Governance

Ordinances

Ordinance 9

THE COURT - FUNCTIONS AND ANNUAL MEETING

  1. Functions
    1.1

    The role of the Court shall be to provide a public forum for communication and discussion of the University's activities on an annual basis.

  2. ANNUAL MEETING
    2.1

    The Court shall meet annually to receive information on the working of the University.

    2.2

    The Annual Meeting of the Court shall normally include:

    • Correspondence
    • To receive the Annual Report on the work of the University.
    • To receive the Statement of Accounts and Report on Finance.
    • An address by the Vice-Chancellor.
    2.3

    The agenda and minutes of the Court shall be distributed in both Welsh and English.

    2.4

    All members shall have the right when addressing the Court to speak in either Welsh or English.

Ordinance 10

APPOINTMENT OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNIVERSITY ON OTHER BODIES

  1. The Council and Senate shall each be entitled by resolution to appoint or nominate representatives on other bodies in accordance with the requirements and regulations of those bodies.

  2. The term of office of representatives on other bodies shall be three years unless otherwise directed by the bodies concerned.

  3. All persons appointed as representatives of the Senate on other bodies shall be current members of staff of the University.

Ordinance 11

THE COUNCIL: APPOINTED MEMBERS

  1. Appointed Members

    1.1
    Nine members, not being members of the Staff, shall be elected to the Council in accordance with this section, for a term of office of three years.
    1.2
    The Registrar and Secretary shall notify members of the Council of vacancies and invite nominations giving such notice of vacancies and of the closing date for nominations as is reasonable in order to enable their consideration by the Nominations Committee.
    1.3
    In considering nominations of appointed members, the Nominations Committee may also bring forward names for consideration at its meeting..
    1.4
    The Nominations Committee will make its recommendations to appoint members tot he Council by the last meeting before the vacancies occur.
    1.5
    If an appointed member vacates their place then a casual vacancy shall be filled as soon as possible as described in 1.2, 1.3 and 1.4.
  2. Eligibility for reappointment
    2.1
    An appointed member shall be eligible for reappointment subject to a condition that he/she shall not serve more than ten consecutive years in that category.
    2.2
    When a person has served the maximum permitted period as an appointed member he/she shall be ineligible for further appointment in the same category of membership until a period of two years has elapsed.
    2.3
    The completion of the maximum permitted period as an appointed member shall not make a person ineligible to serve on Council for a further term in another capacity.
    2.4
    An appointed member who is removed from office under Statute 13(2)(a)(iv) shall be eligible for re-election after a period of two years.

  3. Disclosure

    3.1
    All persons nominated for appointment or reappointment shall be required, before any appointment is made, to disclose any information that may be of relevance to their position as a member of Council, if appointed. This shall include any interest, financial or otherwise, that is likely or could be perceived as likely to interfere with the individual independent judgement as a member of the Council. Such information shall be made known to the Council at the time of the appointment or reappointment.

Ordinance 12

THE COUNCIL: SENATE MEMBERS

  1. Senate Members

    1.1
    Three members elected by and from the Senate for a term of office of three years.
    1.2
    The Registrar and Secretary shall notify members of the Senate of vacancies and invite nominations giving such notice of vacancies and of the closing date for nominations as is reasonable in order to enable an election to take place and its results confirmed by the last meeting of Senate before the vacancies shall occur.
    1.3
    Elections shall take place by secret ballot if there are more nominations than vacancies. Voting shall be on the basis of a simple majority. According to the number of vacancies the nominees receiving the highest number of votes shall be duly elected by the Senate.
    1.4
    If a Senate member vacates their place then a casual vacancy shall be filled by the next meeting of Senate. The nominations and election of persons to fill casual vacancies shall be as described in 1.2 and 1.3. If there are two-year and one-year vacancies the person(s) receiving the greater number of votes shall be elected for the two-year term(s).
    1.5
    Senate members of the Council shall remain members only so long as they are members of the Senate. They shall hold office until the end of the third year following their appointment or such earlier date as may in each case be determined by the Senate to effect rotation.

