The first Chairs’ Challenge session of 2023 is coming up on 9 March, giving PCF members the chance to share thoughts, experiences and advice in an informal, confidential and supportive environment. These quarterly meetings began in 2021 and have proved to be a great space for public chairs to address some of the biggest topics facing the sector. Previous sessions have covered maturing the departmental relationship, working in collaboration with the third sector, and managing large-scale transformation.

I took on the role of hosting the Chairs’ Challenge series because I value the opportunity it provides for discussions led by people with expertise in areas relevant to public body chairs. While attendees represent different and diverse organisations, these discussions can help us identify key strategic issues common to us all.

One such issue, the focus of our upcoming session, is the role public bodies can play in policy making. This has become especially relevant given the Cabinet Office’s call for public bodies to have a ‘laser like focus on delivery’, the question being whether this narrow focus combined with the pressures of public body reform and financial challenges may lead to other opportunities being missed. Policy making is a key area where the expertise and insight of public bodies can prove invaluable.

One avenue for public bodies to inform policy is via their sponsor department in government. ONR is sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and we maintain a good relationship with them. However, you may wonder why we are not instead sponsored by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), previously the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The reason for this is simple: we must maintain our independence as a regulator, which informs how we interact with government. However, despite this additional consideration we have been able to work with DESNZ to feed into policy making, including providing a helpful voice in the conversation around risks, while remaining impartial. Other public bodies, and especially other safety regulators, face similar issues, so this will be a key topic in our discussions.

We have a couple of great speakers lined up whose contributions will help drive the conversation: Julia Chain, Chair of the Human and Fertilisation Embryology Authority, and Tim Eggar, Chair of the North Sea Transition Authority. Julia will bring her substantial experience of supporting policy development in a particularly contentious area, following a career that included becoming the first female managing partner of a top 100 law firm. Tim will share how his organisation – previously the Oil and Gas Authority – led the way on changing focus from fossil fuels to transitioning to net zero, as well as his experience driving policy as a former government minister.

I am very much looking forward to this upcoming Chairs’ Challenge session and hope it will provide a space for fruitful discussions. Of course, what happens after the session is arguably more important, and I hope attendees will see more ways they can use their expertise to contribute to policy making across many different contexts. If you are a public body chair, please take advantage of this valuable opportunity to share your experiences and learn from your peers.

PCF sessions are open to public body chairs. Contact PCF Secretariat for registration details.