Governance and Policies

Governance and committees

The Charity is registered with the Charity Commission and Companies House as a company limited by guarantee and we are governed according to our Memorandum and Articles of Association. You can find a copy of these articles to the right of this page. 

The Board of Governors

The overall responsibility for the work of the Charity lies with the Board of Governors. The Board sets the strategy, agrees objectives and approves plans to deliver the Charity's aims. They monitor and evaluate the progress of the Charity to ensure we achieve what we have set out to do. The Board is held to account by the MembershipIf you have been diagnosed with coeliac disease then you can become a Member of Coeliac UK. at the Annual General Meeting at which it presents the Governors' report and the financial accounts for the previous year.

The Board may comprise of up to nine elected members, two co-opted and one nominated from the Health Advisory Council. The elected members are elected by the Membership at the Annual General Meeting for a three-year term of office. They may serve no more than two consecutive three-year terms.

The expertise within the Board is substantial and wide ranging. Governors include a senior director of a multinational corporation, a Charity Commission lawyer, a senior director with banking experience, senior multinational executives, university lecturers and experienced senior healthcare professionals. All Governors are volunteers committing many days, evenings and weekends of the year to working for the Charity.

Board committees

The Board of Governors delegate some of its responsibilities to Board committees to provide a particular focus on some issues:

• Audit Committee  - ensures the financial compliance and the robustness of the Board's overall monitoring and governance
• Human Resources Committee - reviewing overall HR policies and ensuring legal and best practice compliance
• Executive Action Committee - to be activated when there is a crisis and the Board cannot be convened

The Board also has two established advisory groups: the Health Advisory Council and the Food Sector Advisory Panel. Each provides advice and intelligence on matters relating to the health and food sectors respectively. The Health Advisory Council may from time to time manage the award of grant funds with any final recommendations for the Board's approval. Terms of reference for our committees can be found to the right of this page. 

The Coeliac UK Trading Company

The Trading Company’s principle aim is to raise funds from commercial activities for the Charity. As a not-for-profit organisation, Coeliac UK is limited in the amount of commercial income it may raise. Instead, these activities need to be carried out by Coeliac UK’s Trading Company. Directors of the Trading Company are:

• Sarah Sleet, Chief Executive, Coeliac UK
• Elise Millington, Vice-Chair, Coeliac UK
• Lisa Trivett, Head of Membership Services and Income Generation, Coeliac UK
• Keith Harrison, Independent Trading Company Director