  2. Eligibility for re-election

    2.1

    A Senate member shall be eligible for re-election for a further term not exceeding three years, and shall upon completion of any such further term of membership or upon resignation be ineligible for further re-election in the same category of membership until a period of one year has elapsed.

  3. Disclosure

    3.1

    All persons nominated for election or re-election shall be required, before any ballot is held or any such election is made, to disclose any information that may be of relevance to their position as a member of Council, if appointed. This shall include any interest, financial or otherwise, that is likely or could be perceived as likely to interfere with the individual independent judgement as a member of the Council. Such information shall be made known to the Senate at the time of the ballot or re-election.

Ordinance 13

THE COUNCIL - ELECTION OF NON-ACADEMIC STAFF MEMBERS

One member shall be elected to the Council by and from the Staff other than the Academic Staff, in accordance with the following procedure:

  1. During the month of April in the year in which the term of office expires, a notice of election shall be issued to all members of Staff who are not members of the Academic Staff as defined in Statute 1 and who have been appointed on the basis of a contract of employment of not less than twelve months commencing on or before 1 January of that same year (hereinafter called the “non-academic staff”).
  2. The notice of election shall include an invitation to submit nominations by 31 May next.
  3. Members of the non-academic staff shall be eligible to be nominated for election. Each nomination, to be valid, must be proposed and seconded in writing by at least two members of the non-academic staff, and shall signify the consent of the nominee.
  4. If more than one nomination is received, an election shall be held by ballot of all members of the non-academic staff.
  5. The Registrar and Secretary shall appoint two scrutineers for an election by ballot, at least one of whom shall be a member of the Academic Staff or a lay member of Council. One representative of each of the recognised Trade Unions shall be invited to act as observers during the counting of votes.
  6. The term of office of the member appointed shall be for three years commencing on the following 1 August.
  7. A casual vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the term of office of the member vacating his/her place. A notice of election shall be issued to all non-academic staff, inviting nominations in acceptance with paragraph 3 above, by a prescribed date. In the event of a contested election to fill a casual vacancy, the procedure defined in paragraphs 4 and 5 above shall apply.
  8. If a member elected to Council in accordance with this provision ceases to be a member of the non-academic staff, his/her tenure of membership shall terminate forthwith.
  9. A retiring member shall be eligible for re-election for not more than three further terms of office. When a person has served the maximum permitted period, he/she shall be ineligible for further re-appointment as a non-academic staff member on Council until a period of three years has elapsed.

Ordinance 14

THE SENATE - MEMBERSHIP

  1. The Senate shall consist of the following persons:

    Ex officio Members

    1. The Vice Chancellor, who shall be Chairman of the Senate
    2. The Pro Vice-Chancellor or Pro Vice-Chancellors, and the Deputy Vice-Chancellor(s).
    3. The Heads of Departments
    4. The Deans of the Faculties.
    5. The Director of Information Services

    Elected Members

    1. Members elected from and by the members of the Academic Staff in accordance with the Ordinances.
    2. Three Students elected from and by the Students' Organisation.
    3. The number of members elected under (a) and (b) above shall not exceed the total number of ex officio members of the Senate.

    Co-opted Members
    The Senate shall have the power to co-opt not more than three members from the members of the Academic Staff. Co-opted members shall hold office for such periods as may in each case be determined by the Senate.

    Non-voting Members
    The Senate shall have the power to invite to its meetings without voting powers such other persons as the Senate may decide.

  2. An ex officio member shall remain a member only so long as he or she holds the office by virtue of which he or she became a member.

  3. The Student members shall hold office for a period and from a date to be determined from time to time by the Senate and shall be eligible for re-election. Student members of the Senate shall not be entitled to attend, participate in or receive any papers concerning any business of the Senate affecting the appointment, promotion or personal affairs of any individual member of the Staff or the admission, academic assessment or personal affairs of any individual Student, or which the Senate shall in its discretion direct to be taken in the absence of the Student members.

  4. The Vice-Chancellor shall preside at all meetings of the Senate and in his/her absence the Deputy Vice-Chancellor or the senior Pro Vice-Chancellor present shall preside. In the absence of the Vice-Chancellor and any Deputy Vice-Chancellor or Pro Vice-Chancellor, the members then present shall choose one of themselves (not being a Student) to preside at that meeting.

