Court

Court serves as a bridge between the wider community and the University. It provides a source of ideas, influence and support from the wider community to assist the University in pursuit of its mission.

On this page

Responsibilities and terms of reference

Court is responsible for: 

  • appointing the Chancellor and Pro-Chancellors on the nomination of the Board of Trustees;
  • appointing 2 members to serve on the Nominations Committee of the Board.

Court may also:

  • pose questions to the Chair of the Board of Trustees on the activity of the Board in the preceding year and the plans for the year ahead;
  • pose questions to the Vice-Chancellor and Executive Group on the execution of the strategy of the University;
  • pose questions to the Board of Trustees on the financial statements;
  • ask questions and offer comment to the Board of Trustees and the Executive Group on any aspect of the University's business.

See full details of Court’s responsibilities in statutes 6-8 of the University's Statutes.

Membership

Court membership is set out in statute 6 of the University's Statutes and is made up of:

Core Members

Elected

  • 30 Alumni Association Representatives
  • 5 Emeriti

Nominated

  • 20 Members from civic, cultural and community organisations or bodies
  • 20 Members from unions, professional organisations, business community and industry or other knowledge-intensive organisations
  • 5 representatives from elected representatives of the City of Bristol and its surrounding areas

Ex Officio

  • Chancellor
  • Pro-Chancellors
  • Honorary Fellows

Additional Members

The Chancellor may appoint up to 20 Additional Appointed Members as set out in Statute.

Current members of Court

To see a list of current members, download the Court membership 2024-25 (PDF, 123kB)

Diversity monitoring

The diversity of our Court members has been researched periodically since 2020, data for the membership is not available.

Attendees

Statute 6 sets out that the following people can attend Court:

  • 20 university employees, who are elected by university employees
  • The elected Sabbatical Officers of the Students' Union
  • Board of Trustees
  • Vice-Chancellor and President
  • Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Students
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean for Science and Engineering
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean for Arts, Law & Social Sciences
  • Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean for Health and Life Sciences
  • Chief Operating Officer, Registrar and University Secretary
  • Chief Financial Officer
  • Clerk to Court

They do not have the authority to make committee decisions and are not eligible to vote in meetings.

Court Secretary

  • Current post-holder: Michael Flay, Deputy University Secretary and Head of Governance
  • Email: michael.flay@bristol.ac.uk
  • Telephone: +44 (0) 117 45 54881

Vacancies

There are currently no vacancies.

Meeting dates and paper submission deadlines 2024/25

View paper submission guidance. 

Court meets in accordance with its Standing orders (PDF, 145kB).

  • Friday 13 December 2024, 9am
    (Paper deadline 22 November 2024)

Papers

The Court convening notice 2023 (PDF, 196kB) was circulated to members on Monday 23rd October 2023.

Download individual Court papers:

Download the Combined paper pack for the Court meeting, 1 December 2023 (PDF, 7,794kB) for Court.

You may also download the following presentations from the meeting:

Read the Questions submitted in advance of the meeting (PDF, 121kB)

Minutes

Download minutes from previous meetings of Court.

2023/24

2022/23

2021/22

2020/21