Governors and membership

Becoming a Member

If you have an interest in healthcare in the district, and would like to find out more about the work of your local hospital, becoming a member of the Airedale NHS Foundation Trust could be ideal for you.

Membership is free and is open to everyone aged 14 or above, living in the community that the Trust serves. Members receive updates from Governors and are invited to events taking place at the Trust, providing you with an opportunity to talk to our staff and learn more about the work of the Trust.  Please note, however, that events have been suspended for the time being due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

As a member, you can vote for others to represent you on the Trust’s Council of Governors, or stand for election yourself.

Why become a member?

Becoming a member of our Foundation Trust means that you will be able to:
· Get a better understanding of how the Trust works and share in our successes
· Become actively involved in the work of the Trust and help shape our future plans
· Be consulted on major plans
· Make sure your views and those of your community are heard.
· Be invited to Trust open days, member events or information sessions
· Receive regular information about the Trust
· Vote for Council Governors
· Stand for election as a Council Governor

Who can become a member?

Anyone can become a member providing they are over 14 years of age and live in one of the following constituencies:- Bingley; Bingley Rural; Craven, South Craven and West Craven; Ilkley & Wharfedale; Keighley Central, East, West or Worth Valley; Pendle & Colne; Settle & Mid Craven; or Skipton If you do not live in any of the above areas, you can still join through our ‘Rest of England’ constituency. All Trust staff are automatically Foundation Trust members unless they choose to opt out.

How to join as a Member

If you would like to be a member of Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, you can click here and complete our online application form. Alternatively, let us have your name, address and a contact telephone number and we will send you a paper copy of our application form:-

Becoming a Member

E-mail: anhsft.members@nhs.net or Telephone: 01535 294540 or write to us at:  Foundation Trust Membership Office, Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, Airedale General Hospital, Skipton Road, Steeton, Keighley, BD20 6TD.

Application form link https://secure.membra.co.uk/Join/Airedale

Member Events

We host events for our foundation trust members throughout the year. As a member, you will be invited to these events via our regular email update. Also look out for event invitations on our social media accounts and on noticeboards around the hospital. If you haven’t done so already, please provide us with an email address so we can keep you up to date.

Update: Due to the Coronavirus pandemic member events have been suspended for the time being.

Airedale Hospital was authorised as an NHS Foundation Trust, with effect from 1 June 2010. This means we have much more freedom to make sure our future plans best meet the unique needs of our local community

Foundation Trusts are accountable to their members via a body known as the Council of Governors, which works closely with the Trust’s Board of Directors to develop strategy and plans. Governors also create relationships between the Trust and the community we serve by acting as a link between the Trust and members of the public.

The Council of Governors plays an important role in the future of the Trust and is made up of members of the public elected from the electoral constituencies in which they reside. It also includes elected staff members, plus representatives appointed from other organisations such as local councils and voluntary and business partners.

All elected members can stand for election to represent the area they live in.  We have divided the areas into ‘constituencies’ based on the postcode, similar to what happens in a local council election.

Our constituencies are:

Bingley – Bingley

Bingley Rural – Bingley Rural

Craven – Craven

Ilkley and Wharfedale – Ilkley and Wharfedale

Keighley Central and East – Keighley Central and Keighley East

Keighley West and Worth Valley – Keighley West and Worth Valley

Rest of England – All areas other than those in Bingley, Rural Bingley, Craven, Ilkley and Wharfedale, Keighley Central/East, Keighley West and Worth Valley, Settle and Mid Craven, Skipton, South Craven, West Craven, Pendle East and Colne

Settle and Mid Craven – Settle and Ribblebanks, Gargrave and Malhamdale,  Hellifield, Long Preston, Bentham, Ingleton and Clapham and Pen y Ghent

Skipton – Skipton East, Skipton North, Skipton South, Skipton West, Embsay and Eastby, Grassington, Upper Wharfedale and Barden Fell

South Craven – Aire Valley and Lothersdale, Cowling, Glusburn, Carleton, Sutton in Craven

West Craven – Coates and Earby

Pendle East and Colne – Barrowford, Boulsworth, Foulridge, Horsfield, Vivary Bridge and Waterside

The main duties of the Council of Governors are:

• to hold the Non Executive Directors individually and collectively to account for the performance of the Board of Directors
• to represent the views of members, public and staff in the governance of the Trust
• to regularly feedback information about the Trust, its vision and its performance to its members, the public and the stakeholder organisations that either elected or appointed them

We have produced a booklet regarding the role of governor and this is available here: The Role of a Governor at Airedale NHS FT

The Governor Register of Interests can be viewed here: Trust Governors Register of Interests 2022-2023

If you wish to put yourself forward as a potential Governor you will need to reside in one of the following areas: Bingley; Bingley Rural; Craven, South Craven and West Craven; Ilkley & Wharfedale; Keighley Central, East, West or Worth Valley; Pendle & Colne; Settle & Mid Craven; or Skipton.

However, if you do not live in any of the above areas, you can still be considered through our ‘Rest of England’ constituency. You will also need to be a member of the Trust – see our membership section for further details on the benefits of becoming a member and how to apply.

Elections are normally held annually in May – for further information see the elections section.

The Airedale NHS Foundation Trust welcomes nominations for Governors from persons of any age (16 or over), race, colour, religious belief, ethnic or national origin, sexual orientation, gender, disability or marital status.

NHS Improvement (formally known as Monitor), the independent regulator, has developed a number of documents regarding the role of governors that you may find useful:

• Your statutory responsibilities: a reference guide for Governors
• A brief guide for NHS Foundation Trust Governors

For further information about becoming a Governor, please contact:-

E-mail: anhsft.governors@nhs.net or Telephone: 01535 294540 or write to us at: Foundation Trust Membership Office Airedale NHS Foundation Trust Airedale General Hospital Skipton Road Steeton Keighley BD20 6TD

2023 Elections

Nominations for our 2023 Governor elections closed at 5pm on 7 March.

The candidates can viewed by clicking on the link below:

Statement of Nominated Candidates

Information for 2023 elections

• 2023 Notice of Poll
• 2023 Notice of Election
• Elections 2023 Information sheet
• Role of the Governor booklet

Previous election information

Our 2022 Governor election information and results are published below:

• Notice of Election
• Uncontested Report
• Report of Voting for Governor Elections 2022

Members of the public are welcome to attend our quarterly Council of Governors’ meetings to receive an update on how the Trust is performing, hear from Governor’s activities and see presentations from Trust staff.  If you would like to attend a meeting, please register your attendance through our Membership office on 01535 294540.

Update: Due to the Coronavirus pandemic public attendance has been suspended for the time being. Council of Governor meetings are being held virtually.

Our next meeting is 2 February 2023.

2 Feb 2023 Council of Governors papers combined

Upcoming meeting dates:

• 11 May 2023
• 5 October 2023
• 1 February 2024

Please find below some useful links and documents to assist you in your role as Governor:

Constitution May 2022

The Trust’s 2022 Annual Members’ Meeting was held on Friday 23rd September at 2pm virtually via MS Teams

You can watch the video of the meeting here.

Minutes and questions from the annual meeting are here.

Airedale Members Update September 2022