GovWire

What is a public appointment

A public appointment has no exact definition typically it could be a chair or non-executive director, for a board of a public body, a member of an advisory committee or an office holder.

There is a wide variety of public appointments, from those at local levels, monitoring the operation of local prisons, national parks or flood defences, to others that help steer the direction of well-known national institutions like the NHS and some of the countrys largest museums.

There are a wealth of benefits to becoming a public appointee. Read more about the benefits, what a role might entail and required skills.

Who can apply

Most people can apply for a public appointment. We actively encourage applicants who can bring new talent and fresh perspectives to the services we all care about. Whatever your interests, background and experience there is an opportunity for you to get involved.

You can be a public appointee alongside your job, as long as you have the time to do both roles.

In general, you should have the right to work in the UK to be eligible to apply for a public appointment.

There are a small number of specialist roles that are not open to non-British citizens. Any nationality requirements will be specified in the vacancy details.

The government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards.

You cannot be considered for a public appointment if:

• you are disqualified from acting as a company director (under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986)
• have an unspent conviction on your criminal record
• your estate has been sequestrated in Scotland or you enter into a debt arrangement programme under Part 1 of the Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002 (asp 17) as the debtor or have, under Scots law, granted a trust deed for creditors

When you apply, you should declare if:

• you are, or have been, bankrupt or you have made an arrangement with a creditor at any point, including the dates of this
• you are subject to a current police investigation

You must inform the sponsor department if, during the application process, your circumstances change in respect of any of the above points.

When you apply you should also declare any relevant interests, highlighting any that you think may call into question your ability to properly discharge the responsibilities of the role you are applying for. You should also declare any other matters which may mean you may not be able to meet the requirements of the Code of Conduct of Board Members (see Outside interests and reputational issues section below).

General skills required

Roles often focus on your existing transferable skills. These could be:

• providing strategic leadership and direction
• financial and risk management
• providing independent scrutiny and challenge
• working as a part of a team
• having an awareness or experience of good governance

Some roles will require specialists or specialist skills. Requirements for each role will be set out in its advertisement whatever your interests, background and experience, there is an opportunity for you to get involved.

Types of roles available

There are lots of different types of public appointment. The most common types are set out below.

Chair

A Chair is responsible for the strategic leadership of the board of an organisation and for ensuring its overall effectiveness and delivery against agreed purpose and objectives.

Member

A member (often referred to as a non-executive director (NED)) supports the Chair in their leadership of the board and provides appropriate scrutiny and challenge to the executive of the organisation.

Individual Office Holder

An Individual Office Holder is a person who has been appointed to undertake a specific function on behalf of, or for, ministers. They are not supported by other non-executive members. Examples include the Childrens Commissioner (which is a statutory role with legislation that sets out its remit) and the Food Waste Champion (a non-statutory role).

Sometimes, you may see executive roles advertised on this site. An executive is a person who is to be an employee of a public body or public office such as Chief Executives and Chief Operating Officers. These are not public appointments, however ministers may sometimes be involved in these appointments.

Time commitment

Appointments vary in time commitment which can be anywhere from 2 to 3 days per week; 1 to 2 days a month; to a few days a year. Appointments are usually held for between 3 and 5 years.

The vacancy will contain details of how much time is involved and how long you can expect to commit to that role, but if you have any further questions, you can follow up through the contact details provided in the advert.

Payment and expenses

You should read the individual vacancy details for more information about remuneration for the role you are interested in. While you will not be employed, remuneration, if provided, will be treated as employment income and will be subject to tax and National Insurance contributions, both of which will be deducted at source under PAYE before you are paid.

You can usually claim reimbursement for reasonable travel and subsistence costs necessarily incurred on official business however these payments are taxable as earnings and will be subject to tax and national insurance, both of which will be deducted at source under PAYE before you are paid.

If you are appointed, you will not become a member of the Civil Service or be subject to the provisions of employment law.

Outside interests and reputational issues

Holders of public office are expected to adhere to and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life and the principles contained within the Code of Conduct for Board Members.. Applicants and appointees need to abide by these principles and you should consider carefully:

• any outside interests that you may have, such as shares you may hold in a company providing services to government
• any possible reputational issues arising from your past actions or public statements that you have made
• any political roles you hold or political campaigns you have supported

which may call into question your ability to meet the standards set out in these Codes or to properly discharge the responsibilities of the role you are applying for.

You will need to answer relevant questions in relation to these points when making an application. Many conflicts of interest can be satisfactorily resolved and declaring a potential conflict does not prevent you from being interviewed. If you are shortlisted for an interview, the panel will discuss any potential conflicts with you during that interview, including any proposals you may have to mitigate them and record that in their advice to ministers.

Alongside your own declaration, we will conduct appropriate checks, as part of which we will consider anything in the public domain related to your conduct or professional capacity. This may include searches of previous public statements and social media, blogs or any other publicly available information. The successful candidate(s) may be required to give up any conflicting interests and their other business and financial interests may be published in line with organisational policies.

Political activity

Political activity is not a bar to appointment but must be declared. When you apply, you must declare if, during the last five years, you have:

• been employed by a political party
• held significant office in a political party
• stood as a candidate for a political party
• publicly spoken on behalf of a political party
• made significant donations or loans to a political party

Details of declared political activity will be published when the appointment is announced, as set out in paragraph 9.2 of the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

How to apply

You can search for public appointments online and find out how to apply through the role advert.

If you want to apply for a role you will usually need to submit a CV and a supporting statement that explain how you meet the requirements for the role. You will also need to answer some questions about yourself, including some diversity information (although you can choose prefer not to say in response to these questions).

One of the questions will ask whether you have a disability. 