POLICY POLICY NAME: Standing Orders DATE: 19.09.14 AUTHOR: Pam Veitch, Director of Procurement & Governance CONSULTATION GROUP: Board of Corporation THIS POLICY IS RELEVANT TO (tick as applicable) STUDENTS GOVENORS POLICY TO BE LOCATED: Alfresco, College Website APPROVED BY: CLMT DATE OF APPROVAL: 07 October 2014 REFERENCE NUMBER: P09/2014 (to be allocated by Quality and Standards) DATE TO BE REVIEWED: (to be agreed at approval) 1. STAFF EMPLOYERS ☐ October 2015 POLICY STATEMENT The purpose of this policy is to set out the College’s framework of governance arrangements and raise student and staff awareness of the Standing Orders. 2. STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES The College is a statutory corporation set up by order of the Secretary of State under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 The Instrument and Articles of Government (I&A) are contained in a Statutory Order and apply to the Corporation as a matter of law. The I&A sets out the Corporation’s composition and procedures and its internal powers, responsibilities and duties and govern the internal management of the Corporation. In accordance with Article 21 of the I&A, more detailed internal governance rules are set out in the Standing Orders for the purpose of regulating the conduct of the Corporation’s business. Page 1 of 3 Policy Template (Version 1: May 2014) Every Governor must comply with the requirements of the I&A. In addition to Standing Orders, Governors are required to have regard to/comply with (as appropriate) the Foundation Code of Governance, Financial Regulations approved by the Corporation, any requirements of regulators responsible for the FE Sector and relevant Codes of Practice including in particular the Joint Audit Code of Practice. The Standing Orders are reviewed and updated by the Corporation at least once every two years and are publically available via the College website at: http://sunderlandcollege.ac.uk/about-us/governance/regulatory-framework/. 3. EXPLANATION OF KEY TERMS Corporation – the Corporation of City of Sunderland College. EFA – regulatory body of Education Funding Agency. Financial Regulations - rules for the systems of financial management of the Corporation. They represent formal policy and procedures for all staff employed by the College and third parties under contract to the College who have responsibility for the management of resources or the control of income and expenditure. Foundation Code of Governance - a common set of recommended threshold standards of good governance practice expected of all governing bodies of English FE colleges. Joint Audit Code of Practice - issued by the SFA and EFA regulatory funding bodies to set out the mandatory audit requirements for further education colleges and the model documents needed to meet these requirements, including mandatory minimum terms of reference for the audit committee and requirements for financial statements audit, regularity audit and internal audit. Governor – an appointed member of the Board of Corporation. The College - means City of Sunderland College which the Corporation is established to conduct under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 and subsequent legislation. SFA – regulatory body of Skills Funding Agency. 4. RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES Governors: It is the responsibility of the Governors to fully comply with the requirements of the I&A and the Standing Orders and shall specifically pay attention to achieving a composition of the Corporation which is consistent with its responsibilities in relation to Equality and Diversity. The College Executive: It is the responsibility of the Executive (comprising the Senior Post Holders appointed by the Corporation) to fully comply with the requirements of the I&A and the Standing Orders. Students: It is the responsibility of students to understand the responsibility of the elected student governor role. Page 2 of 3 Policy Template (Version 1: May 2014) Employees: It is the responsibility of all College employees to be aware of the Standing Orders and to understand the role and function of the elected Staff Governor. Managers may also be required (as deemed necessary by the Principal) to attend Committees as and when required, to prepare reports and present them as appropriate to the Governors. 5. COLLEGE PROCEDURES LINKED TO THIS POLICY (list): N/A 6. HOW HAS IMPACT ASSESSMENT TAKEN PLACE (What are the intended and unintended impacts of this policy on individuals and groups according to equality and diversity characteristics? How is equality and diversity embedded within this policy? The impact assessment must consider safeguarding considerations and requirements.) There are no concerns that this policy would have a differential impact on different groups of staff or students. Page 3 of 3 Policy Template (Version 1: May 2014)