Governing Foundation Trusts

Summary

Foundation trusts, which were first set up in 2004, move the accountability of hospitals from the Department of Health and Secretary of State for Health to members, their elected governors and an independent regulator called Monitor. The King's Fund held the first national networking event for elected foundation trust governors in January 2005. This paper reflects their views on their role and sets out different ways in which that role could be developed. It identifies developments needed to ensure the success of these new governance arrangements.