In recent weeks we have been sharing updates on the creation of three new Advisory Boards, developed in the recent Governance Review. We are now able to share the detailed ‘Terms of Reference’ documents that will shape those Advisory Boards:
- Member Group Quality and Standards: To support RDA UK to maintain appropriate controls on quality and standards of RDA services delivered by Member Groups across the UK, ensuring that RDA maintains a reputation for high quality services to participants and volunteers.
- Activity: To provide advice on the range of activities that RDA delivers, helping to shape the full range of riding, carriage driving and equine assisted services that RDA offers (including the governance of RDA sporting competitions).
- Equine Welfare: To provide advice on equine welfare within RDA, ensuring that RDA provides our horses with the highest standards of welfare and care, and that they are always treated with compassion, kindness, and respect.
Many of our current National Lead Volunteers have kindly agreed to join these new Advisory Boards, taking up roles listed in the Terms of Reference documents. These Advisory Boards are designed to inform the work of RDA UK, how the national charity supports Groups. We will soon beigin seeking volunteers to join these Advisory Boards, and it is vital that we hear from a broad range of RDA volunteers and groups. We will shortly be asking for your help! If you think you can help in one of these Advisory Boards, please keep an eye out for when we open the recruitment to these roles next month.
Finally, as a reminder, we are developing changes to the RDA UK’s Memorandum and Articles of Association. These changes were well supported during the Governance Review consultation last year, and we will be sharing the detail of proposed changes soon to seek your feedback. You will be able to provide feedback via email, or in person at one of two online consultation events – dates will be announced soon. It is anticipated that the final changes will be proposed to the 2025 AGM.
Governance Review Update, January 2025
The Governance Review consultation closed in November 2024 – thank you to everyone who contributed. The RDA UK Board met in December 2024 to consider the initial feedback from the consultation, and more detailed discussions are now underway to consider how recommendations that were supported by RDA Groups can be implemented. Some of the recommendations of the original consultation report will be amended to respond to the feedback.
CCE, who have been conducting the Governance Review on behalf of RDA UK, has produced a short report summarising the feedback highlighted during the roadshow events and online consultation. As you’ll see in this report, it’s a summary of feedback from RDA Groups and is not intended as a response to that feedback. Please find the report here.
Governance Review: Roadshow Questions and Answers
During the recent Governance Review Roadshow events, we kept record of a ‘parking lot’ of questions and comments made that we were not able to discuss at length. They were noted and we committed to reply with answers following the events, and in this way could be shared for visibility across RDA. A set of these Questions and Answers has now been compiled and can be found here. Some of the highlights in this set are an update on plans for the new ‘My RDA’ website, news about support for Group trustee understanding of charity governance, and information on the role of Regional Chairs.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the roadshow events and sent formal written feedback to the consultation report. This formal consultation closed in November, and results will be shared with the RDA network once it has been analysed.
Governance Roadshow Update
Thank you to everyone who has taken part in the governance roadshow, or provided feedback on the consultation document. The feedback window has now closed. It has been really valuable to listen and hear from so many of you, and we want to keep the communication exchange flowing.
Steph Harland, our consultant from the Centre for Charity Effectiveness (CCE), has recorded a short video to capture her reflections on the process so far. You can watch it here.
Further discussions will be taking place with the Regional Chairs and the National Leads about feedback from the Consultation Document in the next couple of months. We will share answers to many of the questions asked during the roadshow events shortly too.
READ THE CONSULTATION DOCUMENT
The Consultation Document sets out the topics discussed at the Roadshows so that everyone had a chance to reflect and discuss these topics with fellow RDA volunteers in advance.
The consultation document is available on this link.
FEEDBACK
We would like as many people as possible to read and feedback on the Consultation Document, whether or not they have attended a roadshow event. The feedback form was open between 11th October and 11th November – feedback has now closed.
Further information on the governance roadshow can be found below:
The Roadshow Format
The Roadshows have capacity for 100 attendees at each event. They will be introduced by Barbara Manson, Trustee and Governance Review Steering Committee Chair.
Alongside her will be Steph Harland from CCE (Centre for Charity Effectiveness, City of London University), other RDA National Charity Trustees, and Michael Bishop our CEO. The events will last for two hours. Please do encourage everyone to book in and be part of the conversation – this is their chance to influence how we work together as a National Charity in the future and we are keen to hear everyone’s views.
There are five physical meetings across the UK – one in Northern Ireland, one in Wales, one in Scotland and two in England, and we have tried to balance the locations geographically as best we can. However, we appreciate that it may not be convenient to attend the events in person so we have planned two virtual events during October which can be joined from anywhere in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. We very much hope that everyone across the RDA community can access either a physical or virtual meeting should they so choose.
Framing the Discussion – The Consultation Document
The Consultation Document sets out in some detail the topics for discussion at the Roadshows so that everyone has a chance to reflect and discuss these topics with fellow RDA volunteers in advance. The consultation document is available on this link.
There is, as you would expect, much we could discuss and we have had to prioritise based on the collective feedback. There were also some very useful strategic and operational issues raised which fall outside of this governance review, and our CEO, Michael, will look to address these in his future plans.
Gathering feedback
The topics raised in the consultation document are topics for discussion. CCE will gather the feedback from the Roadshows, together with all feedback given between 11th October to 11th November 2024 through the Consultation Feedback form.
We would like as many people as possible to read and feedback on the Consultation Document, whether or not they have attended a roadshow event. The feedback form is now open and you can leave your feedback via this link.
After the feedback closes on 11th November our consultants CCE will collate all the information gathered. This will then be considered and we shall let you know how the discussions and feedback have informed any decisions about the future of how we work together.
In the meantime, if you have any queries please contact our email address governance@rda.org.uk
Thank you very much for all your support in this process and we hope this lays the foundation for a more consultative and collaborative approach to make sure our charity is in the best possible shape to support our member groups.
