Governance

In the UK, members of governing bodies may be trustees, management or executive committee members or directors. The name depends on the legal status, governing document and custom and practice of the entity. 

• We have a board of trustees, also known as the executive board. 
• The subsidiary company is called WCPT Trading and has a board of directors. 

We use the term board member.

Our governance framework assists the executive board in meeting relevant best practice governance arrangements for not for profit enterprises and to comply with relevant statutory requirements, particularly the Charities Act 2011. 

Governance is a term used to describe the board members’ role in: 

• long-term direction of the charity, including its objectives or purposes 
• implementation of policies and activities to achieve objectives 
• compliance with legal requirements 
• accountability to those with an interest or 'stake' in the charity. 

The governance framework documents the required practices and procedures related to the board and board committees and comprises two documents: 

• board charter which identifies the responsibilities, accountabilities and relationships between our governance bodies 
• board operating guidelines which guide the scheduling, agenda and timing of meetings and requirements for the presentation, lodgment, and approval process for providing information for board and committee consideration.  

The chair of the board will be responsible for ensuring overall maintenance and compliance with the governance framework, which will be reviewed every two years by the board. 

Our constitution states the regional board member of the executive board elected by the member organisations within the region has the right to attend and speak at meetings of the regional executive committee but is generally not a member of the regional executive committee.  

Our past presidents

• Mildred Elson, 1953-1956, member of American Physical Therapy Association
• Gwen Griffin, 1956-1959, member of Chartered Society of Physiotherapy 
• Rudie Agersnap, 1959-1967, member of Association of Danish Physiotherapists 
• Glen Park, 1967-1970, member of Physiotherapy New Zealand 
• Doreen Moore, 1970-1974, member of Canadian Physiotherapy Association
• Eugene Michels, 1974-1982, member of American Physical Therapy Association
• Margrit List, 1982-1988, member of German Association for Physiotherapy 
• Brian Davey, 1988-1991, member of Australian Physiotherapy Association
• A J Fernando, 1991-1995, member of Canadian Physiotherapy Association
• David Teager, 1995-1999, member of Chartered Society of Physiotherapy 
• Sandra Mercer Moore, 1999-2007, member of Australian Physiotherapy Association
• Marilyn Moffat, 2007-2015, member of American Physical Therapy Association 
• Emma Stokes, 2015-2023, member of Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists