JAC Board minutes February 2025

13 February 2025

Present (Back to top)

Commissioners:

Helen Pitcher (Chairman)
Mark Warby (Vice Chair)
Nicolina Andall
Noel Arnold
Christopher Bones
Tom Cross
Sue Hoyle
Uchechi Igbokwe
Tanweer Ikram
Adam Johnson
Clare McGlynn
Barry Morgan
Angela Rafferty
Greg Sinfield

Staff:

Chief Executive
Deputy Chief Executive/ Head of Strategy and Policy
Head of Operations and Digital
Head of Operational Delivery
Head of Selection Policy
Head of Corporate Services
Senior Policy Advisor
Senior Selection Exercise Manager
Selection Exercise Manager
Acting Head of Secretariat
Secretariat Manager
Senior Executive Assistant

1. Apologies and matters arising (Back to top)

The minutes of the 12 December 2024 meeting were agreed.

No apologies were received.

2. Chief Executive’s Report and Management Information Pack (Back to top)

The Chief Executive provided an update on:

• the 2024/25 budget allocation
• the 2024/25 Judicial recruitment programme
• performance against the 2024-25 Business Plan
• the 2024 People Survey
• JAC accommodation update
• an update on complaints and ongoing litigation (legally privileged).

3. Report back from Working Groups (Back to top)

The Chairman asked Commissioners to report back on recent meetings of committees and working groups.

Digital Board

Greg Sinfield reported back from the Digital Board which met on 30 January 2025. The Digital Board:

• agreed a paper covering next steps in development of the next Digital Strategy
• noted progress against the 2024-25 roadmap
• were updated on the RAID log and progress against the vulnerabilities identified by IT Health Check Report that was carried out in September 2024
• were updated on a meeting with the MOJ Digital and Security Teams concerning the provision of IT and Digital Services by the MOJ to Arms Length Bodies.

Audit and Risk Committee

Nicolina Andall reported back on the Audit and Risk Committee (ARC) which took place on 30 January 2025. The Committee:

• reviewed the corporate risk register.
• reviewed the accounts for quarter three of 2024/25.
• reflected on progress against the internal audit.
• noted that no new security incidents had been reported and there have been no incidents of fraud or whistleblowing.

4. Chairman’s Report (Back to top)

The Chairman reported back on the following:

• Recruitment updates, including JAC lay commissioner recruitment
• Attendance at the judicial appointments tripartite conference on 4th and 5th February
• Chris Bones will join ARC on an interim basis.
• The Chairman asked ARC to consider whether the Corporate Risk Register was sufficiently covering risks to the organisation given some recent media coverage and risks to operational delivery should the organisation be without a Chair. The interim Chair of ARC was asked to report back to the Commission Board in March.

5. Statutory Consultation: Decision on Exercises (Back to top)

The Senior Policy Advisor presented the proposed approach to Statutory
Consultation for exercises due to launch from March 2025 to September 2025.

The Board noted and approved the proposals.

6. 00236 Salaried Judge of the Employment Tribunal Process (Back to top)

The Selection Exercise Manager presented the proposed process for the Salaried Judge of the Employment Tribunal exercise.

The Board agreed to the proposals.

7. HR: Performance Management (for information) (Back to top)

The Head of Corporate Services presented a paper outlining performance
management and development processes in place for new and existing staff.

The Board noted the update.

8. Forward Look and AOB (Back to top)

The Board noted the 2025 Forward Look, and the Chairman confirmed the next Board meeting will be held on 13 March 2025.

This concluded the business of the Board.