure reports. 

View our Strategy documents

Quality 

Our quality framework outlines the policies and procedures to ensure maintenance and enhancement of the quality of our academic standards and student experience. 

Find out more about our Quality Framework

Governance structure

Here we outline our Governance structure and the roles and responsibilities of all those involved in the leadership of the AECC University College.

The University College is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It is governed by its Articles of Association which were last amended in August 2017.

Our Board of Governors

The University College is directed by its Board of Governors acting under these Articles of Association. The Board has ultimate responsibility for the strategy, performance and sustainability of the institution. It approves the University College’s mission and strategy, monitors institutional performance and ensures its effective management. The current Chair of the Board is Ms Jeni Bremner.

The Articles of Association mandate that the number of Board members (who fulfil the role of directors for company law purposes) is not less than twelve and (unless otherwise determined by ordinary resolution) not greater than twenty-five.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University College, the Staff Governor, and the Student Union President and Vice-President are ex officio members. The rest of the Board members are independent lay members appointed for their expertise.

The Board actively endeavours to maintain the skills mix required for an effective Board, and where a skills gap is identified, nominations for new Governors are sought in a variety of ways, including advertising, through National Associations, and publicising vacancies to staff and graduates of the University College. Applications for independent governors of the Board are considered by the Governance & Nominations Committee before a recommendation is made to the Board. Appointments are for four years and may be renewed for a second term of office. All new governors receive a full induction. A Register of Interests is held by the University Secretary and details the interests of members of the Board; this is renewed annually.

The Board meets at least four times a year. It has a number of standing Committees which meet regularly between Board meetings:

• Audit & Risk Assurance Committee oversees the appointment of the internal and external auditors, and gives assurance to the Board on internal controls, compliance, risk management, fraud and irregularity, and value for money. 

• Finance & Performance Committee is responsible for the detailed scrutiny of the proposed budget and its subsequent management. The Committee also monitor and review the performance against the budget, reporting to the Board.

• The Governance & Nominations Committee provides assurance to the Board that the institution is meeting all regulatory requirements relating to governance. The Committee also reviews the composition of the Board of Governors, its committees and subsidiary boards to ensure the appropriate skills, experience, competencies and diversity are represented, making recommendations to the Board for the appointment of Governors.

• People & Place Committee has oversight of HR policies and procedures and their effectiveness as well as wider HR matters. The Committee also oversees the development and delivery of the Estates Strategy.

• Remuneration Committee considers the salary and conditions of service of the Vice-Chancellor, and of the Executive Team.

The management and academic committee structure is overseen by the Board of Governors and Academic Board

Meet the board

Gender Pay Gap Report 2021-2022

In March 2020, our workforce identified as 78 males and 134 females. Our analysis includes employees, workers, and self-employed individuals. This means that we must submit a gender pay report to the government and publish this report ourselves by 30th March each year.

The gender pay gap is the percentage difference between average hourly earnings for men and women across an organisation. It is different to equal pay, which assesses the pay differences between men and women who carry out the same jobs, similar jobs or work of equal value.

AECC University College is committed to the principle of equal pay for equal work for all of its staff. Whilst our gender pay gap reporting indicates that in terms of the average level of pay between our male and female employees overall is something that we need to improve on, as part of a comprehensive review of our pay arrangements recently undertaken by an independent specialist adviser, we are confident that we have no significant differences in place in terms of men and women carrying out the same/similar roles and/or work of ‘equal value’. This being reinforced by our implementation of a job evaluation scheme which allows us to consistently and transparently compare roles across the organisation and associated pay benchmarking review, an exercise which will be repeated at regular intervals.

The results shown in the 2021-2022 gender pay gap report below present us with challenging opportunities going forward. As a new University College we are progressing various workforce development plans, which include narrowing the gender pay gap as a major focus, and moving away from the historical context of the make-up of our employees.

