At RHSU, we want to ensure we are as transparent as possible about how decisions are made and who makes them, so let’s dive into what was on the agenda at our latest meeting.
Board of Trustees Summary
8 October 2026
The new Chair of the Board, Rory Shanks, welcomed trustees and staff to the first Board meeting of the year. It was also the first since the Union became a charitable company on 1 August 2026, which gives it more legal protection. Nothing changes for students. The Chair thanked staff for the huge amount of work since 2024 to make the transfer happen. All trustees attended, so the Board could make decisions.
The minutes of the meetings held on 18 June 2026 and 24 August 2026 were approved as accurate records. Both meetings related to the Union’s previous legal structure. At the August meeting, the external auditors, Crowe LLP, joined trustees to discuss the audit, and trustees approved the annual accounts for 1 August 2024 to 31 January 2026.
- Appointments and Resignations
The trustees noted Adrian Sia Lu had been recommended by the interview panel as a new external lay trustee and approved this appointment, with immediate effect and for a term of office of four years.
The trustees noted, with regret, the resignation of Nicholas Yassukovich due to work commitments on 5 September 2026.
The CEO informed trustees that a recruitment process will begin to find a new external trustee and he will work with the Chair and Deputy Chair on search partner, process and timelines.
Building Community, Leading Change
Your full-time elected officers (Sabbatical Officers) presented their priorities for the year and updates in turn.
The President presented his priorities on affordable food options and there was discussion related to collaboration with university catering. It was noted that although university and students’ union teams may be pursuing different strategies, there was a need to better align on value for money and innovating for the benefit of students, staff and visitors. There is also a need to bring student voice into discussions about value of catering on campus.
The Vice Presidents presented their priorities born out of Priority 8 and work to date.
The Head of Community Engagement presented 2026 results and there was discussion on how the results and insight informed the work of teams across RHSU. The positive results were noted, whilst recognising disappointing scores for question 25 of the National Student Survey and the SU question ‘How well does your students’ union or guild represent your academic interests. 2026 saw RHSU fall below the sector benchmark, although many of the comments students left on this question weren’t actually about how we represent academic interests.
There was discussion surrounding sample size of 1,058 responses, around 8% of the student body and a need to ensure the sample is representative of the diverse student body. Trustees noted positive scores for:
- The Students’ Union makes life better for students: 86%
- I feel a sense of belonging to one or more student communities at Royal Holloway: 88%
- The Students’ Union actively reaches out and engages students on their opinions: 91%
- The Students’ Union provides safe and inclusive spaces on campus: 87%
The trustees noted Rate your Union results and welcome further discussion on its evolution as the new strategy is developed.
- 2024-27 Strategic Plan: Looking back and looking ahead at objectives and KPIs
The CEO presented and trustees took note of progress with objectives across 2025-26. The CEO highlighted work to date and in progress related to evolving RHSU’s strategic plan from 2027, including input from university and discussions related to the core funding we receive from the University, which is currently frozen. Trustees would have input to strategic aims and priorities in an extended Board meeting in March 2027.
The trustees noted progress with strategic objectives and KPIs for 2025-26 and approved objectives and KPI targets for 2026-27.
- Trustees’ Annual Report 1 Feb – 31 July 2026
The CEO presented and asked for offline comment related to the shorter six month report. The draft trustees’ annual report was approved by trustees, with CEO delegated authority to make relevant changes in line with trustee comments.
- Draft End of Year Management Accounts and commercial performance
The Head of Finance and Resources presented management accounts, with Head of Commercial Operations presenting commercial performance. The favourable to budget position for 2025-26 was noted due to better than expected commercial performance following last summer’s staff restructure.
The management accounts were noted.
- Annual Health and Safety Report
The Head of Commercial Operations presented and highlighted work completed across 25-26 to improve operations and compliance, driven by recruitment of Building Services Manager in November 2025. Work on Martyn’s Law, a new UK law on security and safety planning at venues. and collaboration with university was noted.
- Staff engagement pulse surveys
The Head of Finance and Resources presented an early summary and highlights from recent pulse surveys, noting that low response rates were driven by timing, particularly for the student staff population. Trustees requested that the People and Culture Committee schedule time to discuss wider staff engagement goals and how best to measure success.
- Appointment of Returning Officer and Deputy Returning Officer and election rules
The Head of Community Engagement presented this paper for approval and trustees agreed:
1. To appoint the Returning Officer (RO) as a representative from NUS Charity.
2. To appoint the Deputy Returning Officer (DRO) as Head of Community Engagement across our election periods.
3. To approve the cascaded approach to RO and DRO appointments for Autumn and Community elections.
4. To approve the rules and regulations set out in the paper.
The Head of Community Engagement summarised work completed leading up to transfer and development of new byelaws required by the new Union’s rules and constitution. The trustees approved the new Byelaws.
The CEO presented a summary of work and sector news across the summer of 2026.
The CEO presented changes to the risk register, scrutinised by the Finance and Risk Committee in August 2026.
Minutes from the People and Culture, Finance and Risk Committee were taken as read.