Previous page

Table of Contents

Next page

Report of the Council on the Principal Administrative Officers

The COUNCIL beg leave to report to the University as follows:

1. In their Notice on University Governance (Reporter, p. 508) the Council said that they intended to bring forward proposals to amend the Statutes and Ordinances as they relate to the Principal Administrative Officers. Those proposals are set out in this Report.

2. The approval by the University of the revised Ordinance for the Unified Administrative Service, and the consequent establishment of the offices of Academic Secretary and Director of Finance, require formal clarification of the roles of those officers in relation to the existing offices of Secretary General and Treasurer respectively. It is inappropriate for the previous informal arrangements and understandings to be allowed to continue. Attached at Annex 1 and 2 respectively are proposed revised statements of role and responsibility for the Treasurer and Secretary General that have been discussed with the current holders of the offices and agreed by the Council.

3. In his report on CAPSA and its implementation Professor Shattock recommended that in addition to his statutory responsibility to the Council there should be a formal statement establishing that the Registrary has a reporting relationship to the Vice-Chancellor for the functioning of the University's administration. The Council accept this recommendation, as do the Registrary and the Vice-Chancellor, as formal clarification of present understandings.

4. Accordingly the Council propose amendments to the Statutes and Ordinances to give effect to the changes outlined in paragraphs 2 and 3 and Annexes 1 and 2. The Council are of the clear view that these changes are necessary, regardless of the outcome of the current consultation on changes in the University's governance arrangements. If they are approved, the Council would intend that the new arrangements, and the office(s) concerned, should be reviewed when any of the Principal Administrative Offices next falls vacant. The Council also intend that for any major procurement or management projects in the future, they will define the responsibilities of the relevant individual officers.

5. The Council recommend:

I. That, subject to the approval of Her Majesty in Council, the Statutes of the University be amended as follows, and that these amendments be submitted under the Common Seal of the University to Her Majesty in Council for approval.

Statute C

Chapter I

THE GENERAL BOARD OF THE FACULTIES

Section 5.

By adding at the end of this section the following new sentence:

The Secretary of the General Board shall be appointed in a manner determined by Ordinance.

Statute D

Chapter VIII

THE REGISTRARY, THE SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE FACULTIES

Section 1(a):

By amending the subsection so as to read:

(a) to act as the principal administrative officer of the University and as the head of the University's administrative staff, reporting to the Vice-Chancellor in this capacity;

Section 4(b).

By repealing this subsection.

Chapter X

THE TREASURER

Section 1.

By deleting in subsection (a) the words 'financial officer and'.

By repealing subsections (b), (c), and (e).

II. That, subject to the approval of Recommendation I, and with effect from the date that the amendments to the Statutes are approved by Her Majesty in Council, the regulations for the General Board (Statutes and Ordinances, p. 121) be amended by inserting the following new section:

Secretary of the General Board

The Academic Secretary shall be Secretary of the General Board.

III. That, subject to the approval of Recommendation I, and with effect from the date that the amendments to the Statutes are approved by Her Majesty in Council, the regulations for Financial matters (Statutes and Ordinances, p. 895) be amended as follows:

Regulation 1.

By deleting the final sentence.

Regulations 2-9.

By renumbering the regulations as 3-10, amending cross-references accordingly, and inserting the following new Regulation 2:

2. The Director of Finance shall be Secretary of the Finance Committee.

ANNEX 1

The Treasurer, under the Statutes, is the Council's principal financial officer and adviser on financial matters. It is proposed that the Treasurer should continue to be the Council's principal adviser on financial matters but that the Treasurer should no longer be Secretary to the Finance Committee or have responsibility for preparing statements, accounts, and estimates. The Director of Finance would fulfill these latter tasks. The Treasurer will report to the Vice-Chancellor and have oversight of the development and implementation of policy and strategy relating to the University's physical assets and investments, including the negotiation of major commercial contracts. The Treasurer will, under the Council, be responsible for co-ordinating, with the relevant academic sponsor, major building projects and strategic collaborations, and for their financial integrity. The Treasurer will continue to be a member ex officio of a number of University bodies including the Local Examinations Syndicate and the Press Syndicate, and will continue to hold a number of functional responsibilities. The administrative support needed by the Treasurer will be provided by the Unified Administrative Service.

ANNEX 2

The Secretary General's statutory duties include being the Council's principal adviser on academic and educational policy. It is proposed that this aspect of the duties becomes the principal statutory responsibility of the Secretary General who will be specifically charged with the provision of high-level advice and support to the Council and the Vice-Chancellor on matters of strategic importance to the University's educational programmes. The duties will initially focus on the University's teaching and learning strategy. The Secretary General will report to the Vice-Chancellor and the duties of the office will be reviewed periodically in the light of the responsibilities assigned by the Vice-Chancellor to the Pro-Vice-Chancellors. The administrative support for the Secretary General will be provided by the Unified Administrative Service.

Previous page

Table of Contents

Next page

Cambridge University Reporter, 27 March 2002
Copyright © 2002 The Chancellor, Masters and Scholars of the University of Cambridge.