 

Download the Gender Pay Gap Report 2021-2022

Sustainable Travel Plan

Travel by students, staff, visitors and patients makes a significant contribution towards our overall carbon footprint. Our Sustainable Travel Plan is a key step in supporting members of our community, patients and visitors and to make more sustainable choices in how they travel to our campuses. 

The principal objectives of the Sustainable Travel Plan are:

  • Environmental benefits through carbon reduction
  • Improved health and wellbeing of staff, students, patients and other visitors
  • Reduced traffic congestion and improved air quality for the local population

Plans include but aren’t limited to:

  • Increasing cycle spaces and reviewing security and lighting provision for all cycle storage facilities
  • Providing additional shower facilities, lockers and consideration given to facilities to dry clothes and towels to encourage more cycling
  • Installation of Electric Vehicle charging point

ReAd OUR FULL SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL PLAN

Suicide Prevention Strategy for Staff and Students

Many of us find suicide difficult to talk about. And yet we should talk about it more. We want our universities to be safe places; places where students and staff can thrive and succeed, where everyone feels that they belong and are part of a supportive and caring community. But we have to recognise that, for some, for some of the time; that is not how they feel. Support is available, but those in need of support sometimes feel there are barriers to accessing the support available or are unable or unwilling to do so.

Suicide is preventable. That is why Bournemouth’s three universities have a shared vision with all our partners signed up to the Pan-Dorset suicide prevention strategy that “no one of any age living in Dorset will reach the point where they believe that they have no other choice but to attempt suicide or to end their life by suicide”.

We are committed to working with our partners in raising awareness around suicide prevention and taking action to achieve our shared vision. This strategy sets out the detailed actions that we will take, to ensure that our communities are the supportive and caring places we want them to be, for all members of our community, so that no-one feels that they are left without choices.

ReAd the Universities' Suicide Prevention Strategy

Our Academic Board

The Academic Board is the University College’s supreme decision-making authority for all academic governance matters including oversight of the maintenance of standards and quality enhancement, and academic regulations, policies and procedures. Academic Board discharges its responsibilities in part through standing committees and sub-committees, and delegates authority to Assessment Boards for decisions on individual students in terms of their internal progression and award of qualifications. The Academic Board reports to the Board of Governors.

The membership and terms of reference of the Academic Board and its committees show how these responsibilities are discharged and reported. All key academic committees include student and elected staff representation. The academic committee structure was reviewed and revised in Spring 2020 and updated to reflect management role changes in September 2020. The current version (v6.6) takes account of minor amendments approved by Academic Board in the 2021-22 academic year.

Our institutional management and structure

Implementation of the strategy and policies approved by the Board is the executive responsibility of the Vice-Chancellor and the Executive team. The Vice-Chancellor is Chief Executive of the College with powers delegated by the Board to lead and manage the institution aligned to the College’s strategic plan. The Vice-Chancellor is supported by the Executive Team and a number of Management Groups:

  • Senior Management Group
  • Health & Safety Group
  • Clinical Governance Group
  • Radiation Protection Group
  • Recruitment, Selection & Admissions Steering Group
  • Access & Participation Steering Group
  • Projects, Infrastructure & Estates Group

For more information on how our University College is organised and managed please view our institutional structure.

 

Slavery & Human Trafficking Statement

“Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 relates to transparency in supply chains. AECC University College is committed to protecting and respecting human rights and to ensuring best practice in everything it does, such that the aims of the Modern Slavery Act are achieved and all reasonable steps are taken to minimise the risk of slavery and human trafficking taking place in any part of its supply chain. AECC University College continues to systematically keep under review all aspects of its procurement practice to ensure that its initial supplier vetting and ongoing due diligence processes are as robust as possible and that there can be confidence that slavery and human trafficking is not taking place in its business or supply chains. The resultant updated Procurement Policy will be communicated to all staff and accompanied by procurement training sessions, which will include training to raise awareness of modern slavery and human trafficking and of the key aims and requirements of the Modern Slavery Act.”

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