SECAmb announces governor election

South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SECAmb) is holding its Council of Governors election early in the new year as the terms of the existing governors will shortly come to an end.

Elections will place in four of the Trust’s six public constituencies with a total of seven seats to be contested.

As a Foundation Trust, SECAmb has a Council of Governors which works closely with SECAmb’s Board of Directors to ensure the Trust is accountable to the public it serves.

Public governors are elected by SECAmb’s public Foundation Trust members, of which there are over 8,000.

The public constituencies with vacancies are:
● Medway (1)
● East Sussex (1)
● Kent (3)
● Surrey (2)
The Council of Governors is made up of members of the public, SECAmb staff and stakeholders from organisations that work closely with SECAmb, such as the fellow emergency services and other NHS organisations.

Staff governor elections will also take place alongside the public governor elections.

There is one staff constituency with vacancy:
● Operational (1)
The Council performs various statutory duties as well as an important role in holding the Trust Board to account on behalf of members of the public and SECAmb staff.

It also represents the interests of and is accountable to the membership of the Trust. The Council has a broader duty to represent the general public in the areas served by the Trust and governors also have the opportunity to participate in a variety of committees and groups if they wish. Anyone aged 16 or over can become a public member.

Taken from Journal of Paramedic Practice, published 16 December 2013.