Council Regulations 3 of 2019

1. The purpose of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History is to assemble, preserve, and exhibit the University’s natural history collections and to promote research, teaching, and public education in the natural sciences based on the museum’s collections.

2. The Visitors of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History shall be:

(1) a chair who shall be appointed by the Vice-Chancellor;

(2) the Head of Gardens, Libraries and Museums (GLAM);

(3) one of the Proctors or the Assessor as may be agreed between them;

(4)−(7) up to four persons appointed by Council, ensuring a balance of representation from across the four academic divisions;

(8) the Director of the Pitt Rivers Museum;

(9) the Head of the Department of Biology or their nominee;

(10) the Head of the Department of Earth Sciences or their nominee;

(11) a faculty member of Biology, appointed by the Head of the Department of Biology, in consultation with the Chair of the Visitors and the Director of the Museum;

(12) a faculty member of Earth Sciences, appointed by the Head of the Department of Earth Sciences, in consultation with the Chair of the Visitors and the Director of the Museum.

3. (1) Ensuring that the number of external Visitors is not greater than the number of internal Visitors, the Visitors may co-opt up to six additional members, who may be internal or external, and who need not be members of Congregation to provide specific skills not covered by existing appointments. .

(2) The period of office for appointed and co-opted members shall be three years, and no appointed, elected, or co-opted member shall serve more than two consecutive full terms of office. Casual vacancies shall be filled either for the remainder of the period of office of the person being replaced or, at the discretion of the appointing body, for a full period.

(3) Notwithstanding regulation (2) above, in the case of appointed and co-opted members the General Purposes Committee of Council may determine that one further consecutive period is permitted in an individual case.

4. The Director of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History shall be the secretary to the Visitors, except that the Visitors may require him or her to withdraw from any meeting.

5. In fulfilment of their responsibilities, under Council, for the safe keeping, preservation, orderly administration, and general policy of the museum and within the approved budget reported to them, in accordance with section 10 of Statute VIII, the Visitors:

(1) shall, subject to the provisions of regulations 11 below, delegate the appointment of all staff in the museum in accordance with procedures set out in standing orders;

(2) shall prepare annually a report on the activities of the museum to Council via GLAM Board.

6. The Visitors shall have authority, under Council, to make such other arrangements by standing order as are necessary to fulfil their responsibilities.

7. In carrying out their responsibilities the Visitors shall co-operate with the GLAM Board in facilitating co-ordination between the University’s museums and scientific collections, particularly with respect to planning, allocation and use of resources, and the development, care, and promotion of the collections as national and international resources both for teaching and research and for public access.

8. The Director of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History shall be the first officer of the museum, and shall act for and be responsible to the Visitors in the exercise of their powers.

9. The Director shall be responsible, under the Visitors, for all strategic aspects of the operation and well-being of the museum, including:

(1) the allocation and development of space and other resources;

(2) the distribution of support and other facilities;

(3) acquisitions policy;

(4) the conservation and study of the collections, and their display and publication; and

(5) the participation in, and fostering of, scholarly work, research and public education within the museum.

10. Notwithstanding any specific contractual requirements, the Director shall have the right to teach, subject to the Visitors being satisfied that this is not incompatible with the discharge of directorial responsibilities. .

11. The Director shall be appointed by a board of electors consisting of:

(1) the Vice-Chancellor, or, if the head of the college specified in paragraph (2) of this regulation is Vice-Chancellor, a person appointed by Council;

(2) the head of the college with which the directorship is on that occasion associated, or, if the head is unable or unwilling to act, a person appointed by the governing body of the college;

(3) a person appointed by the governing body of the college specified in paragraph (2) of this regulation;

(4) a person appointed by Council;

(5), (6) two persons appointed by the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Board;

(7)-(9) three persons appointed by the Visitors of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

12. The senior leadership team of the Museum of Natural History may attend (but not vote at) any meeting of the Visitors, except that the Visitors may require them to withdraw from any meeting.