From good to great: the governance piece in the FT jigsaw

Supported by Membership Engagement Services/Electoral Reform Services

The FTN's first two-day conference for chairs, chief executives, non-executive directors and corporate directors took place at the Royal Armouries in Leeds on 9 and 10 September 2008.

Summary

This was a successful and stimulating event. With over 500 delegates from authorised and aspirant foundation trusts it provided the ideal opportunity to network and to discuss one of the really distinctive elements of the FT model - governance.

Sue Slipman, FTN Director, and conference chair, welcomed delegates to day one of the conference with a scene-setting presentation. Her conclusion was that in a time of political and economic uncertainty but with the number of foundation trusts growing and growing, the future prosperity of foundation trusts was in FTs' own hands. The opening, key note speech came from Andreas Whittham Smith, who focused on what good governance looks like in modern organisations with wider public responsibilities. He explored whether or not good governance was apparent or real. In his speech he used examples from companies and organisations that had 'failed' but had experienced and talented board members, including Equitable Life, Northern Rock and Network Rail. He drew a series of conclusions for foundation trust boards, which included the exhortation to 'avoid groupthink' and to stand up to bullying by asking for independent advice.

Day two of the conference moved delegates on from corporate governance to wider governance, focusing on governors, membership and local accountability. Dr Bill Moyes from Monitor gave the keynote speech. He focused on the impact of FT freedoms, what Lord Darzi's Next Stage Review and the focus on quality will mean for FT boards and the importance of accountability. He concluded that the evidence is there to suggest that the move to set FTs free from central control was right and that performance has been strong. However the impact of the new governance model is less clear and the Government's agenda will increase expectation on FTs in terms of quality and accountability. FTs themselves must demonstrate the benefits of local accountability.

View the full conference summary here

Download the presentations

Some of the presentations from this conference are now available for FTN members to download. Click here to find out more.

What did you think?

Thank you to everyone who attended and helped make the event a huge success.

The feedback we get from delegates helps us to shape future events. Share your thoughts and comments on the 'From good to great: the governance piece in the FT jigsaw' conference by filling out an evaluation form online.