The Association’s Board of Trustees met on 22 January 2011 in Kettering.
Tribute was paid to former Vice Chair of Trustees, Alan Horwell, who had recently passed away. Board members personally acknowledged his contribution to the Board's work, to National Office and to the wider Association.
The Board:
- Approved four grants for care centres, as recommended by the Care Development Advisory Panel, for a new centre in Bristol and continued funding for Manchester, the National Hospital in London and Cardiff/South Wales.
- Agreed to support the establishment of a Personal Chair in Motor Neurone Biology at the University of Oxford.
- Agreed to proposals for a one-day AGM. Trustees heard that some members had sought a longer programme but accepted the rationale behind retaining a one-day event.
- Enjoyed a detailed presentation on information, communication and technology development and provision, including the Association’s new online forum.
- Received and discussed a report on the 2010 staff survey.
- Received a report on the International Alliance Board meeting and the International Symposium.
- Discussed a budget which balanced the following priorities:
>The need to continue to develop the Association’s services and activities for people affected by MND, to ensure the Association remains on course to deliver our vision of a world free of MND, and our mission of undertaking and promoting research, while ensuring highest possible quality of life and death with dignity for people with the disease.
> The need to ensure we remain above our threshold of keeping cash in reserves equivalent to six-months’ running of the Association.
> The need to sustain funding for all of our activities despite the recent flattening off of overall income, as a result of a drop in money coming from legacies.
- The Board then approved a budget with the following main features:
> An expenditure of £15.5 million, including an 11% increase on national care spend compared to last year’s budget, and a 6% increase in regional care. We are also continuing our investment in cutting-edge research that will help us towards a world free of MND.
> Four new staff posts, where evidence shows that investing in new staff will result in an increased ability to deliver for people affected by MND.
> No pay award for staff for 2011/12.
