Skip to content

Appointing Bodies

Members of the National Trust Council sit at tables in a meeting room
A National Trust Council meeting in London | © National Trust Images/Arnhel de Serra

In 2024, we’ll be reviewing our Council’s Appointing Bodies. Learn more about what they are, what they do and how interested organisations can apply to become an Appointing Body.

About our Council and Appointing Bodies

Our Council is one of our two main governance bodies and plays an important role in how the National Trust is governed. The Council's key governance responsibilities are to appoint the Board of Trustees and hold it to account. The Council is made up of 36 members, with 18 elected members and 18 appointed members from organisations (called Appointing Bodies) which have a connection to the Trust's work.

Our Appointing Bodies are 18 organisations that are elected by National Trust members every six years. The organisations generally operate in areas that are connected to our work, such as nature, conservation, heritage and volunteering.

Our current Appointing Bodies

In 2018, our members elected these organisations to appoint a Council member:

  • Campaign to Protect Rural England
  • Canal & River Trust
  • Council for British Archaeology
  • English Heritage
  • Historic Houses
  • Museums Association
  • National Farmers' Union
  • Open Spaces Society
  • Ramblers
  • Royal Horticultural Society
  • RSPB
  • Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings
  • Soil Association
  • Tenants' Association of the National Trust
  • The Conservation Volunteers
  • The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
  • The Wildlife Trusts
  • The Woodland Trust

Our next review

We'll be reviewing our current list of Appointing Bodies in 2024. The final decision about which organisations will be Appointing Bodies will be decided by our members via a ballot in autumn 2024. The outcome of the ballot will be announced at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) in 2024.

What we're looking for

The Nominations Committee has recommended the following proposed eligibility criteria for potential Appointing Body organisations to the Council. Any candidate organisation should:

  • operate in the third sector or be a body with broad sectoral representation in an area of the Trust’s strategy, charitable purposes or commercial interests
  • have a public statement of core aims which seek to deliver public benefit over a sustained period of time
  • have a proven and public track record of delivering benefit in a complementary field of work to the National Trust, and a likely long-term future
  • demonstrate an understanding of, and affinity with, the National Trust’s values, and an understanding of the role and responsibilities of a Council member of the National Trust
  • be prepared to give their appointed candidate (if an employee) sufficient time to attend three Council meetings a year, and to recognise the personal development opportunity that Council membership can offer.

If an organisation is an existing Appointing Body, the attendance record of their appointee will also be taken into account.

How to apply

If your organisation is interested in being an Appointing Body, please email ABreview@nationaltrust.org.uk before 12pm on Monday 18 December 2023. We'll then send you more information on how to apply before the 8 January 2024 deadline for applications.

You might also be interested in

A volunteer at the National Trust AGM 2022 at Bath Assembly Rooms, England
Article
Article

How we are run 

Discover how the National Trust is run, how our governance arrangements are underpinned by Acts of Parliament and how they are designed to support and challenge our staff.

National Trust Council meeting, February 2022
Article
Article

Council 

Discover how the members of the Council are elected and how they advise on important decisions, inform strategy and keep us connected to the wider public.

The National Trust's Annual General Meeting 2019 in the Steam Museum, Swindon
Article
Article

Board of Trustees 

Discover who sits on the National Trust's Board of Trustees, what experience they bring to the role and how they work together to meet the Trust's purpose.

Three members of National Trust staff having a conversation in an office
Article
Article

How governance appointments are made 

Find out more about how we appoint the volunteers who oversee the governance arrangements of the National Trust, ensuring that we remain focused on achieving our mission.

The National Trust AGM 2023, STEAM Museum, Swindon

Annual General Meeting 

The 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) took place on 11 November. Watch a video of the event and find out the results of the members' resolutions and Council elections.