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Paperwork 

The Terms of Reference for a group or committee will lay out the purpose of the group and make clear what is and is not in the group’s remit. Becoming familiar with these is essential.  

Meeting paperwork should consist of: 

• An agenda which sets out the date, time and location of the meeting, the order of items to be discussed and the focus of each item (e.g. to note, to approve, to consider, to discuss, to review etc) 

• Minutes of the last meeting 

• Matters arising – this is a list of ongoing or completed actions 

• Papers - these will correspond to items set out in the agenda and will give information or context relevant to the discussion. The meeting papers and the agenda combined are sometimes referred to as the ‘meeting pack’ or the ‘full agenda.’

Meetings 

• The Chair will guide members through the agenda 

• There are some standard items that occur commonly on agendas: 

• Attendance – those present will be noted and where members are new, the Chair will ask all members to introduce themselves 

• Minutes – members will be asked to approve the minutes of the last meeting or raise any inaccuracies  

• Matters arising – action owners talk about the progress of outstanding actions from previous meetings 

• Chair’s Update – the Chair will talk through any major work happening that is relevant to the group 

• Items may be presented by any member of the group or by someone who is in attendance for a particular meeting 

• The Chair will invite input from members where required and members will use the raise hand function on MS Teams if joining remotely or take turns to speak if members are present in-person 

• Though the Chair will make efforts to ensure the group goes through the agenda in a timely manner, members should be mindful to keep points succinct to allow others to speak 

• In some instances, it may be necessary to continue some conversations outside of the meeting so as to save time and give priority to matters that are relevant to the whole group 

• Confidential content will be highlighted as such and should not be copied, shared or discussed outside of the group. Any concerns around this should be discussed with the Chair or Secretary. 

• At º£½ÇÍø, voting is generally not used to reach decisions. Instead, consensus is gained through discussions although not every member may agree with a decision.  

Membership and Roles 

The Chair 

The Chair should be well informed and impartial. ​They are responsible for:​ 

• Ensuring the agenda is followed 

• Facilitating discussion​&²Ô²ú²õ±è;²¹²Ô»å&²Ô²ú²õ±è;summarising key points 

• Ensuring everyone is encouraged to speak​ 

• Providing relevant background information​ 

• Maintaining order 

• Establishing agreement following debate​ 

• Ensuring decisions are made​ 

• Extracting actions from discussion and ensuring they are allocated to the right people 

• Ensuring that committee membership is diverse and representative 

• Ensuring Equality Impact Assessments are carried out where appropriate 

The Secretary 

The Secretary carries out the administration and general management of a group. They are responsible for: 

• Keeping the Terms of Reference and record of membership up to date 

• Setting the agenda alongside the Chair 

• Reviewing and updating actions/ matters arising  

• Preparing, drafting and collating papers 

• Logistics, including scheduling meetings, and communicating with members between meetings 

• Being the main point of contact for the working group 

• Recording minutes of meetings 

All Members 

All members are expected to: 

• Make time to read the agenda, meeting papers and minutes in advance of the meeting. You might find it helpful to highlight key points or note down the questions or comments that you have after reading the papers. 

• Promptly carry out any actions assigned to you in the meeting (you don’t need to wait until the minutes are released) and report progress to the Secretary and/or confirm that actions can be closed. It is helpful to do this no later than one week before the meeting so an accurate matters arising report can be produced by the Secretary. 

• Read and, if required, respond to email/ MS Teams communications from the Chair, Secretary or other members of the group 

• Make best efforts to attend meetings and inform the Secretary as soon as possible if not attending 

• Listen and, where appropriate, actively contribute during meetings 

• Where requested, propose relevant items for meeting agendas 

• Contact the Secretary if their membership of the group is no longer relevant  

Actions and Work Outside of the Meeting 

Working Groups require members to carry out work outside of meetings and report back to the group. This work may be carried out by the person or groups of people on the working group or by other people from the department they are representing.  

It is appreciated that members may have full workloads. When asked/ or offering to carry out work, members are encouraged to consider and discuss their capacity to ensure that reasonable completion dates can be agreed with the chair. 

Actions are recorded in the minutes and in the matters arising. It is expected that members consult these to keep on top of any actions allocated to them. An update on work to progress actions should be provided to the Secretary ahead of meetings.  

Principles for Engagement 

The following general principles allow for an effective meeting: 

• Take turns to speak rather than speaking over others 

• Respect when the Chair has asked for the discussion to be moved on. Anything that was not raised can be communicated after the meeting via email or a smaller discussion.  

• Be mindful that people have had different lived experiences - have an awareness of the gaps in your own knowledge and experience 

• Try to welcome all respectful viewpoints even if they are different to yours 

• Voice disagreement with other members in a respectful manner 

This document acts as guidance and is not meant to be an exhaustive outline of how to run a working group. For further guidance or for any queries about the content of this document please contact EDI Services at EDI@boro.ac.uk.