Minutes Board of Trustees Meeting 19 September 2025

Present:

Board Members: 

• Ashok Ahir (President and Chair)
• David Hay
• Heledd Bebb
• Jo Williams
• Andrew Prescott
• Quentin Howard
• Mohini Gupta
• Susan Davies
• Janet Wademan
• Michael Gibbon
• Andrew Evans
• Gronw Percy
• John Allen
• Hannah Lindsay
• Andrew Cusworth

Executive Team:

• Rhodri Llwyd Morgan, Chief Executive
• Mererid Boswell, Director of Corporate Services
• Owain Roberts, Director of Collections
• Rhian Gibson, Director of Comms. And Engagement 

Also present:

• Annwen Isaac, Human Resources Manager
• Nia Dafydd, Partnership Council
• Nicky Guy, Welsh Government Philip Roberts, Welsh Government

Apologies:

• Mary Ellis, Welsh Government

Mintes:

• Annwen Isaac

Section 1

1. General Matters 

1.1 Welcome by the Chair, opening remarks and apologies

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. Nicky Guy and Philip Roberts from Welsh Government and Nia Dafydd on behalf of the Library’s Trade Unions were welcomed. 

1.2 Declaration of interests relevant to the agenda

Heledd Bebb declared an interest in relation to item 3.4 the progress report on the Library’s Engagement Strategy in that she knows Mari Stevens, Cwmni Anian.

The staff present declared an in interest regards the items: 3.5 Pension consultation 4.1.2 Pay remit letter 2025-2026 

1.3 Minutes of meeting held 11 July 2025 and matters arising that are not on the agenda The minutes were approved as an accurate record of the matters discussed. It was noted that the English minutes should read “Audit, Risk & Assurance Committee”. 

Section 2

2.1 Chief Executive’s Report 

The Chief Executive presented his report, noting the following points:

• Attention had been turned to a series of projects which chime with Welsh Government Cultural Priorities.  Reference was made in particular to the grant received to appoint a Lead on Policy and Climate Crisis Programme which will work closely with the archive and culture sector. Following a recent round of interviews, Judith Musker Turner has been appointed to the role and will be joining us in the autumn
• With Senedd elections in 2026 some of the parties have contacted the Library to discuss the nature of our work; so far, two visits have taken place.
• Staffing Structure – The Library has now filled all Head of Department posts. Nia Daniel has been appointed Head of Unique Collections and Scott Waby as Head of Collections Care and will be responsible for long-term storage planning and digital conservation.  
• Nia Daniel, Head of Unique Collections and the department were congratulated on successfully retaining the Archives Services Accreditation for the Library.
• It was noted that the work on CPD4 projects and partnerships is ongoing and the window to declare interest open. The Panel is to meet to assess in January 2026.
• The results of the Staff Survey and Implementation Plan arising from it will be discussed in the next Performance, Quality and Governance Committee meeting with a summary for the Board to follow. 

It was agreed that Mererid Boswell would have further discussions with David Hay on the Ancestry work relating to digitising Bishops Transcripts from the Library’s collections.  

It was noted that one of the biggest concerns of the Library at present is Cyber Security. It’s a risk category with regular reports of attacks by hackers which slow systems and result in websites going down. It was agreed that the Audit, Risk and Assurance Committee should consider whether the Library needs cyber insurance, on the grounds that the financial risk in rebuilding systems is also enormous.

It was questioned whether the Library is too ambitious considering its staffing capacity following the recent voluntary severances.  It was noted that capacity is a problem and it would be necessary to seek additional support considering our priorities. It was noted that going forward, management accounts will include staff numbers.

The Chief Executive was thanked for a comprehensive report and it was noted that the report should be shared more widely. The Library already publishes a Newsletter separate from this report and it will be necessary to consider how to merge this information into one document.  

 

Section 3

Strategic Matters 3.1. 

Artificial Intelligence Presentation 

Jason Evans, Open Data Manager joined to give a presentation on “Artificial Intelligence in the Library”. The presentation was shared with the Trustees in advance of the meeting. It was agreed that guidance/policy on AI needed to be prepared for staff as well as presenting a timetable for AI Strategy for the Board. Jason was thanked for a comprehendible presentation. 

3.2 Second storage site for the Library 

Mererid Boswell presented a short paper with an update since the meeting in July on purchasing land from Aberystwyth University for development of a second storage site for the Library. 

Should the purchase go through an overage Clause of 25% of any increase in the value of the property for 15 years is noted in the Heads of Terms.

Following the discussion, offering an overage clause of a maximum of £1.5M for 10 years with tapering from years 5-10 was agreed. It was agreed that more work was needed on the overage and Gronw Percy, Quentin Howard and Mererid Boswell will discuss this further. Nicky Guy, Welsh Government reported that a Strategic Outline Case had been presented to them for comments but once the case has reached its final version, some time will be needed for the Ministerial approval. She also noted that purchasing the site was only one aspect and there would be further development costs should the purchase complete. 

It was also agreed that the Storage Committee papers will be shared with the Trustees via the Teams channel. 

