Council, the Society's board of trustees, met on 19 March for the first Council meeting of the 2025 session.
John Aston welcomed the Council to his first meeting as President of the RSS, particularly those beginning their term as trustees this year and new members of staff. He updated trustees on his activities in the first few months of his Presidency, especially noting the success of the UK Statistics Assembly in January. John also shared that he had visited staff in their new office, where they will be based until the purchase of a new building.
John invited CEO Sarah Cumbers to make her first update to Council of the year. Sarah welcomed Stella Macaskill to her first meeting as the Society’s Director of Professional Services, and shared that Stuart McKendrick, Director of Commercial, would be retiring from the Society and has reduced his working days while continuing to oversee operational support. Sarah shared John’s enthusiasm for the UK Statistics Assembly, also noting the Society’s continued engagement with the ONS around user engagement.
Council was updated on progress with the Society’s strategy and were informed of any areas where this has been more challenging.
Charlotte, Director of Finance, updated Council on finances following the sale of Errol Street. Personal safety has been added to the list of necessary criteria for the next RSS headquarters, and work towards finding a suitable place to allow members to come together as a community continues.
John shared with Council his plans for a review of Society governance. The Council will lead this process as trustees of the Society and there will be a programme of engagement with the wider membership to ensure wider views are taken into account.
Council received an update on RSS policy activities from Head of Policy, Jonathan Everett. Jonathan particularly highlighted the success of the Society’s general election manifesto, it’s input in the Covid Inquiry and its productive relationship with UKSA, ONS and the Statistics Regulator. Jonathan also shared the completion of the Stats Under Pressure project and work on the EPSRC project on funding data. The Council approved a new strategy for external affairs as well as a new approach to seeking funding for policy work. They congratulated the small Comms and Policy team for their achievements in 2024.
Jack Beeby, Director of IT, Digital and Content, shared key IT information and metrics with trustees, noting that the Society’s ‘Secure Score’ is comfortably above average.
The Council also received their annual membership update from Stelle Macaskill and Anna Heath, Membership Manager. The Society broke a number of records for the fourth year in a row, finishing 2024 with its highest ever member count, number of fellows, and number of both e-students and e-teachers. Council was informed of plans to continue work aimed at further increasing member engagement.
The Council will meet again on 11th June, while the Executive Committee will meet in May.