Can students' unions still hold remote AGMs in a
post-lockdown world?
The COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting lockdowns, social
distancing and self-isolation rules, had an impact on nearly every
aspect of our daily lives. One thing made particularly difficult
during this time was meeting face to face, which affected us as
individuals but also had implications for all types of
organisations, with students' unions no exception.
From June 2020, the government brought in temporary legislation
(the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020
(‘CIGA')) which enabled SUs that are companies to hold
meetings remotely, even where their governing document did not
allow this, in an attempt to help slow the spread of COVID-19. The
Charity Commission also provided guidance to say that it would take
a flexible and pragmatic approach to meetings held outside the
terms of a charity's constitution.
