https://doi.org/10.36866/pn.118.8

The purpose of these short updates is to keep you informed about the work of our committees. The following summaries detail the meetings of the past few months.

Council- December 2019

The President, Bridget Lumb, thanked Trustees for their attendance at the General Meeting, which took place on 10 December 2019 at Hodgkin Huxley House and confirmed that, with 100% vote in favour, the new Articles of Association had been passed as a special resolution. The document would be formally filed with Companies House and the Charity Commission by BDB Pitmans. She noted some issues had arisen through discussion that would be taken forward with the Chair of the History and Archives Task Force. However, the completion of such a thorough review and implementation of the new Articles and Regulations would, going forward, allow Trustees to be confident in the robust governance structures and concentrate more on outward-focusing strategic priorities.

The Head of Policy and Communications reported on the new website data following 6 months in operation. Overall, the platform had been positively received and, following feedback from a focus group of Members and a subsequent meeting with the design agency, certain areas would be reviewed and reformatted to increase engagement. He noted that clear Key Performance Indicators had been set for each section and Council requested quarterly comparison data against the old website’s performance.

The Chair of the Grants Review Task and Finish Group, Prem Kumar, provided a paper and gave a presentation that set out the recommendations of the group. Council received the work of the group positively and noted the thorough consideration that had been given to the overall offering of grant provisions in alignment with the strategy. Overall, it was considered a refreshing and forward-looking roadmap. Council agreed that a Grants Implementation Task and Finish Group chaired by Prem, which would include two Trustees, should be established to determine the finer details of the scheme. This implementation group would report to a future meeting for final approval of Council.

The Deputy Chair of the Membership Categories and Journeys Review Task and Finish Group, Guy Bewick, reported the findings of the group to Council. He noted the overarching aim of the review had been to develop a more inclusive Society, attracting Members from both inside and outside of the academic career path, and ensuring greater retention by providing appropriate career development opportunities. Council supported the principles of the recommendations but agreed that further research and input from the membership was required before approval could be granted. Council agreed to launch a series of roadshows throughout the UK to engage with the membership at their institutions over the next 12 months. The goal would be to work towards joining the revised membership categories and benefits, and grant schemes, to launch together.

The Honorary Treasurer (HT), Frank Sengpiel, presented the 2020 budget, which had been approved by Finance Committee for recommendation to Council. Trustees considered the summary budget overview, which showed the 2019 budget, final forecast and the proposed 2020 budget along with a financial framework for the 2020 – 2022 period. The budgets had been constructed on a baseline/business-as-usual basis before any strategic project costings. Strategic investment projects would be funded from the Reserves, as detailed in the new Reserves Policy adopted by Council at CL19.01. However, the HT highlighted the potential risks when newly invested strategic programmes transition into ongoing services as this was where unsustainability could occur. He noted the importance of a timely review of ongoing projects to ensure they were still delivering the desired cost/benefit and to assess whether they should be replaced by any new strategic initiatives that had the potential to transition “business as usual.” Council approved the 2020 budget.

To note: The Coronavirus pandemic will affect some of the activities The Society had planned to deliver in 2020. However, the Trustees are regularly reviewing the situation and working with the Senior Management Team to assess the impact of this ongoing crisis and will keep members updated as decisions are made.

Education, Public Engagement and Policy Committee- March 2020

The Education, Public Engagement and Policy Committee (EPEP) met via video conference on Monday, 30 March and was chaired by Sarah Hall, Cardiff University. The Committee’s first item was to discuss the outcomes of the first phase of the project into career paths for those studying physiology and physiology-related courses at university. It was noted that recruitment of students will be a particular priority beyond the coronavirus because of the financial risks

associated with low student numbers; thus the second phase of the project will focus on how to most effectively communicate the report’s findings around employability to students, Society Representatives, careers advisers and those involved with university open days.

The Committee also discussed projects related to the teaching of physiology, with a particular focus on the impact that COVID-19 would have on the significance of lecture capture, live-streamed lectures, virtual practical demonstrations and recognition for those educators driving innovation in this space. It noted the importance of sharing resources during this time and recommended a role for The Society in facilitating this. The Committee also received an update on proposed education symposia at both upcoming conferences, Europhysiology 2020 and Physiology 2021.

The Committee noted the success of the recent webinar programme hosted by The Society in collaboration with the British Society for Immunology. It agreed that this was an excellent starting point from which The Society could learn about how to engage with Members remotely during coronavirus lockdown and was positive about proposed plans for this period.

The Committee also heard about plans to coordinate with Advances in Physiology Education and about how The Physiological Society is supporting projects financially that aim to reach the general public with information about the importance of physiology. The committee received a report from the Scientific Editor and the Managing Editor of Physiology News to update on recent activity and plans for the upcoming Education Special Issue. The Committee also fed back on the work of the Policy team regarding recent events coordinated with devolved parliaments of the UK and future projects looking at building a base of evidence in support for funding of physiological research in the run-up to the UK Government’s Spending Review later in the year.

Finance Committee- November 2019

In its final meeting of 2019 the Finance Committee (FC) reviewed the Q3 Management Accounts and noted the year-end forecasts against actuals. They discussed areas of activity that had impacted budgeted income variances and acknowledged The Society’s position on changes to the Travel Grant policy.

FC received the 2020 – 2022 budget proposals for recommendation to the Board. The 3-year financial plan highlighted The Society’s financial sustainability on a business-as-usual basis and did not include any additional strategic projects that would be funded by the Strategic Investment Fund.

FC received an update on 2019 audit planning that was due to commence in March 2020 and noted progress on a tender for a proposed change of audit firms from the 2020 audit.

Finance Committee- January 2020

The Finance Committee received a presentation from its investment management firm, Cazenove Capital Management, on the 2019 portfolio performance and 2020 outlook. The portfolio had grown by 14.4% in the 12 months to Q419 and had returned 1.9% in the last quarter while the long-term inflation target (CPI+4.0%) equated to a return of 1.1%.

FC received the 2019 Q4 Management Accounts and noted the projected figures from The Society’s publishing partner Wiley. They acknowledged that it was a requirement under charity law to consider the valuation of the investment property elements of HHH each year, thus The Society had sought an informal assessment of the market from Mann Smith, Chartered Surveyors.

Consequently, the investment property value was reduced from £3,600k to £3,414k.

FC received the Audit Planning Report, which set out the audit process for Trustees’ consideration. Based on their knowledge of The Society, the audit firm haysmacintyre, had concluded that there were no additional significant risk areas.

Following a tender process and interviews, FC recommended the appointment of Buzzacott LLP as the Society’s auditors from 2020.

Finally, FC received and reviewed the Key Risks Report and Risk Register.