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Making IOSH fit for the future

Find out how we are changing to meet the needs of members and serve the profession

We're reviewing some areas of our governance to make sure we are meeting the needs of our growing and diverse membership. By doing this, we can support an evolving occupational safety and health profession.

The reviews looked at:

  • the future of Council and the Presidential team
  • networks, including our branches and groups.

Our Royal Charter sets out how we are governed and the rules our members must follow.

We can only update the byelaws in our Royal Charter by asking the Privy Council for approval.

The outcome of the reviews may mean we need to update our byelaws.

Any proposals to update our byelaws will be voted on by eligible members at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November. If approved at the AGM, we will ask the Privy Council for permission to make the updates.

Council

Council is our representative body, providing advice and guidance on strategic, professional and policy issues. Council represents members’ views to the Board of Trustees and nominates members of our Presidential team.

Our President Stuart Hughes led a full review looking at how to make Council as effective and responsive to our membership as possible.

The review considered:

  • make up of Council and the Presidential team
  • selection processes and terms of office for Council and the Presidential team
  • best ways to attract new members and make sure our governance structure is fit for supporting our membership.

We also hosted a question-and-answer drop-in session for all members in June.

Election pause

During their meeting on Thursday 21 March 2024, Council agreed to propose a special resolution to amend our byelaws to align with the outcomes of the review.

This special resolution will be presented at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November for approval by the membership.

As a result, Council elections due to run from August to October 2024 have been paused. This is to allow the completed review to be fully considered for the special resolution.

Consultation survey

The consultation period for members to shape the proposed changes ran from 10 June to 27 July. A total of 46 members completed the survey and others provided feedback using the online form.

Review of Council announced and 2024/25 elections paused. Agreement to set up Council working group to develop special resolution for proposed changes.

Consultation with members started on 10 June and included online drop-in sessions, survey and general feedback form.

'For the members, by the members' online session on 16 July.

Member consultation closed on 27 July. 

Council working group, with support from the nominations committee, draft special resolution. This includes detail on changes needed to byelaws.

Council vote on special resolution. If approved by Council, special resolution is included on the agenda for vote by eligible members at AGM.

Notice of AGM is provided and voting opens.

Voting closes on 12 November. Result of votes revealed at our AGM on 13 November.

After the AGM and depending on the vote results, we apply to the Privy Council for permission to change our byelaws.

Networks

The Branches and Groups that make up our IOSH member networks were first introduced in the 1990s. A lot has changed since then.

We're reviewing all of the parts of the current networks structure. We want to keep the parts that work well for our members. We also want to make changes so our networks can best support the needs of occupational safety and health professionals, both now and in the future.

Our ambition is to make it easier for all members to get involved in volunteering activities. It's important to us that everyone finds volunteering a rewarding experience. There needs to be the chance for members to influence our thinking and direction and help develop each other's knowledge.

We want to revise the Byelaws that govern Branches and Groups. As part of any proposed changes, we aim to produce one regulation governing all networks and community elections.

We held focus groups with a range of members from different grades, backgrounds and experience to hear their views. We also gave all members the chance to answer a survey.

We're now looking at the feedback from the focus groups and survey. We will use the feedback to draft a new regulation for approval by Council. If approved, we will request permission from the Privy Council to implement the changes.

Share your views

You can email us if you have any thoughts or feedback on our networks review.