Council is the governing body of the Institution; it functions like a Board of Directors.

Like company Directors, council members are responsible for leading the organisation in a strategic direction that reflects the needs of members, while ensuring that the objectives of the Institution laid out in its Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation are fulfilled.

The Institution’s objectives are:

a) The advancement for the public benefit of the science and practice of signalling (which for the purpose of the Articles means the whole of the apparatus, electrical, mechanical, or otherwise, methods, regulations, and principles whereby the movement of railway or other traffic is controlled) by the promotion of research, the collection and publication of educational material and the holding of conferences, seminars, and meetings.

b) The maintenance of high standards of practice and professional care amongst those working within the industry and the promotion of improved safety standards for the protection of the general public.

Council is made up of:

• The President
• 3 Vice-Presidents (all of whom must be Fellows)
• 9 other Fellows
• 6 Members
• 3 Associate Members.

Council may also co-opt up to three Past Presidents and meetings are normally attended by the ChiefExecutive (who is the company secretary) and the Treasurer.

Council meets on average of six times per year with the timings of Council varied during the year to take account of time zone differences. This is because 50% of Council members are based outside of the UK.

To make council representative of our global organisation, there are constituencies in different regions. The number of Council vacancies for each constituency reflect the size of our membership in each constituency:

• UK — for members who live/work in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
• AHIN — for members who live/work in Australasia, Hong Kong, India or the Netherlands
• Rest of World — for members who live/work elsewhere (not in UK and AHIN)

To be considered for Council you must nominate yourself for one of the vacant positions in a constituency.

To be eligible, you must be a fully paid up member, at the right level for the available vacancy. Vacant seats are published on this page during the nominations period each year.

All eligible members will receive information by email from MiVoice Election Services — an independent organisation who run the logistics of elections on our behalf to ensure an impartial and fair process. It’s one of many reasons why it’s vital to ensure your contact details are up to date.

Details of available vacancies on Council appear below on this page.