3.3. Implementation plan and main targets 2025-26 

Since the last meeting a full set of targets has been prepared which is shared with the papers. The precise figures which accompany the targets will be shared prior to the next Board meeting. The following changes to the format were also agreed:

• column 3 – Impact
• column 4 – How, adding steps to be taken
• The KPI’s should be numbered at the bottom of the document and cross referenced with the Area/Target of the Organisational Plan.

 It was agreed that there is further work to be undertaken on the layout by way of simplification and tweaking some things. The Implementation Plan will be discussed regularly in the Performance, Quality and Governance Committee and further comments should be directed to Janet Wademan as Chair of this Committee. The Plan was Approved.

3.4 Progress report – Your Library – the Library’s Engagement Strategy 

Rhian Gibson presented a paper updating the Board on the work of drawing up the Engagement Strategy. It was noted that thorough research and background work had been undertaken with internal consultation with staff within the Comms. And Engagement Directorate and a workshop extended to more staff would take place next week. The aim is then to present the revised version to those who work within Engagement in Wales. It was noted that key performance indicators for 2025-2026 were lower than those of the previous year because some projects were coming to an end and the Library will be looking at any statistics in a long-term context and more broadly while drawing up the Strategy. 

Following discussion, it was agreed that a special session between 5.00 and 6.00pm for Trustees would be held soon to discuss the Strategy further. Comments from individuals directly to Rhian Gibson or Mari Stevens are also welcomed. 

It was also agreed to share the conclusions of the Beaufort Report with Trustees. 

3.5 Consultation on changes to the Pension Scheme 

As a member of staff Mererid Boswell declared an interest while presenting the paper.

It was reported that the Board of the Pension Scheme had met on 12 September and that the papers had been shared today for decision on whether to go ahead with the changed to the Pension Scheme. 

It was noted that WTW would need 6 clear months from the date of the decision before being able to action the revised scheme. On this basis no changes to the scheme will be effective until 1st April 2027. 

The Library will communicate the Consultation to staff on 6th October 2025 and it will be open for 2 months until 6th December 2025. During this period the Library will give presentations to the staff on the consultation document as well as preparing an easy-to-understand document and video explaining the proposed changes. 

It was noted that this would be the final consultation, and minor changes would be permitted only during the consultation period, and any changes will not lead to further consultation with the staff. 

The consultation document was approved for consultation with the staff. 

3.6 Health, Safety and Wellbeing Annual Report

Annwen Isaac presented the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Annual Report. She referred to the training held during the year. 12 members of staff are now qualified in Mental Health First Aid. A health and Wellbeing promotional day was held in the Library yesterday with presentations on how to relax the mind and reduce stress. 

It was reported that the Stress Management Policy has been revised and now includes guidance on identifying and managing stress for staff and managers as well as a Stress Risk Assessment and a solid Risk Management Implementation Plan, following consultation with the Trade Unions. The Health, Safety and Wellbeing Committee meets quarterly and is a blend of Mangers, Staff and Trade Unions. Matters of concern within the building such as accident reporting, conducting various risk assessments, training, development work on the building and security matters are discussed and acted upon. 

The report was approved.

Section 4 – Corporate Matters 

4.1.1 July Management Accounts 2025

The Management Accounts for the period ending July 2025 were presented by Mererid Boswell. Here are the main points noted: 

• An additional grant of £167K had been received to pay for the increase in cost of the Employers National Insurance and it is hoped that will remain in the baseline for the 2026-27 budget.

• A revised funding letter from Welsh Government is expected, confirming the difference between the pay increase of 3% and 3.75% 

• Staff costs are approximately £100K under budget at present owing to unfilled posts. 

• An estimated loss of approximately £188K at the end of July in terms of income and unrestricted public expenditure. • Investments have hit £18M with gifts and legacies continuing to come in. The accounts were approved. 

4.1.2 Pay Remit 2025-2026 

A version revised from that which was presented to the Performance, Quality, and Governance Committee in June 2025 was presented since 0.75% of funding had been promised from Welsh Government towards the pay increase. The revised version offers a higher increase for the lower bands, tapering going up the bands. 

The PCS has refused the increase in its entirety as the offer does not meet their ask nationally. The result of the Prospect Union ballot is expected within the coming days. Approval from the First Minister will be needed before moving to apply the increases with October’s pay. A comment was made that the bands of the pay remit do not correspond with those of the pension consultation. Mererid Boswell agreed to look at this. The Pay Remit for 2025-2026 was approved. 

4.2 Compliance and Risk 

4.2.1 Risk Register 

The Register was presented by Mererid Boswell. She reported that the changes recommended in the last meeting had been actioned. It was noted that risk number 2 regards failure to secure digital collections had increased and that is because upgrading Fedora digital storage continues to be a priority. Risk number 6 regards failure to prepare for cyber threats had reduced as CymruSOC is monitoring cyber threats beyond the Library’s normal working hours. 

A request was made for the register to include a column for reporting on actions needed and completion timetable. The Risk Register was approved.

5. Reports from Committees 

5.1. Draft Minutes of the Audit, Risk and Assurance Committees

The minutes were shared for information. 

6. Date of the next meeting

Friday, 21 November 2025. 

End.

 

 

ACTION POINTS/MATTERS NEEDING FURTHER ATTENTION