Sunita Yardley-Patel is the Head of Governance at Ormiston Academies Trust. In this comment blog she considers who gets to govern and why broadening access and redefining experience is critical to effective boards.

Joshua Domb is the founder of Gen-R Law, a climate and ESG-focused law firm. He advises on governance and compliance, including the management of supply chain risk. In this comment blog, he explores why modern slavery and human rights abuses are critical risks that businesses must actively manage to ensure accountability, resilience, and long-term trust.

Changing a company’s year end and the filing of the B83 sometimes leads to confusion among presenters

Risk is now a mainstream topic of conversation. In the past, risk was associated primarily with fast-moving innovative businesses (and with particular events such as product launches); but the UK’s risk landscape has changed radically in the last decade.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has finished consulting on its proposed changes to the Code. The UK Stewardship Code sets a standard for how investors manage their responsibilities and aims to ensure that investment decisions drive long-term value and create positive societal outcomes.

Boards really matter. A successful board of directors adds significant value to an organisation and its stakeholders. Good boards do not happen by accident. Nor does board effectiveness last indefinitely. Many boards don’t achieve their potential because they remain collections of individuals and never form into a team.

The Company Law Review Group is an expert advisory body charged with advising the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment on the review and development of company law in Ireland. It was accorded statutory advisory status by the Company Law Enforcement Act 2001, which was continued under Section 958 of the Companies Act 2014. The CLRG operates on a two-year work programme which is determined by the Minister in consultation with the CLRG.

A conference first-timer gives his reflections on last year’s annual conference.

Electrical power has been restored to Heathrow Airport, but fixing the governance problems which underlay the crisis will take much longer. Daniel Valentine suggests that Friday’s emergency shutdown of Heathrow raises serious questions about both the governance of the UK’s energy infrastructure, and decision making by airports, and provides lessons for all organisations.