Ordinance 15

POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE SENATE

The Senate shall be the academic authority of the University and shall be responsible to the Council for the academic functions of the University in teaching and research and for the regulation and superintendence of the students.
The Senate shall, subject to the Charter and the Statutes, and in addition to all other powers vested in it by the Council, have the following powers:

  1. To elect certain members of the Senate to membership of the Council.
  2. To appoint two members of the Academic Staff to be members of the Academic Board of the University of Wales, as provided by the Charter and Statutes of the University of Wales.
  3. To appoint representatives to other University committees as appropriate.
  4. Either on behalf of the University or jointly with other institutions, to confer and grant awards, degrees and other academic distinctions upon and to those persons who have pursued and successfully completed a scheme of study or research approved by the Senate, and upon and to persons who hold academic distinctions of equal or similar rank conferred by any other college or institution of higher education.
  5. To present for awards, degrees and other academic distinctions of other institutions those persons who under the supervision of the University have pursued and successfully completed a scheme of study or research approved by those institutions.
  6. To make recommendations to the Council for the award of degrees, diplomas, certificates and other academic distinctions to those who hold any academic posts within the University, and to those upon whom the University may desire to confer such distinctions honoris causa.
  7. For good cause to deprive persons of any academic distinctions or titles conferred upon them by the Senate, and to revoke any degree or other award granted to them by the Senate, and to withdraw all privileges connected therewith.
  8. To direct, regulate and control all the teaching, schemes of study and examinations of the University, and to accept or reject any application for admission of a person as a student without being required to give any reason.
  9. To determine the conditions under which persons shall be admitted to the University and to any particular scheme of study or research and to give directions to the Registrar and Secretary as to the categories of Students whose names should be entered on the register of Students; and to determine by Regulations or otherwise the conditions relating to academic performance and the proper pursuit of studies under which Students shall be permitted to continue their studies in the University and the sanctions which are to be applied to any Student who fails to satisfy the examiners at any examination of the University of his or her satisfactory progress.
  10. To establish a credit and accumulations transfer scheme to enable the University to recognise study pursued elsewhere to count towards awards of the University.
  11. The Senate shall:
    • review from time to time the duties and conditions of service of the members of the Academic Staff and make recommendations thereon to the Council;
    • determine which members of the Staff other than the Academic Staff shall have academic status;
    • make recommendations to the Council concerning the conditions of appointment and remuneration of examiners for examinations of the University.
  12. To make recommendations to the Council concerning the award of fellowships, studentships, scholarships, exhibitions, bursaries, prizes and other grants for the encouragement of study and research.
  13. To inquire into the research, teaching, staffing and general work of any Faculty, Department and other academic organisation of the University and to review, amend, refer back or disallow any act of such Faculty, Department or academic organisation of the University.
  14. To report to the Academic Board of the University of Wales on any matters relating to the award of University of Wales qualifications.
  15. To make recommendations to the Council for the creation, abolition and change of name of Departments.
  16. To make recommendations to the Council concerning the affiliation to or association with the University of other institutions or departments.
  17. To regulate and superintend the discipline of the Students and, subject to the provisions of Statute 11, to suspend any student from any class or classes, to exclude any student from the whole or any part of the University or its precincts, to expel any student from the University, or to extend a period of suspension or exclusion of a student suspended or excluded by the Vice-Chancellor, or to take such other action as the Senate thinks proper, and to determine by Regulations in what manner disciplinary powers shall be exercised.
  18. To recommend to the Council from time to time the approval of the constitution of the Students' Organisation and any amendments and additions thereto.
  19. To prescribe the academic dress to be worn by the Officers and members of the University and the occasions on which it shall be worn.
  20. To report and make recommendations to the Council from time to time on Statutes and Ordinances.
  21. To report and make recommendations to the Council on any matter referred to the Senate by the Council, or on any matter of interest to the University.
  22. To make Regulations relating to matters within the responsibilities of the Senate, and to carry such Regulations into effect.
  23. Generally to exercise all such powers as are or may be conferred on the Senate by the Charter and the Statutes.