What the role is

Governors provide a vital connection between the Trust and its patients, the community it serves, and its partners. The Council of Governors (CoG) has a real say in the Trust's future priorities and who fills key posts on the Board. It holds the Board and Non-Executive Directors to account, individually and collectively, for the performance of the Board of Directors.

Governors represent the broad interests and views of local people to the Trust’s Board, and feed back information about the Trust's performance to the communities we serve. This means discussing things like major new service developments, the annual report and accounts, and how members are being recruited and kept informed.

The Council meets four times a year and, in addition, many Governors also participate in informal working groups like the Coordinating Committee, the Effectiveness Working Group, the Member and Public Engagement Working Group, and the Patient Safety & Quality Working Group.

What the role is not

The Trust is committed to listening to your views and experiences about the Trust and your feedback helps us to continually improve our services. Governors play a key role in representing these views as a collective. They do not, however, represent individual cases.

If you have any questions or concerns about any aspect of your treatment or care, please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 01392 402093 or rde-tr.pals@nhs.net.